Category Archives: Robotics

Reaction to Robotics

Posted on November 9, 2011 by JohnHeffernan

I walked into one of my third grade class yesterday with the cart of robotics materials and all the kids in the class cheered when I came in.  That does not happen every day!

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PK to Grade 6 Elementary Engineering Curriculum Maps Available!

Posted on October 21, 2011 by JohnHeffernan

I have finished the first drafts of Curriculum Maps, based on an Understanding By Design model,  for a PK to Grade 6 robotics curriculum called the Elementary Engineering Curriculum based on BeeBots (PK-K), Lego Education WeDo (Grade 1-4), and Lego … Continue reading →

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Grade 5 Curriculum Map Added to Resources Page

Posted on September 20, 2011 by JohnHeffernan

I added the curriculum map for our grade 5 NXT robotics unit to the Resources page. Any auxiliary files can be found in the zip file at the end of the page

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Case Study Begins

Posted on September 16, 2011 by JohnHeffernan

I happened to have indoor recess duty and was up with my planned case study kindergarten classes.  I have not had much time to observe them yet and have only had them once so far for computer lab.  But I … Continue reading →

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Idea for Yearly Case Study Project

Posted on September 8, 2011 by JohnHeffernan

I thought of the idea of building a bridge as a way to see progress in K-6 engineering (and beyond) over time. A bridge could be static or dynamic (drawbridge). So I am planning to give a choice of wooden … Continue reading →

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Tracking Engineering Skills Over Time

Posted on August 25, 2011 by JohnHeffernan

I am trying to think of a good way to track engineering skills over time.  I will be tracking this year’s K class as they progress to sixth grade.  Is there a task I can give them that will work … Continue reading →

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BeeBot Class

Posted on August 13, 2011 by JohnHeffernan

I taught my first BeeBot class for teachers and it went great! BeeBots are small premade robots meant for early elementary students.  I used them in PK and K.  I was not sure there was enough for a whole day … Continue reading →

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New Talk; New Methods

Posted on July 26, 2011 by JohnHeffernan

I spent about 3 hours yesterday working on a presentation explaining why we should teach engineering to young students.  I am trying to make my presentations more like TED talks with big ideas and lots of visuals.  It is still … Continue reading →

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Research Directions; Which Way To Go?

Posted on July 13, 2011 by JohnHeffernan

I plan on continuing to implement and document the PK-6 Elementary Engineering Curriculum I have been developing.  That is clear.  What is less clear is the direction to go with my associated research. Many intriguing possible areas have come up … Continue reading →

Posted in Child Development, Research, Robotics | 5 Comments

What Do The Student Quotes Mean?

Posted on July 5, 2011 by JohnHeffernan

I received this analysis of the student robotics quotes from graduate student Lama Jaber.  I found it to be an excellent summary.  Here it is.   First, at an affective level, the robotic experience seems to be triggering very good … Continue reading →

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