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Implementing VEX GO STEM Labs

STEM Labs are designed to be the online teacher’s manual for VEX GO. Like a printed teacher’s manual, the teacher-facing content of the STEM Labs provides all of the resources, materials, and information needed to be able to plan, teach, and assess with VEX GO. The Lab Image Slideshows are the student-facing companion to this material. For more detailed information about how to implement a STEM Lab in your classroom, see the Implementing VEX GO STEM Labs article.

Goals and Standards

Goals

Students will apply

  • Using calculations with individual motor blocks, such as the [Spin for] blocks, in a project to have the Code Base drive a set distance.
  • Measuring the distance that the Code Base will travel with one rotation of the wheel, and using this to calculate the number of wheel rotations it will take for the Code Base to travel the length of an established parade route. 

Students will make meaning of

  • How to use mathematical calculations to solve an authentic challenge, such as driving the Code Base the length of a parade route.

Students will be skilled at

  • Saving and naming projects in VEXcode GO.
  • Adding VEXcode GO blocks to a project.
  • Using individual motor blocks in a project to have the Code Base drive a specific distance.
  • Measuring distances to plan and build a VEXcode GO project. 
  • Changing parameters in VEXcode blocks.
  • Starting and stopping a project in VEXcode GO.

Students will know

  • How to measure to determine how far a wheel travels in one rotation.
  • How to calculate the number of wheel rotations necessary to travel a set distance. 

Objective(s)

Objective

  1. Students will measure distances and apply the use of traditional and non-traditional units of measurement to move their robot the length of an established parade route. 

  2. Students will apply mathematical operations to calculate the distance in wheel turns needed to have their Code Base drive the length of an established parade route. 
     

Activity

  1. In Play Part 1, students will measure the distance that their robot will travel with one turn of the wheel, then use it to calculate the number of times the wheels must turn to drive the exact length of the parade route.
  2. In  Play Part 1, students will first determine the distance that the Code Base will travel with one turn of the wheel. Then, they will use that information to calculate the number of turns that each wheel will need to turn to drive their robot the length of the parade route. In Play Part 2, they will test a VEXcode GO project that uses these calculations as the parameters for individual motor blocks. 
     

Assessment

  1. In the Mid-Play Break students will discuss how they used their measurements to calculate the number of wheel turns necessary for their robot to complete the parade route. In Play Part 2, they will utilize their solutions in the parameters of their project to have their robot drive the length of the parade route. In Share, students will be able to explain why they calculated distances in wheel turns and how they applied their solution in their VEXcode GO projects.
  2. In the Mid-Play Break students will explain how they used their measurements to calculate the number of wheel turns necessary to drive the exact length of the parade route. In Play Part 2, students will demonstrate their understanding by testing their projects and having their robot drive the distance of the parade route with accuracy. In Share, they will explain how they calculated distances an applied their solutions in their VEXcode GO projects.

Connections to Standards