3 keys to success when introducing robotics to young students

Key points:

In my role as a school library media specialist and enrichment teacher in Garfield Elementary SchoolLast year I was researching student-centered robotics products for K-2 students when my school won a grant from Montclair State University.

Montclair State University Professional Resources in Science and Mathematics (PRISM) was working with the New Jersey Department of Education to research computer science education and professional development for K-12 teachers focusing on emerging standards in computer science. Through this grant, I was able to obtain two KIBO robotsas well as the professional development that entails.

Later, I had the opportunity to borrow eight more robots that are available in the Montclair State PRISM office lending library. During the first year of the robotics program for our K-2 students, I discovered a few keys to success in bringing coding to this age group.

1. Make lessons collaborative.

I began my robotics journey with a lesson for first and second grade enrichment classes, working with two or three robots so students worked in teams. We did a fairy tale exercise where teams of students programmed their robot to act like a little pig running away from the big bad wolf.

The more I saw these 1st and 2nd graders working together to decorate and program their robot, the more I thought, “Why not try coding with younger students?” So, I had 13 preschool students come to the library for a demonstration of how to program KIBO by arranging a sequence of scannable wooden programming blocks with various commands, where children bring their program to life by scanning the code with the robot. .

The first project we did was the Hokey Pokey. I entered the commands for forward, backward, right, left, shake and turn. They worked in groups of three, so students took turns scanning the blocks. They had to stop and debug along the way if KIBO didn't work as expected, which taught them how to solve problems. I was worried that such young students would get frustrated, but in fact, they were so excited that it sparked conversations about the mistakes, which led to class-wide collaboration. Once they perfected their code, we did the Hokey Pokey as a class: all the robots and all the kids.

The teachers were amazed that the preschoolers could program a robot and the students had a lot of fun working in teams. When lessons are collaborative in this way, students teach each other and take ownership. Learning from a peer and not having the teacher tell them what to do boosts the confidence of children who may not understand it right away.

2. Make lessons open-ended.

Encouraged by the successful Hokey Pokey preschool program, I moved on to whole-class robotics lessons with our kindergarteners. This lesson was more open ended. Instead of programming the robots to do a specific dance, I asked the students to program their robots to navigate around meteorites. We also created a maze and taught a lesson called “How to Catch a Unicorn,” where they programmed the robot to navigate various obstacles on the way to capturing a mythical beast.

I felt triumphant seeing the enthusiasm of 20 kindergarteners. Robots are inherently fun for many students, but these open-ended lessons also give them the opportunity to learn on their own. Sometimes they know more than I do, so it makes sense for students to take the lead in their own learning.

3. Make lessons hands-on and student-led.

Another lesson I learned with 1st and 2nd graders was “If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands.” This song lent itself to introducing them to KIBO commands they hadn't used yet, such as “Wait for Clap,” the sound sensor, and the light sensor. When children clapped, they could make their robot light up in different colors. They also recorded their own voices with the sound recorder's sensor to make their robots shout “hooray!” when the lyrics of the song say: “If you're happy and you know it, shout hooray!”

Watching my students take the lead in these hands-on lessons inspired me to expand my own knowledge. I went to Montclair State University and William Paterson University for additional training and to learn more about artificial intelligence, coding, and robotics. I came to the conclusion that I should incorporate coding with children more into their regular instruction and into my life.

Not only is programming a valuable way of thinking that all of our students should learn, but these hands-on lessons are deeply engaging. When students worked with robots, behavioral problems decreased compared to when I taught structured, routine lessons.

To my fellow educators who are new to robotics for elementary students: I know that the logistics of organizing coding lessons for young students can be daunting when teaching seven classes a day. But it's incredibly rewarding when all the students participate and ask to do it again. As we begin the new school year, I hope to offer more programming and dive deeper into it for my students. My final piece of advice to my fellow educators is this: try it. If you make a mistake, you and your students can correct it together and the lesson will be enriched.