Fifth grade students here have to figure out how to make a 90 degree turn with their Lego NXT robots.\u00a0 The robot cars they built have 2 motors and they typically turn one motor only on to make a 90 degree turn.\u00a0 But they have to figure out, by trial and error,\u00a0 how long to turn the one motor to make a 90 degree turn.\u00a0 One group today found out that .3 seconds was too short and .4 seconds was too long. So we went up to the board to try and answer the question, “What’s 1\/2 way between .3 and .4?”\u00a0 When, after some reflection, one students said .35, the other student had trouble, saying “3.5.”\u00a0 If you add zeroes, it is easier to see that .35 is halfway between .30 and .40.\u00a0 This is the type of math problem I really love because it is real, practical and needs a deep understanding to solve.\u00a0 We hit a lot of problems like it with our grade 5 and 6 NXT robotics program.\u00a0 We have them calculate the velocity of their robot in grade 6, which encourages a deeper understanding and appreciation for long division and ratios (rather than just do worksheets).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Fifth grade students here have to figure out how to make a 90 degree turn with their Lego NXT robots.\u00a0 The robot cars they built have 2 motors and they typically turn one motor only on to make a 90 … Continue reading