This summer 130 students from Sowing Seeds with Faith Summer Camp entered the world of robotics and learned the basics of coding.  Utilizing Ozobots, students solved puzzles, designed mazes, and developed codes to get their Ozobot from one endpoint another.  

Ozobots have color sensors which recognize color patterns students draw on paper with markers to control the actions of the robot.  The Ozobot will follow a solid black line but when students add short color sequences that match any of the “color code” patterns, the behavior of the robot changes in response. In addition to paper and markers, students can also use “Flash Codes” in conjunction with a digital screen.

The program consisted of 7 weekly lessons.  The lesson ranged from learning the basics of handling the robots to programing the robot utilizing the Blocky Code system on a tablet.  Students had work in small groups (2-3) and use their critical thinking skills to collaborate and achieve the goal of each daily challenge.   Students were forced to look at things from a different perspective and utilize the cause and effect technique.   The benefits of this program allowed students to think in areas of logical thinking, problem-solving, persistence, collaboration, creativity, and communication.  

After completion of the program, 75% of the students felt this program will help them think more critically in the classroom.  85% of the students gained a new interest in technology.  90% of the participants are interested in learning more about coding.   

The OzoBots were purchased by the camping program.  Jefferson County 4-H plans to purchase their own set of OzoBots and use them in multiple after school and community school settings.