It's Not That Hard!

I always make it a point that my students know that we don't "play with robots."  I like to tell them, "We don't play in Mr. Dunlap's room.  We work really hard doing really fun stuff."  As my 5th grade class wrapped up for the day, one of my girls made it a point to tell me that, "it's not really that hard."  Whatever... 

I thought about the kids in the room who struggled (and learned) how to construct Cubelets robots to drive through a maze or the ones who labored with Sphero code to learn how to make it drive in a rectangle.  I can't even describe to you the amount of deep thinking that goes into rising to new challenges with robotics.  Sure, it comes easier to some kids than others, but I love celebrating with them when they meet the challenge head on and conquer it.  (We celebrated, but I forgot to take pictures.)

One of the girls in my room has been a rock star for me for years, and I handed her the loaner Finch I have in my room.  "Here, see what you can do with this."  I would check in on her every once in a while and give her a nudge in the right direction.  By the end of Thursday, she figured out how to draw a square and play "Hot Cross Buns."  Friday, she thought out loud, "Can I make a circle?" -- a thought that I have never had.  We worked together and came up with a solution.  We were both super proud of ourselves when we produced a few circles.  

 

I love what I do! Yes, it's a blast and it feels like playing, but I love it when the kids accomplish a task that seemed impossible just an hour earlier. 

Robotics Rockstars

Hello.  It's been a while. So much to catch up on, but now's not the time.  I have a great story to tell from today.  Maybe we'll catch up another day.  

In the past 3 years, I've done a lot with robotics and coding.  Well, I'm not sure how much I've done compared with other elementary teachers around the world, but I've done a lot for my little corner of the educational world here in Boone County, Kentucky.  While I have thoroughly enjoyed using Cubelets, Spheros, and Ozobots, there is a part of me that wants to explore something new.  

This summer, I won an mTiny robot from a vendor at ISTE.  Cute. Right? I have no idea how to use it. And to be honest, I didn't have time at the beginning of the school year to figure it out. So, it sat for weeks. 

Not long ago, I started to research new robots to see what I could add to my room.  Through Twitter, I stumbled upon BirdBrain Technologies, and they let you borrow demo robots for free! So, I asked for a Hummingbird and Finch to try.  And, you guessed it, I haven't done anything with them. 

Not wanting an awesome opportunity to slip by, I decided to do something about it.  I contacted my 5th grade teachers and gave them 8 names of handpicked kids to come to my room today.  Most of these kids have been in and out of my room since 2nd grade and we know each other well. They excel at technological tasks and were up for the challenge.  

I laid it out for them. I know almost nothing about these robots. I own one of them and am borrowing the other two.  My goal for them is to learn how to use the robots and tell me if they are worth buying. They would have to work together, read user manuals, and research on Chromebooks to figure it out.  The kids were all like, "Yep. Got this. Let's go!"  Really?!? No fear?!? Oh! To be a kid again!

This was one of those teaching moments that just got me so excited. The mTiny kids were a bit stumped till we discovered that the coding tiles look like the belong in Scratch Jr. The BirdBrains use micro:bit which none of us know anything about.  We quickly realized that we were dealing with a coding language that none of us knew, but it kinda looked like Scratch.  Did not faze the students at all.  I cheered when I saw the Finch moving.  I had to talk to anyone who would listen and care. This is what makerspace robotics is supposed to look like, and it was so refreshing! 

I have two more days of these kids learning the new robots, and I cannot wait to see what they will be able to do by Friday!

Now, will we buy these products?  Maybe.  That's a blog for a different day.