BMS Students Explore Robotics
Savannah Attlesperger
BMS’ ninth grade computer elective class is working with Carnegie Mellon’s Lego Mindstorms. This is a program that has students working with Lego robots. Lego Mindstorms helps children understand modern technology in a fun way.
In NXT Robotics Engineering, which is the program that explains how to use your robot, the ninth grade learned the different actions that the robot can perform. They learned how to make the robots steer, do a command when a certain sound is detected, follow a black line on a white surface, and dodge obstacles in their way. This did not always work as planned, but the students fixed the problems to make their robot work more efficiently.
This program is used to teach engineering in a fun way. The students had to come up with more efficient ways to make their robots do as commanded, which made them think outside the box. They also had to build their robot to adapt to the different commands, such as adding the different sensors (sound sensor, laser sensor, and the ultrasonic sensor).
This program not only taught them engineering skills, but also taught them the importance of robots in the modern day world. They learned about robots working on farms, factories, and other environments. The students learned how to use the things they had learned about robots in the modern day world.
Carnegie Mellon’s Lego Mindstorms worked with the students in the ninth grade computer elective to learn about engineering and the importance of modern technology. This program is a wonderful way to make learning about technology and engineering fun. It is a hands-on program for middle and highschoolers that will be tomorrow’s way of learning.