Introduction to Educational Robotics (TPBot)
The TPBot robotic vehicle is an excellent tool for introducing STEM and Educational Robotics to primary school students. It has a one-of-a-kind design and can be programmed using the Micro:bit microcontroller. This allows it to be used for a wide variety of projects, from simply planning a route to avoiding obstacles and taking measurements.
In this skills enhancement program developed by STEM Education, children will become familiar with the use of the Micro:bit and then program with it to program the TPBot. Indicative activities are of the robot on a specific path, drawing patterns, and interacting with the environment (line following, obstacle avoidance). They will also use sensors to take measurements. The measurements are recorded in a real-time Cartesian coordinate system, allowing children to gain an experiential understanding of very basic mathematical concepts from an early age.
Children will have connected science and mathematical thinking in an experiential and playful way by the end of the program!
Objectives
On completion of the program, students will have:
- become familiar with the use of the TPBot,
- programmed the Micro:bit microcontroller with MakeCode software,
- carried out measurements of physical quantities using the microcontroller and sensors,
- record their measurements in a Cartesian coordinate system for data analysis,
- constructed functional robotic models to solve real-world challenges.