Build a tower that can withstand a certain amount of wind. Build a bridge that can hold a certain amount of weight. Build something that can kick a ball.
Third graders at Cedar Creek Elementary have been grappling with these challenges as part of a pilot program in robotics the school introduced to supplement the science curriculum and to get students excited about hands-on learning.
In a presentation to the school board on Tuesday, Cedar Creek Principal Laura Coaxum said the program started in two third-grade classrooms before expanding to all four. Teachers use materials and curriculum created by Trashbots, a company co-founded by district alumni and brothers Rohit and Sidharth Srinivasan.
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Students use an affordable processor, items that are 3D printed and clean trash — such as popsicle sticks, rubber bands and paper clips — to create their designs. Then, students use an app that connects to the processor so they can write simple code and make their design function, Coaxum said.
“We are still using the district curriculum to teach the third grade (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills), but we look at this as something that supplements,” she said. “The way teachers are approaching this is they start with our curriculum, they start with the TEKS, and then they go through the Trashbots resources and find the pieces that align to what they’re teaching.”
For the challenge that asked students to build a device that would kick a ball, Coaxum said students each sketched out three design options before meeting in groups to pick a design to build and test and revise.
“It was really cool to watch the kids in this particular challenge go through all of that process and collaboration as a team,” she said. “They got to improve on their design and come up with their team’s final product, and then they actually got to test and compete for the most effective design. … We’ve seen a huge increase in engagement in science in this grade level, and the kids really love it. We’ve also seen an increase in collaboration skills and critical thinking skills from this group.”
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Coaxum said staff on her campus are working with district curriculum staff to look at how this program might move forward after this year is over. She said the campus also has 30 Trashbots kits that are available for other teachers to check out and use with their students.
“Those are accessible to anyone that wants to use them, in addition to what our third graders have. So we’ve seen them start to be used in our gifted and talented classes,” she said. “We’re working on ways to expand training for the rest of our staff so that they are able to just pick it up and do it with kids and, and have that easy access.”
Also at Tuesday’s meeting, the Eanes school board approved the hiring of Sheri Bryant as the principal at Bridge Point Elementary. Bryant has been serving as interim principal this year after Heather Meek was hired as the district’s director of humanities in August.
The board also heard a number of comments from students and parents on the topic of removing books from the library. Like at the last board meeting, far more of the speakers were opposed to removing titles from school libraries.
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