Follow along as three young people explore what's happening in their home state of Indiana and how these innovations will lead us all into the future. Whether in agriculture or engineering, software development or aviation, progress and ingenuity are moving out in every direction from the Crossroads of America. Come along for the ride. Consists of two videos and a viewing guide. [54:32]

Students learn various topics associated with the circle through studying a clock. Topics include reading analog time, understanding the concept of rotation (clockwise vs. counter-clockwise), and identifying right angles and straight angles within circles. Many young students have difficulty telling time in analog format, especially with fewer analog clocks in use (compared to digital clocks). This includes the ability to convert time written in words to a number format, for example, making the connection between "quarter of an hour" to 15 minutes. Students also find it difficult to convert "quarter of an hour" to the number of degrees in a circle. This activity incorporates a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT robot to help students distinguish and visualize the differences in clockwise vs. counter-clockwise rotation and right vs. straight angles, while learning how to tell time on an analog clock. To promote team learning and increase engagement, students work in teams to program and control the robot.

In this video segment adapted from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a team from the Mechanical Engineering Department studies snail movement for inspiration that may lead to new forms of robotic locomotion.

Featuring slow-motion footage of insects in flight, this video adapted from NOVA explores the engineering challenge of designing a robotic aerial vehicle that flies like a bug.

Students learn and practice how to find the perimeter of a polygonal shape. Using a ruler, they measure model rooms made of construction paper walls. They learn about other tools, such as a robot, that can help them take measurements. Using a robot built from a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT kit that has been programmed to move along a wall and output the length of that wall, students record measurements and compare the perimeter value found with the robot to the perimeter found using a ruler. In both cases, students sketch maps to the scale of the model room and label the measured lengths. A concluding discussion explores the ways in which using a robot may be advantageous or disadvantageous, and real-world applications.

For the Unit 2 Project, your students will choose from three different project options each with a different user, then use design thinking, robotics, and entrepreneurship to create a Sphero RVR solution for a real-world problem! The projects will guide the students through the problem, precedents of existing robotic solutions, users with interviews for empathy mapping, a budget worksheet for building, and finally a programming challenge that can be implemented and tested. In Lesson 1, each student will read all three project overview and choose the project they want to work on for the remaining lessons!

Estimated time required: 1-2 class periods.

Technology required for this lesson: Code Editor, Laptop/Desktop, Robotics Kit, Tablet.

In this lesson, students will learn more about their user and complete the first two steps in the Design Thinking process: Empathize and Define. In Lesson 2, each student will choose one user to create an Empathy Map for one user based on their Project Choice from Lesson 1, either 2A, 2B or 2C. Students should only work on the lesson that corresponds to their project choice. For example, if a student chose Project 2A, they would only work on the Project 2A Content.

Estimated time required: 1-2 class periods.

Technology required for this lesson: Code Editor, Laptop/Desktop, Robotics Kit, Tablet.

In this lesson, students will ideate, sketch designs for their RVR attachment and write pseudocode following the Unit 2 Lesson 3 Activity Worksheet. Note: Students should only work on the lesson that corresponds to their project choice. For example, if a student chose Project 2A, they would only work on the Project 2A Content.

Estimated time required: 1-2 class periods.

Technology required for this lesson: Code Editor, Laptop/Desktop, Robotics Kit, Tablet.

In this lesson, students will create a physical prototype of their RVR attachment and secure to their RVR then use Sphero Edu to write block code for their programming challenge that will be tested on the Challenge Map in Lesson 5. Note: Students should only work on the lesson that corresponds to their project choice. For example, if a student chose Project 2A, they would only work on the Project 2A Content.

Estimated time required: 2-3 class periods.

Technology required for this lesson: Code Editor, Laptop/Desktop, Robotics Kit, Tablet.

In this lesson, students will run their Sphero Edu program on the Challenge Map in the classroom, revise/debug the program as needed to solve the programming challenge, share their project with their peers, give/receive feedback on each other’s projects and finally record a video of the RVR running the Challenge Map, submit to your teacher and answer a series of reflection questions. Note: The lessons for 2A, 2B, and 2C are almost identical in this section. This is a great chance for students to teach each other about their specific project choice and user!

Estimated time required: 1-2 class periods.

Technology required for this lesson: Code Editor, Laptop/Desktop, Robotics Kit, Tablet.

This lesson introduces students to the Sphero RVR and some of its programming functions. Students will charge and connect the RVR to their device via Bluetooth connection. The Draw programming function will be demonstrated, and students will explore Draw on their own. Finally, students will practice vocabulary words from the AIR course and the book "Plastic, Ahoy!" by designing their own Pictionary cards to play Pictionary with the Sphero RVR as the ‘drawing utensil’ that will be programmed to trace out images and/or symbols that students have chosen to represent vocabulary words.

Estimated time required: 2-3 class periods.

Technology required for this lesson: Code Editor, Laptop/Desktop, Robotics Kit, Tablet.

This lesson introduces students to autonomous programming with the Sphero RVR. Students will learn about self-driving vehicles and how they work. Then students will see how to program the Sphero RVR using the Block Program Type. Finally, students will revisit The Docks map from Unit 0 Lesson 2 (Pseudocode Algorithm Activity) and working in pairs will program their RVR to navigate three different Map Challenges (and optionally to create their own map challenges).

Estimated time required: 2-3 class periods.

Technology required for this lesson: Code Editor, Laptop/Desktop, Robotics Kit, Tablet.

Students will explore the basic human senses, animal senses and then make connections to senses and sensors in robotics. Students will learn about the cuttlefish, a marine organism that uses adaptive camouflage by sensing its surroundings and environment. Students will be introduced to the concept of biomimicry and how we can use nature-inspired ideas to create innovative solutions to real-world problems. Finally, students will learn about the Sphero RVR color sensor and how to write a program that emulates a biomimicry solution – the Cuttlefish Robot.

Estimated time required: 2-3 class periods.

Technology required for this lesson: Code Editor, Laptop/Desktop, Robotics Kit, Tablet.

Students will learn about swarm and group behaviors in animals and robotics, with real-world examples, why the behaviors are important in nature, and potential applications with robotics for real-world problems. Students will be introduced to Infrared (IR) communication, in general, and then specifically in its use with the Sphero RVR. Finally, students will practice using the IR sensor by working in groups of 4 or more to program Leader and Follower RVR that use IR sensors – transmitters and receivers – to communicate or ‘talk’ to each other.

Estimated time required: 2-3 class periods.

Technology required for this lesson: Code Editor, Laptop/Desktop, Robotics Kit, Tablet.

Suggestions and resources for hands-on activities to teach elementary students about rocks and minerals.

Students learn about probability through a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NTX-based activity that simulates a game of "rock-paper-scissors." The LEGO robot mimics the outcome of random game scenarios in order to help students gain a better understanding of events that follow real-life random phenomenon, such as bridge failures, weather forecasts and automobile accidents. Students learn to connect keywords such as certainty, probable, unlikely and impossibility to real-world engineering applications.

Students are presented with a challenge question that they must answer with scientific and mathematical reasoning. The challenge question is: "You have a large rock on a boat that is floating in a pond. You throw the rock overboard and it sinks to the bottom of the pond. Does the water level in the pond rise, drop or remain the same?" Students observe Archimedes' principle in action in this model recreation of the challenge question when a toy boat is placed in a container of water and a rock is placed on the floating boat. Students use terminology learned in the classroom as well as critical thinking skills to derive equations needed to answer this question.

In this activity, students revisit the Pop Rockets activity from Lesson 3. This time, however, the design of their pop-rockets will be limited by budgets and supplies. They will get a feel for the limitations of a real engineering project as well as an opportunity to redesign and retest their rockets.

This issue of the free online magazine, Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears, explores the basic characteristics of rocks and minerals, the types of rocks, the rock cycle, and the specimens found in the polar regions. Find lessons that allow students to observe rock and mineral specimens, perform classification exercises, and read to develop their content knowledge.

This article assembles free resources from the Rocks and Minerals issue of the Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears cyberzine into a unit outline based on the 5E learning cycle framework. Outlines are provided for Grades K-2 and 3-5.