VEX 123 - Mars Rover-Landing Challenge - Unit Overview

Grades

K+ (Ages 4+)

Time

40 minutes per lab

Unit Essential Question(s)

How do I solve a challenge with the 123 Robot and VEXcode 123?

Unit Understandings

The following concepts will be covered throughout this Unit:

How to use sensors in VEXcode 123.
How to create a plan that correctly orders behaviors in a sequence to solve a challenge. This can be done both individually and collaboratively.
How to communicate behaviors, through words and gestures, that the 123 Robot will need to execute in order to accomplish a task.
Why a loop is used in the Landing Challenge project, and the flow of a project that contains a loop.

Lab Summary

Click on the following tabs for a summary of what the students will do and learn in each lab.

Lab 1 - Detect Obstacles

Students will pretend that the 123 Robot is a Mars rover that is tasked with detecting obstacles in the Mars landing area (a 123 Field) so these obstacles can be removed.
Students will be introduced to the Eye Sensor on the front of the 123 Robot, and observe how the Eye Sensor can be used to detect objects.
Students will also be introduced to the [Drive until] block in VEXcode 123 and watch a demonstration of how this block instructs the 123 Robot to drive until an object is detected by the Eye Sensor.
Students will then build and test a project that uses the [Drive until] block to drive the 123 Robot until the Eye Sensor detects an object.
Students will add a glow feature to their project to represent the 123 Robot signaling that it has detected an obstacle on the Mars landing area that needs to be removed.

Lab 2 - Clear the Landing Area

In this Lab, students will be challenged with creating a VEXcode 123 project that has the 123 Robot examine the entire Mars landing area (the 123 Field) to make sure it is clear of obstacles before the next Mars rover can land.
Students will be introduced to loops in VEXcode 123 and observe how those blocks has the 123 Robot repeat the commands within these “C” blocks, forever. Students will see how this loop can be used with sensor feedback to have the 123 Robot detect multiple obstacles on the 123 Field.
In the Play sections, students will complete an open-ended challenge to build and test a project that has the 123 Robot drive to and detect all the obstacles on the Field, even if the obstacle placements change.

Unit Standards

Unit Standards will be addressed in every Lab within the Unit.

Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA)

CSTA 1A-AP-10: Develop programs with sequences and simple loops, to express ideas or address a problem.

How Standard is Achieved: In Lab 1, students will build a VEXcode 123 project to drive the 123 Robot until the Eye Sensor detects an object. Students will then add onto their projects to indicate that the 123 Robot has detected an obstacle by making the indicator light on the 123 Robot glow. They will need to sequence the project so that the 123 Robot first drives until it detects an object, then glows green to represent that the Eye Sensor has detected something. The robot will wait for 2 seconds, then the indicator light will stop glowing.

In Lab 2, students will build a VEXcode 123 project that has the 123 Robot examine the entire landing area (a 123 Field) to make sure it is clear of obstacles so that the next Mars rover can land. Students will create a project that uses the Eye Sensor with a loop to have the 123 Robot drive to and detect all objects on the landing area, even if the location of the objects change.

Common Core State Standards (CCSS)

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.A.1: Describe objects in the environment using names of shapes, and describe the relative positions of these objects using terms such as above, below, beside, in front of, behind, and next to.

How Standard is Achieved: In Lab 1, students will describe the movement of the 123 Robot using words and gestures as they participate in a class demonstration, and build their VEXcode 123 project. After testing the project, students will recount how the 123 Robot moved in relation to the “obstacle” on the Mars landing area (a 123 Field).

In Lab 2, students will create a VEXcode 123 project where the 123 Robot drives until it detects all the obstacles on the Mars landing area. As they build their project, students will use words and gestures to describe how they want the 123 Robot to move and turn on the Field in relation to the obstacles.

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