Robots help pupils learn about STEM
Captivated Junior School pupils enjoyed learning about the world of STEM thanks to a couple of workshops.
Year Six pupils had a blast as they got to program their own robot.
The sessions were led by STEMworks – an organisation which aims to get children interested in the STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths).
During the sessions, the children were tasked with programming the LEGO Mindstorm robots to score a goal, and knock a LEGO block into a plastic tray.
They had great fun learning about programming, as well as working together to make sure their robot followed the right commands.
Claire Lyes from STEMworks led the sessions and said: “The pupils from Stockport Grammar School are always lovely and ready to learn.
“This time they really outdid themselves because not only did they learn about how to program a robot – they also looked into how to move the infrared sensor so the robot doesn’t crash into anything.
“In doing so, some of the students were able to recognise that this is how moving vacuum cleaners work, which is very advanced stuff.”
The pupils really enjoyed the sessions and learned more about jobs in STEM.
Meanwhile, Year Two children enjoyed taking part in a coding workshop using Robo Wunderkinds kits.
Claire spoke to pupils about how robots are used and what the future may hold.
The children then went onto construct two different types of robot – one used a servomotor to rotate and the other robot used two DC motors so that it could be driven.
The boys and girls learnt about different sensors and outputs and how to use different commands to produce simple algorithms to control their robots.
The final challenge was to code the robot to follow a path on a mat.
