Until recently, the construction of robots seemed to be a fantasy invention. Today, almost all schoolchildren are engaged in this as part of the educational program. Robotics combines several subject areas at once - from physics to computer science. She develops thinking, logic, engineering skills. In some schools and even kindergartens, robotics is taught as one of the subjects of the school curriculum or elective.
That is why the question of choosing a set of construction sets for robotics is vital and burning. In this article, we will try to figure out which set is best for children.
What it is?
This robotics construction set is not just a play set for kids. This is a complete educational material. For schoolchildren from the age of 10, such sets are usually supplemented with auxiliary materials - a textbook, a workbook. For preschoolers and primary school students, the kits are simpler, but they are also not just toys, but educational materials corresponding to the age category. On the one hand, the child plays, he constructs a funny robot that can be taught something and set certain functions, and on the other, there is an intensive learning process in practice - mathematics, drawing, physics, mechanics, computer science and programming become closer and more understandable. for a child.
For beginners, the kits are simpler, they provide the basics of mechanics, logic, teach the child to assemble motors and individual elements of the complex. For more "advanced" users, the sets are larger and more diverse, they allow not only assembling a mechanism, but also setting a behavior model and certain functions for it.
Programmable robots are aerobatics, they will not only act according to a given program, but also develop their own options for correcting the program if something from external conditions or input changes.
For most sets, versatility is inherent - a number of models can be assembled from one set, in addition, the child may well embody his own ideas. The vast majority of the kits meet the standards of educational robotics and are quite suitable for both home and school lessons. In this way, one set will be quite sufficient, however, provided that it is chosen correctly and according to age.
Age categories
The creators of the robotics construction kits clearly differentiate the target audience: each kit is designed for children of a certain age and level of fitness.
4 - 6 years old
For preschoolers, robotics kits include fairly large parts for safety and ease of construction. Often the elements of the construction set have a bright color that attracts the attention of children and gives them pleasure. You can collect something quite simple from them - cars and airplanes, a giraffe or an elephant. Some models can be conveniently assembled by a company, for example, in kindergarten classes or at a children's birthday.
The task of such sets is to develop hand motor skills, imagination, logic, the ability to do something in a team, to get basic skills about the arrangement of objects and things, about mechanisms and mechanics (why the wheels spin, how the motor works, etc.).
7 - 9 years old
These kits are usually accompanied by the first tutorials on the basics of robotics. The sets themselves are more complex, the details are smaller, such a constructor offers significantly more possibilities. A child can not only create simple mechanical crafts with his own hands, but also get acquainted with such concepts as physical quantities and laws, the operation of sensors.
This allows you not only to assemble a tank or a car, but also to make them move, stop in front of an obstacle, go around it, and move along a given trajectory. All this provides endless opportunities for classes at school (in the lessons of the surrounding world, at electives, in extended school hours), as well as for fun games at home - alone or with friends.
10 - 14 years old
Such kits provide a more complete understanding of robotics. The student can create various programmable models, and some kits even allow you to assemble your own 3D printer and print the necessary parts yourself. Some of the designers have double capabilities: the set contains programmed electronic boards so that the assembled model demonstrates its "factory" capabilities, and it is also possible to write a program for the assembled robot yourself and make it do something new.
Such constructors help the student to better understand topics in physics and computer science, develop engineering skills, logic, thinking, memory and attention. The radio-controlled robots that can be created using these kits are a matter of special pride for teenagers. Their guys can take part in a robotics competition or tournament, fortunately, such competitions are now held annually in various regions of Russia and at the national level.
Review of popular sets
Manufacturers offer a great variety of kits for different ages and levels of initial training. Choosing the one that your child will like is not as easy as it might seem at first glance. Let's take a look at the most popular sets, their advantages and disadvantages.
Lego Education
Parents know more about Lego than they think, because it is this manufacturer of construction sets and modular sets that covers with its products a variety of age categories of children of different genders. First, boys and girls play with Lego sets, and then they may well begin to construct robots from parts provided by this manufacturer.
It is this brand that currently occupies a leading position among school robotics programs. This is due not only to the rich choice, variety of parts and capabilities of the kits, but also to the mandatory presence in each kit of materials for the teacher, as well as teaching aids for students.
"Lego" is an excellent choice for kindergarten children. Sets "Simple mechanisms" and "First mechanisms", designed for preschoolers, in a playful way will tell kids about the role of gear wheels, levers, pendulums, springs.
You can try all this in practice by collecting your own craft, which will move using wheels and levers.
Lego sets WeDo and WeDo 2.0 are designed for children from 7 to 10 years old. They are more complex and interesting, at least in that the child will be able to assemble his own robot, equipped with sensors of light, movement, tilt, reversal, etc., without assistance. The resulting robot can surprise with its abilities: it can be taught to ride along certain lines, overcome obstacles, pass mazes
Children from 9 to 13 years old will be interested in sets that make it possible to assemble a robot that can not only exist on its own, but also interacts with other robots from Lego. It is interesting if there are two or more robotic children in the family, or if the child has previously assembled robot models from this manufacturer. Now the old robots will get a second life. These sets include Mindstorms Education EV3.
Choosing a Lego constructor, moms and dads should remember that all robotics constructors from this manufacturer are divided into basic, additional and resource ones. Basic is a basic set of parts. Resource - these are sets of additional parts that allow you to collect completely new crafts from old elements.
Additional kits are a nice addition to the basic kits, expanding their standard capabilities.
Fischertechnik
This is a solid and high-quality creation of German manufacturers. Like everything German, the brand is notable for its laconicism, simplicity, constructors are understandable for children of different ages. Little engineers from 5 years old can try their hand at collecting the simplest sets from "Firshtekhnik" - "Set of kids" or "Super set of kids". From the parts that are included in each kit, it is quite possible to create several modifications of machines, tractors, combines and mobile construction cranes. This activity will appeal not only to the child, but also to his dad.
For elementary school students (from 7 years old and a little older), the German brand offers options that will allow you to assemble not only a model of equipment, but also make it work - on solar panels or using remote control. There are also kits for children from 13 years old in the line of constructors, but they are less diverse than the offers for a similar age category from the same Lego.
But if the child is keenly interested in some particular area of physics, for example, optics, then it is best to choose the German designer Fishtechnik, since its line includes sets for “admirers” of narrow physical fields - optics, dynamics, thermodynamics, electromechanics.
Huna
Korean manufacturers have approached educational robotics issues more than thoroughly. All kits are created according to the principle of following from simpler to more complex. Preschoolers and elementary students can create robots that will be equipped with sound signals, motors, and simple sensors that can determine distance or color. In fact, it makes a great toy. But the self-assembled one differs from the purchased machine strikingly already in that its child loves and appreciates much more.
For kids, manufacturers choose familiar plots, offering to collect trains and airplanes - heroes of popular cartoons, as well as other characters known to children.
The instructions are pretty clear, illustrated, but it's better not to leave without the supervision of a child with such a set: some details are clearly too small. But the advantage of the constructor is that any element can be fixed to the other from either side, the details are universal. This makes it possible to realize in reality any fantasies of your son or daughter.
For collective work, Korean manufacturers have provided sets that require a large number of children to work at once. So, the whole class in the elective in robotics can be invited to assemble a fun zoo and make animals move, or to design a real small city with houses, factories, highways, cars and even pedestrians.
Arduino mobile robots
Such Russian-made constructors are useful and interesting for older children - from 10-11 years old. They include a set of parts for creating equipment and an Arduino board. The child learns how to program this controller, how to assemble a robot, how to set a vector of actions for it. The resulting model can be easily combined with a smartphone running on the Android platform, which will expand the robot's control capabilities.
Such a robot can be trained, developed, taught to travel around the room, look for lost socks, and play kegelring. The scope for creativity is the greatest.
"Trick"
These kits of domestic production are not just a designer, but part of a program of entertaining and educational robotics. For a child of any age, you can pick up a set that will allow you to collect "smart" robots that can not only move along a given trajectory, but also "see", "hear" and even interact.
The point is that the "Trick" controller can simultaneously process audio and visual data, synthesize speech, "understand" voice commands. Trick is called the next generation Russian cybernetic designer. Children will like the Cybernetic Quantotric just because they can communicate with it. Even basic, inexpensive kits contain a video camera and a small microphone. The details are solid, metal, such a set will last a long time.
For teenagers who have long been fond of robotics, there are kits that allow you to assemble almost humanoid robots.
Tetrix / Matrix
These are quite popular sets in Russia, but they do not have their own controller. But these sets work well with the Lego controller, so they will be an excellent choice for those who already have a Lego set. Due to the relative high cost (basic sets cost over 70 thousand rubles, and resource sets - from 20 thousand), not every school can afford to equip robotics circles with such sets.
But for home use, such a set is perfect, especially if the family budget allows you to purchase such a useful and interesting educational toy.
General selection rules
Parents should know the following:
- Observe the age limit... The desire to buy a five-year-old child a set that allows you to create a humanoid robot playing football or desperately fighting in the ring can lead to the fact that the child will quickly get bored with the incomprehensible and difficult process of assembling it. It is unlikely that later you will be able to lure such a child into the robotics circle.
- Remember at least the very near future. Small and inexpensive sets will very quickly exhaust their capabilities in the eyes of a small designer and will gather dust on the shelf.
If it is not possible to change the robot kit from time to time according to age, buy something like a 14-in-1 kit. Such a set will allow you to assemble 14 different robots from one set of parts, which will be powered by a light bulb or sunlight.
- Make sure it's safe. Parts and fasteners should not be made of obscure plastic, toxic materials. They should not emit a strong chemical odor. In order not to buy a fake, do not hesitate to ask the seller for a certificate of conformity and a safety certificate for the set you like.
- Entrust the choice to your child. Your child knows best what is really interesting to him. If he dreams of participating in robot fights at the next "Robofest", do not impose on him kits for assembling mechanical models. If a child wants to create a robot that will dance a break-dance with him, do not make him "revive" the bulldozers and tractors. There will be benefits only where there is a personal interest.
See the next video for a detailed overview of the Arduino-based Makeblock constructors.
