Robotics Workshop Syllabus

Per request, I've uploaded the rough syllabus that I made for my robotics workshops, and you can get it here. Keep in mind that I made this just to give me a rough idea of how to run the classes each day and to portion out the material efficiently. Also, note that I ended up straying significantly from various parts of the syllabus to adjust to my students. For example, I overestimated the skill/learning ability of my students, so I had to downscale or cut out some parts of the syllabus. The final challenge seemed way too difficult, so I changed it to a simpler challenge involving retrieval and delivery of two towers that were placed in pre-specified positions on the NXT Test Pad.

I ran each workshop from 1PM-4PM each day for a week (5 days). One thing not mentioned in the syllabus is a 15-minute break for snacks which we had half-way through each class.

-Jonathan

EDIT : Also, for Day 1, I built and programmed Spike to demonstrate to the students instead of Tribot. They really loved this robot's capabilities, and I highly recommend it for sparking interest in a robotics course.

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I thought the LEGO River Steamboat would be an interesting set for a ROBOTMAK3R review for a few reasons. First, the LEGO designer of the model is Marina Stampoli, a long-time collaborator of the late ROBOTMAK3R Vassilis Chryssanthakopoulo s. From earlier collaborations with Vassilis, I knew Marina was incredibly talented, with an eye for aesthetics and functionality. Her background in architecture is particularly useful for her relatively new position at LEGO. Her other sets include the Magic of Disney (21352), Message Board (41839), and Red London Telephone Box (21347). Second, watching Marina's reveal video and reading her designer interview made this set even more tempting to build. The gearing mechanisms running through the model gave way to many opportunities for automation using LEGO robotics elements. Since ROBOTMAK3RS is all about adding interactivity and automation to LEGO brick, I thought it would be fun to see where and how LEGO robotics could be added to this s...

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