Middle Schools ‘leading the way’ with Robotics

Students at Burns, College View and Daviess County middle schools are learning to build and program a ‘Tumbler’ robot using VEX RobotC. RobotC is a computer-based program presented through the Project Lead the Way: Gateway to Technology grant for DCPS middle schools.

Students are learning the “natural language” in order to communicate with the robot. Pictured below are CVMS students Justin Cecil, Justin Miller and Derick Shelton, who learned to program the LED lights to start at red, to touch the bump switch which turns on the yellow LED, then to green, and finally GO! The tumbler was able to travel 25 feet in about 11 seconds.

The Automation and Robotics class continues to teach students amazing things about how machines work. The students will use the VEX construction pieces to learn about programming, development and design of things in everyday life, such as traffic lights, railroad crossing guard arms, “no-touch” paper towel dispensers, lift that can move a person up stairs, elevators, and bridges that raise and lower to let boats go by.

“These hands-on examples and experiences bring learning to life in the classroom,” said Darlene Runyon, CVMS technology instructor.

Kent Gwaltney at DCMS and John Janiak at BMS are also DCPS middle school technology instructors.