Science
Robotic Animals integrates the natural sciences with robotics and engineering. In this curriculum, children explore animals and their habitats. After choosing an animal and researching about its behavioral and physical characteristics, students create a robotic representation of that animal and its habitat.
How Things Move is a robotics and programming curriculum designed to be used with KIWI robotics constructions sets and CHERP programming language. These activities are designed specifically for early childhood classroom use (Pre-K through 2nd grade). Over the course of several weeks, students will work alone or in groups to build and program a robot to demonstrate their understandings and ideas related to the robotics and programming concepts they have mastered. This curriculum also
contains foundational physics connections related to motion, light, and friction.
Literacy
Where the Wild Things Are Curriculum, inspired by the children’s book, incorporates literacy and robotics. During the final projects, students work alone or in groups to recreate the “wild rumpus” by programming their KIBO robots to act out this iconic scene in the book.
Treasure Island, based on Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel, incorporates literature and robotics. Inspired by the novel, students will learn about the story through specific events and characters through KIWI robotics. The basics of robotics and programming will be expedited in order to accommodate for more thorough lessons on sensors.
Math
Patterns All Around integrates mathematics with fundamental engineering and programming concepts. Throughout the curriculum, students learn about different types of patterns using mathematics. After learning about the patterns, students then have the opportunity to create a class quilt using KIBO!
Social Emotional
Sensing the World Around Us is an intermediate curriculum for students who have completed the How Things Move curriculum (or equivalent). This curriculum builds on the introductory concepts students have mastered and takes and in-depth look at how sensors work, particularly the three KIWI sensors: Light sensor, Distance sensor, and Sound sensor. Additionally, this curriculum makes foundational biology connections related to animal/human senses, and characteristics of different animals. Over the course of several weeks, students will work alone or in groups to build and program a robotic animal (with sensors) to demonstrate their understandings and ideas related to the robotics and programming concepts they have mastered.
Everyone Feels uses robotics as a tool for developing emotional competency in kindergarten students. To achieve this, it takes a peace education approach, specifically focusing on social-emotional learning competencies. This curriculum is intended for kindergarten students who have been previously exposed to robotics in the past using the KIWI robotics construction kit. Students will work independently and in large group settings to create a robot that expresses their feelings, after reading and discussing “The Feelings Book” by Todd Parr.
Identity and Culture
Who Am I integrates identity, culture, and diversity with fundamental engineering and programming concepts. Throughout the curriculum, students learn about their cultural background, as well as the backgrounds of other students, and then create robotic representations of themselves to express their culture in a creative way.
Dances from Around the World promotes the use of programming to understand culture through dance. Students will work alone or in groups to build and program a robot to demonstrate their understandings and ideas related to the robotics and programming concepts they have mastered as well as a cultural dance of their choice. During the course of this final project, students put to use all the concepts learned during previous lessons but transfer them to a new context. When projects are complete, there can be a showcase of student work for parents, siblings, and schoolmates.