OVERVIEW

Activity Overview:

Students will work independently to design a ‘driving base’ using the SPIKE PRIME LEGO sets. Upon completion of the base students will develop the code to drive the base around the LEGO Super Powered map. Students will have to problem solve to find errors in code and re-program their driving bases to allow their model to follow the most accurate and direct path around the map.

Meta description

• Subject Area: Computer Science, Mathematics, Science, Technology, Engineering
• Grade Level : 6-8
• Computer Science Domains:
  • Computing Systems, Networks and The Internet, Algorithms and Programming
• Computer Science Principles:
  • Collaborating Around Computing, Recognizing and Defining Computational Problems, Communicating About Computing
• Materials:
  • Website, LEGO First Lego League Challenge Set, iPad, tablet or other personal device, access to the internet
• Considerations:
  • Background Information Students should have some information and background knowledge of natural resources and energy needs around the world. They need to know that renewable energy comes from energy sources found in our world that will never run out.

Optional Research Students can use time to research renewable energy to prepare for this lesson. When researching students should use these guiding questions: What is renewable energy? Are renewable energy sources reliable? How can we store wind or solar energy when the wind is not blowing or the sun is not shining? What is the impact of using these renewable energy resources?

Lesson Plan

Overview

Students will work independently to design a ‘driving base’ using the SPIKE PRIME LEGO sets. Upon completion of the base students will develop the code to drive the base around the LEGO Super Powered map. Students will have to problem solve to find errors in code and re-program their driving bases to allow their model to follow the most accurate and direct path around the map.

ASSESSMENT PRE/POST-TEST

Pre-Questions Looking at your rule book, identity missions that could be solved with the coding skills learned in this lesson/project What do you know about energy? What are resources available to you that could help you learn more about different energy sources and their uses in various parts of the world? How could stopping a motor help you solve a mission with your robot?

Post Questions What ‘Innovation Project’ ideas do the mission models spark? What are the pros and cons of the different parts of the white energy journey?

OBJECTIVES

After this activity, students should be able to: Work as a team to learn how to connect and use the sensors and motors contained in the LEGO SPIKE PRIME building sets Build a simple driving base using LEGO ® SPIKE PRIME materials Explain and describe their models before and after construction Draw or sketch their models prior to beginning construction Design model changes to make the driving base more effective, faster, or accurate and record changes in their Engineering Notebook Describe and make connections from the mission models to the ‘White Energy Journey Project SPARK’ ideas

CATCH/HOOK

Lesson ‘Hook”: Students will enter the room to 4 tables, or stations. On each station, there will be a LEGO SPIKE set with bags of LEGO’s on the tables. On the SmartBoard (located in the front of the room) will be introductory videos playing from the LEGO Education YouTube account.

ACTIVITY INSTRUCTIONS

Procedure Background Information Students should have some information and background knowledge of natural resources and energy needs around the world. They need to know that renewable energy comes from energy sources found in our world that will never run out.

Class Discussion Prompts: What is renewable energy? What types of renewable energy can we use in our community/state? What types of renewable energy exist in other areas of the world? What technologies exist that allow us to capture and store energy from these renewable resources? What are some technologies that we could develop to harness these energies in the future?

Teacher Duty/Task-Before the Activity Prior to this activity the teacher should ensure the FIRST LEGO ® League YouTube channel is pulled up on the classroom screen (SmartBoard, Promethean, etc.) Ensure all students have their own copies of the FIRST LEGO League Challenge Engineering Notebook Ensure all students have access to a personal device to use for coding their robot and one additional device to follow project directions and record their project work. Ensure all students have an account and can access the LEGO Education SPIKE Prime app (™) The night before, make sure all controllers and devices are plugged in and charging Guiding question/Essential Question: “ Think about how a sensor could be helpful to get the robot to stop in the right place to engage with a mission model on the mat”

During Lesson-With the Students (1-2 hour session) Have students access the FIRST LEGO ® League Challenge videos on the FIRST LEGO ® League YouTube Channel After videos, have each student individually read pages 3-9 in their Engineering Notebooks on how the LEGO Challenge works (10-15 minutes) After videos and reading, have students open the SPIKE (™) Prime app (this should already be downloaded, or added, and ready for them to use) and go to Lesson 1 Students should identify the missions that could be solved with the coding skills learned in the lesson. Have students record their own ideas in their Engineering Notebook. Students should use digital building instructions from books 4, 7, and 8 and models in bags 4, 7, and 8 from the Challenge set. Determine code and building skills that students can apply in the Robot Game After construction, students should place their models on the mat and show how thor models work and see if they can use their code to drive the robot to one of the mission models.

Supplements

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REVIEW

After this lesson students should clean up their work area and return all materials back to their approrpriate location in the classroom. Once clean-up has been completed, students should participate in a group discussion answering the post activity discussion questions: What ‘Innovation Project’ ideas do the mission models spark? What are the pros and cons of the different parts of the white energy journey? What does the invention and use of these types of tools do to our future outlook in terms of energy availability, use and impact on the environment?

STANDARDS