All students are natural scientists and engineers. They love to ask, think, try, and play. Does your child have to be an engineer to learn Robotics? Not exactly. Important skills like problem-solving, critical thinking, and creativity, can help them become a doctor too!
Robotics and Coding Go Together
It takes the static process of coding and gives it an immediate, tangible result that you can see and feel. This is where robotics can be different from programming. With a few lines of code and a little patience, they can get their robot to move, raise its arms, or even dance. The only limit to what they can make will be their creativity and their willingness to learn.
Robotics Helps Develop Practical Skills
Design Thinking: Design thinking is an approach that focuses on finding effective solutions to unfamiliar problems while teaching flexible perseverance, patience, and analytical thinking. In the field of robotics, designing solutions is closely tied to creating tangible products, making it easier to visualize the process of problem-solving.
Creativity: Switching between open and closed modes of brain activity can enhance creativity, and the fields of robotics and programming offer opportunities for both modes. Play-based learning is considered an effective way to develop and exercise both modes, making robotics and programming an excellent tool for enhancing creativity in children.
Confidence: Building something of their own, that functions as intended and that you've designed using their own creativity, can be an incredibly empowering experience that boosts their confidence. Robotics education for children fosters questioning and interaction between the teacher and student, and encourages the student's unique perspective on the task at hand.
Teamwork: Teamwork is a valuable skill that children can learn through collaborating on tasks with different perspectives and approaches to problem-solving. In the VEX curriculum, 2 students are encouraged to work together using one set, which not only leads to faster achievement of their goal but also promotes a fun and engaging experience. It also teaches children the importance of expressing their opinions respectfully, discussing ideas, and testing each one to determine the best solution for their problem, all while under the guidance and oversight of their teacher.
