Teaching math, science, engineering and physics using Robotics

If you're looking for resources to teach Robotics... you’ve come to the right place!

The Carnegie Mellon University Robotics Academy's professional staff is committed to supporting teachers at all levels. We have over 40 years of teaching experience in our group and understand how difficult your job is.

Why do we care so much about helping teachers? Because you teach kids. Our mission is to excite students about math and science; you are the conduit to our target audience. The Robotics Academy is dedicated to helping you to do your job better.

Research Driven
Our support comes from the National Science Foundation, the Department of Education, the Department of Defense, the LEGO Group, and family and corporate foundations, as well as from Carnegie Mellon, a research-based university. The Robotics Academy is research driven– we develop products for teachers like you in cooperation with many local teachers. We use an iterative process that involves several rounds of testing, initially with the teachers, and then in their classrooms. You can be assured that the products we’ve developed have been tested by multiples users, checking for both understanding as well as for the content's ability to teach science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

We are also working closely with the University of Pittsburgh’s Learning Research and Development Center (LRDC) to test the effectiveness of our NXT LEGO Curriculum to teach math. We will use the data collected in our current research to improve these and future products.

What do you want to teach?
We often get the question “I want to teach robotics, where do I start?"

It's important for you to decide what you are trying to teach using robotics as the organizer. Robotics–  although a fun and engaging activity– can be used as the organizer to teach many subjects, including math, programming, scientific process, project management, systems, problem solving, teamwork, communication skills, etc. As you can see, robotics covers an incredibly large array of topics. We consider robotics to be the premier integrator in education today.

Your answer to the question– "What do I want to teach using robotics as the organizer?"– becomes increasingly important in the No Child Left Behind high-stakes testing environment that educators find themselves in today. Our goal is to provide many cross-discipline connections which will make learning and synthesis of information easier for students.

Middle School Education is typically focused is on STEM fundamentals with an emphasis on demonstrating mathematical competency that kids need to know to be productive in an increasingly technology-driven workplace

High School Education is more specialization as students move along in their academic careers.  Beyond STEM fundamentals, the focus is on the development of other critical 21st century skills, such as teamwork, problem solving, innovation, project management, communications. Some teachers choose more discrete organizers like programming, computer aided design, welding, etc. .

What platform should I choose?
There are lots of good robotic platforms available in education today. Budget is always a concern; we develop our robotics curriculum around what we believe are two robust, inexpensive platforms that have the corporate commitment necessary to producing good products. The focus of our research and development has been on LEGO and VEX. Both have advantages and disadvantages. You can learn more about 'Why LEGO' and 'Why VEX' in the 'Get Started' links in those sections of our website.

Do you have specific questions? Email us at