Today was our second of 6 robotics demos for the kids at Pacheco, and things went great! We have done lab #1 both weeks for different classes so far, and the kids love it. The lesson goes something like this:
We show up, the kids come in from recess, and Mrs. Banfield introduces us to them and tells them that we are there to talk about robotics, at which point every kid in the class gasps "OHHHHHHH ROBOTS!!!".
From there I start off with a powerpoint that shows Wall-E bumbling around on the screen collecting balls, and we split up into groups to talk with students about what the know and what they would like to learn about robots. I walk back to the front to ask them questions about better known robots like Roombas, and then Billy gets up to talk about one of the robots that was sitting around in the LAIR. After Billy talks about the brains, arms, and eyes of that robot, we split up into groups again to let the kids design a robot of their own on paper.
After that the fun begins. Tyler and Sara have a competition to see who can build a Lego robot the fastest, and then we ask the kids what they think these robots do. We tell them that the robots brains were programmed to follow lines, so when you lay white masking tape on the black carpet, the robots know how to stay on track. We then demonstrate by allowing each kid to lay down a piece of tape so that a track is made. We put the lego robots on the track and the kids watch as the robots follow the lines (and sometimes collide with each other). After that, we get back into groups to talk about what they learned today, and then I head back up to the front to introduce the solar robots that we will be playing with next time we meet them.
The kids are so enthusiastic about the lesson, and Mrs. Banfield is right there with them. Hopefully we can keep up the great work at Pacheco elementary in the next 4 weeks!
On the 3D visualization front: Jane, Sara, Brent, and I skyped with John "Pathfinder" Lester, who works at ReactionGrid developing 3D environments with which people can model things. He told us about some software (Unity3D and Jibe) with which we can carry out our project for our archaeologist friends. Unity3D is a video game development software that seems to be just what we need. I plan on getting some bigger projects up and running so that in the end, we can have a map of malta with specific sites that can be zoomed into. On clicking a site, a 3D textured version of it will pop up (hopefully with a 3D model of the cistern in it) that will have triggers that bring up descriptions of the area. More from me later!
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