OpenUK – the non-profit dedicated to developing UK leadership in open technology – has announced the launch of a new competition for Key Stage 3 children (age 11-14) across the UK, focused on building awareness of the value open technology can bring to individuals and society.
The competition will be based on assembling and using MiniMU Gloves, which come in a child-friendly kit and are powered by BBC micro:bit devices. The MiniMu kit features a DIY musical glove for children aged 8 and above, based on the MiMU Gloves designed by multiple Grammy award-winning musician Imogen Heap.
“We are very grateful to the open source community whose passions and work have helped us to develop the MiniMU Gloves. I’m looking forward to being inspired by the projects brought to the OpenUK Kids’ Competition,” said Heap.
“We created the MiniMU to encourage young people to discover that technology is both creative and powerful, and that their ideas can change the world. We’re very excited to be a part of the competition and we can’t wait to see what the kids will create,” added Adam Stark, managing director of MiMU Gloves.
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The contest will welcome up to 100 schools across the country, allowing children to experience the possibilities that exist around open technology. The OpenUK Kids’ Competition is supported by Red Hat Inc., a leading provider of open source solutions; as well as GitHub, the software development platform.
Five regional teams of four will be invited to the two-day finals in London on June 10-11, which will include a Code Camp and hackathon in Red Hat’s Open Innovation Lab.
The MiMU gloves have been used by a range of artists to create music including Kris Halpin, Ralf Schmid, Lula, Chagall and even Ariana Grande on her world tour in 2015. As part of the competition, the children’s MiniMU glove design will be open sourced, allowing the public to use them for their own creative endeavours.
To take participate in the OpenUK Kids’ Competition, school teams will have to make up the glove kit, create a video on their experiences, and demonstrate how they will use the gloves. As part of the awards submissions, pupils will learn more about open technologies and provide their responses on the value of open source.
Schools can enter the competition and get the kits for entry until midnight on 29 March 2020. Visit the website for more details on the competition and potential entries. For other questions, contact OpenUK on .