Summary
Introduces robotics as an engineering discipline and challenges students to think through what a robot needs — sensors, actuators, programming, and power — to complete a specific task.
Viewer safety
All ages
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Teaching resources
Discussion questions
Discussion
- What is a robot? Does it have to look human?
- What are the four parts a robot needs to function? What does each one do?
- Why is programming a robot difficult — what does the robot need to 'know' in advance?
- What jobs do robots do better than humans? What jobs can humans do that robots cannot?
Quick work-a-long
Vocabulary: robot, sensor, actuator, program, input, output, automation.
Try it: Program a partner to be a 'robot' — give them written step-by-step instructions to walk from one side of the room to a specific chair and sit down. Write only exact commands (no 'figure it out'). What happens when your instructions are unclear?