This workshop inspires students to think and dream about using robotics in real life. The students discuss and learn what a robot is and how robots can be used in everyday context through demonstrations and creativity+programming exercises. The activity is specially designed to develop skills as follows:

1. Creativity: within the workshop, students learn and practice how to construct and generate innovative ideas to address real-life problems using Tony Buzan mind-mapping techniques.
2. Digital fluency: Students discuss, learn and use the robotics key elements while generating ideas about the creative use of robotics and building and programming a real robot.
3. Communication: Students have to clearly communicate their plans and ideas how to construct the body of the robot, to correctly connect the root electronics and to program the robot.
4. Collaboration: While students in each team are changing their roles during each task, they learn how to work effectively and respectfully with others in order and to build a relevantly complex robotics system.

Robotics is intriguing and fun, which is why we believe it makes a wonderful tool to engage students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. We know that learning by doing makes children fall in love with creativity and robotics and helps them maintain their inborn curiosity about natural life and technology.

The robotic kit design is shared and updated in a public repository in order to be easily accessible to other tutors and contributors. Activity plans for this workshop are available upon request.

The goal of this workshop is to introduce and exercise mathematical concepts, which are covered in the national school curriculum for mathematics for the fourth grade in Bulgarian schools, using programming and robotics.

Participants play 5 different games with the robot. Every game builds on the previous one and is broken down into quests, through which they exercise their knowledge of mathematics and adopt new concepts while exercising them. We use programming to boost logical thinking and showcase the practicality of mathematics with cool devices, such as robots. In this workshop, with the aid of Mind Maps and visual programming, children exercise their knowledge of circles, semicircles, radius, diameter, angles and how to measure them, as well as arithmetic functions. With the means of robotics, we have created fun games in which children solve mathematical problems with measuring tools, such as protractor and ruler, Mind Maps and creativity.

In addition, and of equal importance to the subject of mathematics, this workshop is specifically designed to support and encourage the development of the following skills:

1. Problem-solving skills are stimulated by encouraging students to solve different kinds of problems in conventional ways, but also to seek innovative ways to find solutions. Children are stimulated to identify and ask significant questions that clarify various points of view and lead to better solutions.
2. Communication is important for the successful outcome of the games. This includes the ability to articulate thoughts and ideas effectively in a group. Groups consist of students of diverse points of view, knowledge, and abilities, which requires a certain ability to communicate complex ideas clearly, effectively and patiently.
3. Flexibility and adaptability is a skill which is greatly incorporated on many levels. Students have to be flexible in order to incorporate feedback from other team members and tutors effectively, and furthermore to understand, negotiate and balance diverse views and beliefs to reach workable solutions.

We believe that mathematics is fun. And we know how to show you.

Activity plans for this workshop are available upon request.

The goal of this workshop is to introduce and exercise a multidisciplinary approach towards building general awareness on a variety of aspects of everyday life. Such aspects might be ecological thinking, applications of robotics, mathematical argumentation and coordinate system knowledge.

Participants play a set of games with the robotics arm. Every game introduces a problem, be it a mathematical problem, requiring the students to program the robot in order to place an item on a specific place of a coordinate system or be it a real-life problem engaging students in a game of sorting and recycling reusable materials. Through robot-enabled games, children cooperatively program robots to solve everyday life problems and improve on digital fluency skills and proportional thinking.

In addition, and of equal importance to raising awareness on real-life topics, this workshop is specifically designed to support and encourage the development of the following skills:

1. Problem-solving skills are stimulated by encouraging students to solve different kinds of problems in conventional ways, but also to seek innovative ways to find solutions. Also, we encourage students to think of robotics as a mechanism for solving real-life problems or gain knowledge through robotics on those subjects.
2. Communication is important for the successful outcome of the games. This includes the ability to articulate thoughts and ideas effectively in a group. Groups consist of students of diverse points of view, knowledge, and abilities, which requires a certain ability to communicate complex ideas clearly, effectively and patiently. Including a variety of cooperative activities, this workshop aims to foster effective communication skills, tolerance, and collaboration.
3. Flexibility and adaptability are skills incorporated on many levels. Students have to be flexible in order to incorporate feedback from other team members and tutors effectively, and furthermore to understand, negotiate and balance diverse views and beliefs to reach workable solutions. Students will shift between roles and will be orchestrated to enter in counter-intuitive roles and role-play in order to gain a sense of resilience and assist the formation of a flexible character.
4. Through coming up with innovative, unique or imaginative solutions to problems, children will exercise their creativity and feel empowered to apply their creativity in their everyday life as a means to solve problems.
5. Creating an environment for the cultivation of digital fluency and awareness through improving children’s technological knowledge will be supported through the inclusion of robotics and programming in a multidisciplinary activity plan.

Robotics is intriguing and fun, which is why we believe it makes a wonderful tool, in addition to the general school curriculum, for learning career and life skills.

Activity plans for this workshop are available upon request.

We all know that children quickly fall in love with robots. What's more, this instant attraction to technology, has a very deep impact on children. It's our firm belief that this is one very productive way, we could foster student's motivation in the learning process, and furthermore, improve their understanding not only in technology but also in other subject domains. Our team is very passionate about complementing formal education through educational robotics activities and we love working with teachers and pedagogues!

After having worked with teachers, we significantly improved our workshops and we are now full of more ideas we would like to share with you and maybe implement together.

We are also interested in research in the field of educational robotics and emerging technology as well as research in innovative ways for improving teamwork and communication (human-machine interaction).