Meadowview Elementary School offers the Wonder League Robotics Program to their 3rd to 5th-grade students. Students aged 6 to 12 are teamed up to learn how to decode through a program linked via Bluetooth to a robot named Dash.
Teacher Christina Zavala explains that students form a team of two to three and are given a written challenge. They read the challenge and then use the assigned iPad to create a code. That code is then sent back to Dash by Bluetooth to complete the grid challenge. Dash then uses lego attachments to retrieve objects assigned by the students. Dash can even play the xylophone through code the students create. A second Robot named Dot can also code into Dash’s pattern.
Mrs. Zavala teaches her students by linking her iPad to theirs and demonstrating the decoding steps.
The new robotics program has also helped special education students by teaching motor skills. By creating patterns with their fingers, their fine motor skills are practiced.
Mrs. Zavala says this program has been an essential tool and is excellent for teaching students teamwork, STEM, and critical thinking skills.
