Some of the Year Two children have been taking part in a Lego STEM club. Each week they have found out about a different STEM related career and then taken part in an activity to link to these careers.
First the children found out about civil engineers and mechanical engineers and completed their own engineering task. They created Lego mazes using a baseplate and a variety of Lego pieces. They then tested their mazes by trying to roll a marble around the maze. Once they had completed the mazes, they tested each others’ mazes and tried to make their mazes more and more challenging. The children though carefully about the different sizes and shapes of bricks they could use to make their mazes more challenging, including adding in different obstacles.
Next the boys and girls found out about robotic technicians. They learnt that robot technicians make and program robots to complete a variety of tasks. The children then designed and made their own Lego robots. They thought carefully about the size and shape of their robots and then created mazes for the robots to find their way around. They wrote instructions for their robots to follow, using left, right, forwards and backwards. The children enjoyed testing out each others’ mazes and then making them more and more challenging to complete!
Finally Year Two used an online app called Bits and Bricks to program a Lego robot. They had to select the correct programming blocks to enable their robot to complete a variety of mazes. If they wrote their code incorrectly the children then went back and ‘debugged’ their programs. The children really enjoyed exploring the different mazes with their Lego robots and demonstrated a lot of resilience when completing some of the more challenging levels.
Article 31 – We all have the right to rest, relax and play
