Step 6: Test Your Course
Teacher Tips
Give students time to:
- Test their Race Course
- Take note of needed size/dimension changes
- Make those changes by sketching and re-scaling
- Re-test.
Step 6: Test Your Course
Time to test the course! Do the scaled measurements on the Race Course work? Let's find out!
Follow the following procedure:
- Ensure both the Robot Brain and Controller are turned on.
- Pair the V5 Controller to the V5 Robot Brain.
- Place your Speedbot at the start line on your Race Course.
- Review how to drive the robot using the Controller.
- Run the Drive Program to drive the Speedbot through the Race Course.
- Make note of any places in the Race Course that should be adjusted for size in your engineering notebook.
- After you have driven the robot around the Race Course a few times to test the size, sketch the Race Course again with the improved sizes.
- Re-scale the Race Course, document the changes made and why in your engineering notebook, and test it again!
Teacher Toolbox
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Stop and Discuss
After the students have tested their Race Courses and made the necessary improvements, engage them in a class discussion. First have the students share their experiences with a partner or small group before asking the students to engage in a full-class discussion.
Facilitate the discussion by asking:
- What parts of the original design of your Race Course were sized correctly? What parts needed re-sized and why?
- How did scaling your Race Course allow you to make changes to the size easier?
- Did having the size of the scaled Speedbot drawn on the scaled version of your Race Course help you to decide how the robot should move? Why or why not?
- If you were to do this activity over, is there anything you would have done differently?