Unit 4 Introduction to Programming
Note to the teacher: The PowerPoint programming presentations “RoboLab
1-6” are designed to teach students how to program using RoboLab software. The hardware needed for
these lessons are: an IR tower, a RCX, two motors, a light sensor, a touch
sensor, a rotational sensor, and several connecting leads. The lessons begin
simple control of outputs using motors and sounds. As the lessons program
students begin to explore more advanced topics like variables and timers. The
worksheets that accompany these presentations are designed to be completed by
the student and kept in their notebooks. In Unit 8 there are PowerPoint
presentations that can be used to teach NQC, a syntax based programming
language, if you liked this method to teach programming.
Introduction to Programming
Concepts taught:
Electronic
Control
Analog and
digital feedback
Polarity
Programming
Concepts
loops
jumps
modifiers
wait
states
Measurement
Conversion
of units
Circumference
Scientific
Method
Logical
Thinking
Resources:
RoboLab PowerPoint Presentation 2
“Modifiers,
Loops, and Jumps Programming Solutions”
RoboLab PowerPoint Presentation 3
“Sensor
Wait-fors Programming Solutions”
RoboLab PowerPoint Presentation 4
“Conditional
Statements Programming Solutions”
RoboLab PowerPoint Presentation 5
“Multiple-tasks
and Timers Programming Solutions”
RoboLab PowerPoint Presentation 6
“Containers,
Programming Solutions”
Basic
Programming Worksheet Answers
RCX worksheet
and RCX Worksheet
Solutions
RoboLab Quiz and RoboLab Quiz Solution
Slalom design and programming
challenge
Robo500 design and programming
challenge
Teacher will:
Prepare a presentation, and then
lead a discussion on “What
is a sensor.”
Lead a discussion on the 5 human
senses and how they are used to navigate the world, then compare them to
sensors robots use.
Prepare a presentation that
demonstrates modifiers,
ports, power levels, jumps, and loops using RoboLab.
Write a program, save it, upload
it to the robot using the IR tower, and then use this robot to demonstrate
modifiers, loops, and jumps.
Students will:
Participate in teacher led
discussion on RoboLab icons, modifiers, ports, loops, jumps, lands, and wait
states.
Complete teacher assigned
problems that use wait states, modifiers, power levels and input & output
ports.
Activity:
Modify saved Tankbot program to
change power levels and output ports.
Modify Tankbot/Tankbot program to
run robot in reverse
Complete Programming
Concepts worksheet.
Use the basic programming
concepts taught to date to write a program to travel a simple course.
Develop a chart based on trial
and error and mathematics that will predict the distance traveled when time is
varied.
Present
data to class.
Evaluation:
Class
participation
Teacher observations
Successful completions of
software modifications
Successful completions of
hardware modifications
Completion of robotic distance exploration
Completion of programming
worksheets