Teaching and Learning Activities

The project had 5 distinct phases:

PART A

Introductory Phase
  • Children and teachers will become familiar with the project and brainstorm topics associated with technology.
  • During this phase, students will be given their kits to unpack and learn about its parts.
  • Teachers will undergo initial training in programming.




In this phase we allowed time for students to investigate, discuss and share ideas. They were encouraged to brainstorm ideas for their machine and begin to develop a focus for their invention. We also invited a local inventor to talk to the children and demonstrate his product, which gave them an opportunity to hear about the process from design to production.
First chance to explore the kits...

Excitement was high on the day the kits were distributed. Children were given total responsibility for the kit and charged with its care and maintenance. Since we were using rechargeable batteries, selected children were also given this task to manage.

An evening excursion to the IMAX theatre to see ‘Roving Mars’ proved stimulating for the children and since parents were involved, gave the latter an idea of the sort of things their children were doing. Throughout this stage of the project children were asked to discuss ideas with their parents – eg. ‘What is the greatest invention of the modern world?’ ‘What sorts of things will be invented in the next 10, 20 50 years?’.

PART B

Learning to Program – with Mentor

A difficult task, since students were already at different stages of competence. Some had been exposed to the material previously but the majority were totally unfamiliar. Within this majority, however, there was a differentiation of ICT skill and confidence. Typically, the children preferred to learn through investigation and experimentation rather than instruction and so were not always prepared to actively involve themselves in this stage. The large numbers involved also created issues.

Full Day Hands–On Robotics at Macquarie ICT

The full day session at Macquarie gave all students the opportunity to develop skills and gain the hands-on experience they needed.

PART C

Planning our Prototype – children design their group’s prototype. Planning for its function, look etc. Drawing up a design brief.

This was an exciting phase for both students and teachers. Each group was given a design brief to develop. It allowed flexibility in approach and encouraged teamwork. Groups were asked to identify a purpose for their machine and to think about its function. Click here for a copy of the Design Brief.

PART D

Developing our Idea – Building and Programming Our Robot

By this stage all groups had agreed upon the design and role of their machine and now it was time to write the program. Each week students worked hard to write their program, download it to their robot and test it. This process really tested the resilience of the children and frustration became part of the process. (“Frustratingly, it still didn’t work”).




Programming and testing can be challenging...

PART E

Display - a showcase of our projects for parents, visitors and other grades within the school

This was an important phase of the project since it provided the students with an authentic audience. The showcase was run as a ‘Trade Fair’ where the groups had to not only display, but also market their product. This involved developing advertising and promotional skills and required using various software programs to create PowerPoint presentations, TV advertisements, brochures etc. The Showcase attracted a large audience of parents, teachers and invited guests and was a wonderful and fitting end to our project.