Robots are our friends
Getting inspiration from the coding and robotics workshops presented by the Austrian team at the project meetings in Bratislava, Slovakia in 2017 and in Oberwart, Austria in 2018, the Romanian students in the project and their ICT teacher Carmen Popescu coordinated a very special day in our school, on the 23rd of November 2018, as part of the 8th edition of the European Robotics Week 16-25 November 2018.
THE BEGINNING:
It all started, in fact, back in 2014, when the teacher got interested in robotics and applied for such a training course in Funchal, Madeira, Portugal the following summer, as part of the Erasmus+ project of our school within Key Action 1. The course proved to be an amazing incentive for the teachers who took part in it, who – among other things – learnt how to build robots with Lego Mindstorms and how to use Ozobots for education, thus developing the students’ creativity, critical thinking, communication and collaboration skills.
NOWADAYS:
It took us 3 years to buy kits of Lego Mindstorms and Ozobots, and in the autumn of 2018 this became a reality. Following the examples in the Austrian school in Oberwart, we are now on our way to using them in learning, with the teachers of Mathematics and languages interested in programming them to perform different simple, yet creative tasks during class.
EUROPEAN ROBOTICS WEEK 2018:
The youngest students in our school, direct beneficiaries of the Erasmus+ project “Enhancing student and teacher success through STEM education” 2017-2019, were among the 1500 Sibiu pupils who participated in the 8th European Robotics Week, celebrated in 2018 from November 16 to 25.
KUKA HQ’S EXPERTS IN OUR SCHOOL:
KUKA HQ Germany, a robotics company with a subsidiary in Sibiu, also participated in the information activities across Sibiu, two representatives of the company starting the events of the day in our school by making a first such presentation in our school. The date was 23 November 2018. The children had the opportunity to learn a lot of useful information about being an engineer, but also to see and even test some of the latest innovations in the field of robotics.
KUKA specialists have explained what kind of robots exist, where they are used and how they work. The meeting was interactive, and children were curious about industrial robots, about those used in research or in the household, such as the vacuum cleaner, or about those used as toys, such as Albo, the dog robot. The advantages of robots and the reasons why they are so efficient in the industries they are used in were also discussed.
Our pupils were more than delighted by this fascinating world!
Here are some of their drawings made at the end of the meeting and a few of their thoughts when remembering it, as feedback:
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Antonia : “It was explained to us that mankind had been developing over the years, and robots are very intelligent machines that can do things much better than humans. For example, a robot can move much faster than a person and that helps a lot in factories and even in people's homes.”
Sebastian: “Robots do not get tired and do not need breaks. They can work endlessly for new things that can only be done with a robot's attention and perspicacity.”
Andrada: “I have seen how various pieces, set in a certain order and logic, can give rise to powerful, intelligent and very helpful little people called robots, relieving real people of some dangerous or heavy work, for example, building a car.”
Ramona: “Robots are very exciting once you get into their world. Having your own robot, you practically feel invincible. Everything is easier with them.”
Tudor: “Because I participated in this event, I will not be afraid of robots any longer. Because they will be our helpers, we need to learn how to use them.”
LEGO MINDSTORMS:
In the future, robots will be able to replace our work in any field. But until then Lego Mindstorms was invented for us! So let us enjoy what we have now. There is now Lego for anything you care about: technology, architecture, toys. You can build toys that you can use indoors or outdoors: helicopters and planes, cars and trains, or animals and dolls. Or you can build a smart home. In the video clips below you can see robots built by students while playing with Lego Mindstorms, but it is a game that helps students develop their imagination and practical skills, a game that helps them understand how things around us work and how technology can be used to ease our work!
But first let’s remember Vlad’s performance in Graz, Austria at the eLearning Conference on 15 November 2018:
And now his Romanian schoolmates back home:
OZOBOTS:
These small robots can be easily programmed: one draws lines and colour codes with markers, and the Ozobot follows along and executes one’s commands. In this way, Ozobots build understanding of coding concepts like sequential thinking, syntax and debugging. This is creative, easy-to-learn and fun for coders at all levels, so suitable for our youngest students as well. Ozobots thus build 21st century skills and bring digital concepts to life. Have a look at some photos taken during the extraordinary robotics day:
Report made and used by Scientix Ambassador Daniela Bunea, coordinator of the Erasmus+ project “Enhancing student and teacher success through STEM education” 2017-2019