So for anyone that has a mobile classroom, these are great for carrying from classroom to classroom. SPRK+ and BOLT both have a hard spherical shell about the size of a baseball. Traveling between schools, I love that these robots are compact. Besides making them more durable, there are many possibilities here! 4: Outside Shell Design Amazingly, the original 12 we bought two years ago are still going strong to this day. However, there was no damage, and that same robot is still working to this day! We also use these robots at family nights that reach thousands of people a year, from preschoolers to high school students. To my horror, I once had someone throw a SPRK+ on asphalt (they thought it was a toy ball). This is a great way to bring in those real world skills for high school students that may eventually want to go into the field of computer science. Text - Text programming allows you to program the robot in JavaScript. In the updated app, they have now streamlined their blocks with Scratch. You draw a shape in the app, and the robot will follow that shape outline.īlock - Block programming is similar to what you would see on Hour of Code or Scratch and is geared more towards middle and high school students. For the programming part there are 3 different options:ĭraw - The Draw choice is great way to introduce robotics to elementary students. When driving the robot, you use a joystick type circle that allows you to move the robot around. Here are the basic components at the core of both of Sphero’s education focused robots, the SPRK+ and BOLT: 1: Programming capabilitiesīy using the Sphero Edu app (which is completely free by the way) you can control the robot by either driving or programming it. The new BOLT, really highlights the versatility, because not only can you do basic programming, but you can also use it to create animations, use as a light sensor in a project or create a game - the possibilities are endless! The Basics of SpheroĪlright, let’s get into the reasons on why Sphero is worth the investment. And with the Sphero robot, I can have students learning to drive the robot or advance to using block coding to program the robot through a maze. Some have been in robotics club since elementary school, while others have never even seen a robot. I run an afterschool STEM program where I work with 6-8th graders (yes, all in one room) that have widely different skill set levels. My top two reasons? Their products are approachable for all students and bring versatility to the classroom. So what really makes Sphero stand out? I have used many robotics kits, and Sphero is the one I keep returning to.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |