Teach Computer Science with LEGO Robotics

"Learning to code through LEGO® gives students the opportunity to use a physical problem-solving tool in their coding exercises. Their code comes to life in ways they can see, hear, touch and even chase across the room.


Bill Church Profile Jr/Sr High School, Bethlehem, NH"

"Inspire students to program with best-in-class robotics"

"Save time on your computer science lesson planning while giving your students the inspiration, tools and knowledge to explore computer programming on their own.

"Computer programming doesn't have to be complicated for your middle school students – or for you. The LEGO^® MINDSTORMS^® Education EV3 system takes students from coding programs via a simple drag and drop interface to developing complex algorithms. They can even create programs that interact with the real world by using input and output devices. And with time-saving lesson plans and interactive teacher notes, you can build your computer science and programming knowledge quickly."

Above quotes taken from https://education.lego.com/en-us/middle-school/intro/computer-science 

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Students Learn Math to Standards with LEGO Robotics

A very worthwhile academic paper...


"In the new global economy, all students must be prepared to compete with students from around the world. Students are expected to develop a deeper mastery of content and demonstrate what they know through writing and other projects..."

“The REU Mathematics team used NXT LEGO® Robotics to teach various scientific, mathematical, and design concepts, through designing, building, and programming the robots at each level. The students’ received hands on experience with physics, mathematics, motion, environmental factors, and used problem solving in a collaborative groups…”

Read the full paper at its source:  http://nia.ecsu.edu/reuomps2012/teams/math/report%20draft17.pdf

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Kids Learn with Robot Pets: LEGO Robotics

Kids are passionate about animals, pets, and robots. The 3 areas of interest come alive to engage K-12 students in many varieties of STEAM Learning. The video below is a great example of how this can work!

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Encourage Kids to Engage in STEM Learning with LEGO Robotics

Nice piece (below)from Computer Weekly

“ How Lego Education tries to encourage kids into Stem through play-based learning

Lego Education, the more serious branch of the Lego enterprise, aims to provide teachers and other education providers with fun ways to engage children with science, technology, engineering and maths (Stem) subjects.

Lego Mindstorms
Catrine Bjerrehus, associate marketing manager for Lego MINDSTORMS at Lego Education, admitted to feeling out of her depth when she first joined the Lego world.


To try and ease teachers into being more accepting of using Lego to support the curriculum in the classroom, there are resources available including cards with suggestions on how teachers can guide a lesson.


All of the Lego Education sets designed for Primary and Secondary level education also come with a free downloadable guide which includes resources aligned with the curriculum to help teachers with building instructions and classroom tasks.


...Lego Mindstorms..., a type of technology aimed at students in secondary education (aged 10 years and above) that allows pupils to build and programme robots…


… these technologies can be used for “all sorts of Steam lessons” to help students to understand these basic concepts whilst making these discoveries for themselves – again putting the emphasis on actively participating in classroom learning…

Lego for pre-school

Helping children to make discoveries on their own through assisted play can be slightly more delicate for younger children, so for pre-school stage children aged three and up, Lego Education recommends LEGO Education STEAM Park sets.

Children are challenged to use the pieces to build a theme park, and asked what will happen when particular pieces are used together.

This introduces concepts such as balance, centrifugal force, pivots, and other mathematical and scientific theories that will keep occurring throughout their education.

Rikke Baunbæk Wallington, senior concept and design lead for preschool, at Lego Education said she uses these in pre-school lessons filled with 40 children every day, and assured me can contribute to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) learning standards followed by all Ofsted-registered schools or early years providers  in the UK.

Robots, teachers and future jobs

When moving on to primary learning, the recommended Lego kit for supporting classroom learning is the WeDo 2.0, a kit that pairs with the WeDo 2.0 software application to allow children to develop moving robotics…”

…Developing the ability to think outside of the box, something Lego encourages, is important as children in schools now will grow up to have jobs that do not currently exist…”

For the full article go to: http://www.computerweekly.com/blog/Inspect-a-Gadget/How-Lego-Education-tries-to-encourage-kids-into-Stem-through-play-based-learning

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Student Robotics Promotes Learning in Elementary Grades

Excerpts from an encouraging academic paper by Faisel, Kapila, and Iskander of Polytechnic Institute of New York University

 

Click here for the full paper: Using Robotics to Promote Learning in Elementary Grades

https://www.asee.org/public/conferences/8/papers/5480/download

Using Robotics to Promote Learning in Elementary Grades. Abstract. This paper considers the use of LEGO robotics as a tool to allow students in a fourth grade math classroom to engage in experimenting, sense-making, and developing visual understanding of ideas.

Quotes and excerpts, below: 

"LEGO robotics as a tool to allow students in a fourth grade math classroom to engage in experimenting, sense-making, and developing visual understanding of idea."

"Active Learning allows students learn to ask questions, construct their own understanding and explain their ideas to others..."

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

LEGO Robotics Pump Up the Excitement for Math or Science Class

From the article: The Ultimate Ideas for Using LEGO MINDSTORMS Education Bricks in the Classroom


"Pump up the excitement for math or science class.“It never fails: My students are always energetic and eager to work when we work with robots. And with LEGO bricks, we have worked with LEGO MINDSTORM and the new EV3 robots for four years. The students rotate jobs, such as builder, programmer, driver and assistant driver at every session. They brainstorm and discuss to solve problems. We use our robots to compete in First LEGO League (FLL) as well as to teach problem solving in STEM.” —Kathy Teich"




Read the full article at its source: https://www.weareteachers.com/the-ultimate-ideas-for-using-lego-mindstorms-education-bricks-in-the-classroom/

Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Learning to Code Becomes Richer and More Fun for k-12 Students with Apple's Swift Playgrounds and LEGO materials TOGETHER

Apple brings hardware to Swift Playgrounds

Apple updates Swift Playgrounds to support third party robots

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Unexpected Benefits of Robotics in the Classroom

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Great article from Getting Smart...

"The Top Five Unexpected Benefits of Robotics in the Classroom"

"... Here are the top five unexpected benefits I’ve seen in students who use robotics in the classroom:
1. Robotics can be a launching pad for students to realize their passions.
By going through the process of building a robot in the classroom, students explore many different learning pathways. It’s amazing to watch students’ passions grow in subjects that they never knew they would love.
Some of my students have cultivated an interest in 3D printing and coding, and have even gone as far as to take apart household appliances because they have a new-found interest in mechanics. You can watch these students build their own learning pathways because robotics offers them an open platform where they can decide where to go with their experimentations. For teachers, a robotics curriculum naturally allows us to take an individualized approach to each student’s learning, helping to nurture their passions even further.
2. A strong robotics curriculum can create leaders.
When students interact with robots in the classroom and make them perform various motions and tasks, your students’ different strengths will start to shine.
When assembling robots in teams, some students are great at speaking and can verbally bring ideas to life. On the flipside, there are students who may not be as vocal but they lead behind the scenes: they code, perform technical tasks and/or makes sure the team stays on task. Through the exercise of putting the robot together and making it move, these two types of students—both leaders in their own right—learn to communicate as a team and express their ideas to craft the best end result. The ability to come together as different types of leaders, communicate with each other and utilize their personal strengths will be essential throughout these students’ lives, no matter if they become an artist, a business executive or an engineer.
3. Robotics can teach students how to communicate across different technology platforms.
Social media has become a part of our everyday lives and using it is as innate for students today as using the telephone was when I was a teenager. There are plenty of good things about social media — but also many potential dangers and things that you want your students to avoid.
My classroom has a five-foot robot named Twitch..."

Read the full article at its source:  http://www.gettingsmart.com/2016/11/unexpected-benefits-robotics-in-the-classroom/

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Best Robot Toys To Teach Kids Coding And STEM Skills

Good article from Fatherly...

"The 11 Best Robot Toys To Teach Kids Coding And STEM Skills

Robots and toys that will help your child to learn to code, recognize social cues, or just practice building Legos...

...The Lego Mindstorms EV3 31313 set has instructions for building 17 different robots. If that’s not enough, it also comes with programs for each robot and software for tablets and computers for your kid to program the robots yourself.

UBTECH Robotics

Say you can’t pick a robot. UBTECH may be the best place to start looking. There’s Jimu, a robot you can build and code. Or Lynx, a robot with a motion sensor that can record video and send it to your smart phone. If your kid is a Star Wars fan, you can get the Stormtrooper robot, with facial recognition technology and gameplay. Just be ready to say no imperial marching around the house.

OWI Robotic Arm Edge

You can assemble this robotic arm with your kid and start playing with it. It’s wrist can move 120 degrees and it’s elbow can move 300 degrees. The base rotates, too. This robotic arm is sure to grab your kid’s attention (pun intended)."

Read the full article at its source: https://www.fatherly.com/gear/best-robot-toys/

Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Kids Learn to Code with Apple's Swift Playgrounds and LEGO Robotics

There are many varieties of robot available that kids can learn to code with. I personally recommend that schools get involved with LEGO Robotics materials because they support kids in learning the full spectrum of robotics related understandings,  including CODING. With the EV3 materials, for instance, students are supported in learning to design and build robots as well as to code them, a very complete STEM and Robotics experience of which Coding is but one essential element!

More about Apple's SWIFT Playgrounds, below

Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Students Learn Coding with LEGO Robotics

Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Learning and Playing with LEGO Robotics: STEM Skills, Coding, Collaborative Team Work and More

More than just learning STEM knowledge, this approach engages kids in demonstrating to themselves how that knowledge can be applied elegantly in the world around them - It enables them to discover how code translates into real-world, autonomous actions for the robot they build - And it immerses kids in the experience of collaborating and working together on project-based teams.Truly some of the very best in 21st Century Learning!

Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

K-12 Students Learn Coding by Simple Programming of Robots

With so much focus now in our schools on teaching and learning Coding, it's wise to ask "What sort of Coding and for what purpose?" Programming LEGO Robots not only provides a highly accessible platform for learning this skill set, but also provides a tangible, immediate purpose for this new knowledge. There's nothing better for learning Coding skills than seeing one's code applied and working in the real world! So much fun, too!

Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics.
Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics,
a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning!
(surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics: A Guide for K-12 Educators

For full Chapter 1... click here>>>
http://www.iste.org/images/excerpts/ROBOTS-excerpt.pdf

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics 9 Copyright 2011, ISTE ® (International Society for Technology in Education), Getting Started with Robotics: A Guide for K–12 Educators , Mark Gura. 1.800.336.5191 or 1.541.302.3777 (Int’l), iste@iste.org, www.iste.org. All rights reserved. Distribution and copying of this excerpt is allowed for educational purposes and use with full attribution to ISTE.

Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Easy Student Robotics Makes Science Come to Life for Early Elementary Grades

The following quote is from: https://education.lego.com/en-us/elementary/intro/stem

"Make STEM learning come to life

LEGO Education WeDo 2.0 makes science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and coding come to life. The unique combination of the LEGO brick, classroom-friendly software, and engaging, standards-based projects results in a resource that builds students’ confidence to ask questions, define problems and design their own solutions by putting STEM learning directly in their hands."
_______________________________

Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Inspire Students /Teach STEM with Student Robotics

The following quote is from: https://education.lego.com/en-us/middle-school/intro/stem

"Inspire students to learn STEM skills with best-in-class robotics

Save time on your STEM lesson planning while giving your students the inspiration, tools and knowledge to explore computer programming on their own.


Design, build, program and test robots that can complete complex tasks, record live data, respond to environmental changes and more. LEGO MINDSTORMS helps you bring technology, science and computer programming to life with hands-on, project-based STEM learning using best-in-class robotics solutions. The only limit is your students’ imagination."
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Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

LEGO Robots in the Classroom for Elementary STEM Learning

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

LEGO Robotics for Powerful Elementary Grade STEM Learning

Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

How To Use LEGO Robots for Early Elementary STEM Learning

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

LEGO Robotics for MIddle School STEM Learning!

This one astute teacher... the robots are simple, but the learning is sophisticated... just what today's kids really need!

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

STEM Learning with LEGO Robotics

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

High Interest STEM Learning with LEGO Robotics

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

GET STARTED: High Interest Elementary STEM LEARNING With LEGO Student Robotics

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Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!

Students Can Create an "Art Bot", a scribbling robot...

Nice item received in my In Box this morning; sent by Makerspaces. 

  

How To Make An Art Bot

In our latest tutorial, we're going to show you how to create an Art Bot.  These are super fun to create and customize.  The best part about making these is that you don't need to spend a lot of money.  You can recycle and repurpose household items for most of the parts.

This project is also a great way to incorporate more Art into your STEM education program.  

Once you learn the concepts, you can experiment with different designs.  Every change to your bot will make it move and act differently.

Get creative !

Link provided with the message above...
https://www.makerspaces.com/how-to-make-an-art-bot/

Get The Project Tutorial !

Get Started With Robotics In The Classroom

Interesting piece in my In Box this morning from DEXTER...

How To Get Started With Robotics In The Classroom

How To Get Started With Robotics In The Classroom

This is a time of new beginnings, fresh starts, and a whole lot of chaos.

by Lisa Rode, 6th Grade Classroom Teacher in Fairfax County, VA

When starting a new school year or initiative, how do you add anything more? If you are not familiar with programming and robotics, adding “just one more thing” can be a bit intimidating, especially at this beginning of the year. But, it doesn’t need to be difficult.  

Just a bit about my story — I had never programmed a robot before and had very little experience with Scratch or any other programming language. I decided to try something new in my classroom and purchased one robot to build and tinker with alongside my students. I asked my class for a few volunteers to join me at lunch to build and learn about the robot. Three students volunteered to come during their lunch period and we learned alongside one another.  More and more students became interested in programming this class robot. 

Through the support of my school community, I was awarded a grant through the Farmer’s Thank A Million Teachers grant contest.  We were able to purchase more robots and sensors.  They were initially going to be used during an after school program, however over the past three years I have integrated using them in my core content lessons as well as lunch time student-led programming, and an after school club. The students also figure out ways to integrate them into class lessons on their own.

For example, students were given the task of create a Rube Goldberg machine to show energy transformations.  I showed them a variety of examples and said they could use anything in our class makerspace to build it.  The majority of the materials in our makerspace are recyclables and craft materials.  Students immediately found ways to incorporate the class robots into their machines.  One group even had a robot drive forward to push a button on a keyboard to move a character in Minecraft Pi into a photobooth and take a class selfie.  What?!?! I thought they were going to just use cardboard and tape for their machines. It was awesome.  This has been a great adventure and I can’t wait to see where it leads.

BUT… I Don’t Have Enough TIME for Anything Else!!!

Simply put, it is worth the time.  Time is always at a premium in the classroom.  I have found that the use of hands-on activities and project-based learning engages students and leads to a deeper understanding of the concepts. Integrate the use of robotics into core curriculum when possible.  Writing is one of the simplest ways to do this. Students can do something as simple as journal to record and reflect on their project or assignment.

BUT… I Don’t Know Anything About Robots and Programming!

It is almost impossible to keep up to date with all of the new technology, apps, and software. There always seems be something new and different. We need to be flexible and open to learning new things, sometimes right alongside our students.  This can also empower students to take more responsibility for their learning and increase investment. We are not necessarily going to have everything mastered when it comes to tech since it is always evolving. This can be a bit uncomfortable. Sometimes it is difficult for teachers to admit that they do not have all of the answers.  But, that can actually turn into the best thing as you encourage the students to “figure it out together!”

You don’t have to do it all at once. I started out with a few robots and slowly added as I found more and more ways to use them in my classroom.

BUT… No One Else At My School is Doing Robotics

Every teacher is different. Every student is different. Think about it, “A movement starts with a lone nut.”  Be that lone nut.  Start a movement and followers will find you.  Even if you are the only one at first, others will become interested once they see the students working hands-on and how excited they are. Invite teachers to see your students engaged in lessons utilizing the robots and encourage them to work with the robots themselves. The beginning of everything starts with someone introducing it to their school and students. Robotics is included in this and the more others see students learning through their robots, the more others will want to participate...
 

Link to the full piece sent to me... https://www.dexterindustries.com/get-started-robotics-classroom/?mc_cid=cebdb43b2c&mc_eid=931caaa862 

Click on book cover for information

Getting Started with LEGO Robotics. Anyone who works with kids can do LEGO Robotics, a rich and highly motivating platform for important STEM Learning! (surprisingly affordable, too) This books explains it all!