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303 search results found

Obstacle Course

  • 26 August 202022 March 2021
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Rob Torok
This challenge is great for raising the importance of reliability and repeatability in robotics, and in engineering more generally. The challenge Program your robot to run an obstacle course in the fastest time, reliably. Teacher […]

Continue reading "Obstacle Course" →

Obstacle Course

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections

Crash Test Dummy

  • 26 August 202026 August 2020
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Rob Torok
Here’s a quick, fun challenge that can be used as a filler at the end of a lesson or as introductory build to draw attention to the importance of robust construction. The challenge Design and […]

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Crash Test Dummy

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

Chair for Mr Bear

  • 21 August 202021 August 2020
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
Posted by CEEO
This building challenge provides an opportunity for young students (e.g. 6-9 year olds) to explore concepts related to sturdy design, including balance, force, bracing, and strength. The Challenge Design and construct a sturdy chair for […]

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Chair for Mr Bear

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started

Assistive Technology: Making Lives Easier

  • 20 August 202021 August 2020
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
In the age of digital technology, there are so many things that are designed to make peoples’ lives easier. Smart phones allow us to stay connected wherever we are, robots wash our dishes and clean our floors, […]

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Assistive Technology: Making Lives Easier

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

Program Virtual Robots using Gears

  • 17 August 202021 August 2020
  • EV3
  • Emerging technology
  • News
Posted by Guest Contributor
By guest contributor, Cort Wee, creator of Ev3devSim and Gears Hi all. I’m Cort, the creator of Gears, the successor of Ev3devSim. Ev3devSim is a 2D robotics simulator I created to aid in teaching Python for […]

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Program Virtual Robots using Gears

  • EV3
  • Emerging technology
  • News

The Heart of the Hub

  • 16 July 20206 December 2020
  • SPIKE Prime
  • Getting Started
  • How To
Posted by Nathaniel
When you power up the SPIKE Prime hub, the first thing you see on the display is a pixelated heart. It might look a little cute and quirky, but it’s quite likely that you don’t […]

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The Heart of the Hub

  • SPIKE Prime
  • Getting Started
  • How To

Sturdy Tower

  • 14 June 202015 June 2020
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
This building challenge provides an opportunity for students to explore concepts related to sturdy design, including load distribution, rigidity, balance, and strength. The challenge How would you design and construct a tower with LEGO bricks […]

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Sturdy Tower

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

The Wave

  • 21 May 202022 May 2020
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Rob Torok
This classic challenge is a great introductory activity. It works well with a standard Driving Base, such as the EV3 Robot Educator Mode or an equivalent quick build, and the programming is relatively straight forward. Its […]

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The Wave

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

Going the Distance

  • 21 May 202022 May 2020
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Build and program a robot car to drive as close as possible to a LEGO minfig, without knocking it over. Sounds easy? The catch is that you are not allowed to use any sensors and […]

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Going the Distance

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

Build X

  • 20 May 202020 May 2020
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
Posted by Rob Torok
This is a great introductory activity that works with any kit of parts and is suitable for all ages and levels of experience. The challenge This challenge can be framed in a variety of ways […]

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Build X

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started

Build a Duck

  • 20 May 202020 May 2020
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Rob Torok
This is very quick and fun activity with a deep message. The way it works is that everyone gets the six LEGO pieces shown below, and are then given the following challenge. The challenge Using only […]

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Build a Duck

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

Figure 8

  • 19 May 202020 May 2020
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Rob Torok
Here is a simple idea that I often use when I need a quick challenge for speedier teams to work on while they are waiting for the rest of the class. For example, when I’ve […]

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Figure 8

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

Get Started with SPIKE Prime

  • 2 May 202013 May 2020
  • SPIKE Prime
  • Getting Started
  • Reference
Posted by Rob Torok
LEGO Education SPIKE Prime is a robotics platform designed for grade 5-8 students, announced in 2019 and released in 2020. In terms of complexity, it is positioned in between WeDo 2.0 and EV3. The SPIKE […]

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Get Started with SPIKE Prime

  • SPIKE Prime
  • Getting Started
  • Reference

Virtual Robots, Brick Emulators, and Simulated Environments

  • 24 April 202018 July 2022
  • EV3
  • Reference
Posted by Rob Torok
Are you looking for a way to enable your students to program a LEGO robot without access to the hardware? Here’s a summary of some of the most popular and accessible EV3 emulators and virtual environments […]

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Virtual Robots, Brick Emulators, and Simulated Environments

  • EV3
  • Reference

Relay Race

  • 15 August 201915 May 2020
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Rob Torok
This challenge is all about communication. From a robot design perspective, there’s a technical challenge about how to make one robot signal another. But beyond that, there’s also a great opportunity for students to develop their […]

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Relay Race

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

Line Following and Proportional Controls (EV3)

  • 15 August 201921 September 2020
  • EV3
  • Big Ideas
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Rob Torok
The aim of this challenge is to create a robot vehicle that follows a line and avoids collisions with obstacles – including other vehicles! Robot design All you need for the most basic version of […]

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Line Following and Proportional Controls (EV3)

  • EV3
  • Big Ideas
  • Challenge Ideas

Tufts Teacher Engineering Education Program (TEEP)

  • 18 June 201918 June 2019
  • News
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Rob Torok
Tufts Teacher Engineering Education Program (TEEP) is a flexible, affordable, online, graduate credit-earning program from Tufts University Center for Engineering Education and Outreach (CEEO), that takes any K12 teacher on an 18 month journey leading […]

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Tufts Teacher Engineering Education Program (TEEP)

  • News
  • Pedagogy

Linkage Warm Ups 2: LEGO Jumpers and Hoppers

  • 28 May 201928 May 2019
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Wade
Here’s another easy challenge to expose students to linkages. Jumpers use the same 4-bar linkage as punchers, but are angled to push down to drive the mechanism up. They can be easily modified to jump straight […]

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Linkage Warm Ups 2: LEGO Jumpers and Hoppers

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

Steepest Incline

  • 16 May 201920 May 2020
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Rob Torok
This variation of the classic Ramp Climber challenge builds on the original challenge with the use of sensors to start and stop the robot. Framed in this way, it works well as a very basic intro to […]

Continue reading "Steepest Incline" →

Steepest Incline

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

Yellow Diamond Error in EV3 Software

  • 7 May 20197 May 2019
  • EV3
  • How To
Posted by Jim
One of my robotics teams recently ran across an error message and problem that I had never seen before. While they were rehearsing for a local robotics competition, their robot began to act “wacky”. I suggested […]

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Yellow Diamond Error in EV3 Software

  • EV3
  • How To

Linkage Warm Ups 1: LEGO Punchers and the 4-Bar Linkage

  • 13 April 201928 May 2019
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Wade
Before attempting to build walking robots like TrotBot and Strider, we first played with linkages in a few simpler challenges like “punchers”, which utilize a 4-bar linkage to create a simple robotic arm.  Here’s a […]

Continue reading "Linkage Warm Ups 1: LEGO Punchers and the 4-Bar Linkage" →

Linkage Warm Ups 1: LEGO Punchers and the 4-Bar Linkage

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections

Silly Walks

  • 13 April 201920 May 2020
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Rob Torok
This classic introductory robotics challenge requires little, if any, formal teaching. In addition to being a lot of fun, it provides a great way of assessing prior experience. At the very least, it allows you to check […]

Continue reading "Silly Walks" →

Silly Walks

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

Write Better Code with Design Patterns in EV3

  • 14 February 20192 April 2019
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Josep Fargas
A software design pattern is a reusable solution for a commonly occurring problem. It is not a finished solution, but rather a template for how to solve problems in a variety of different contexts. Using a design […]

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Write Better Code with Design Patterns in EV3

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Big Ideas

New Cycles of Dr. E’s Challenges Are Here

  • 7 February 201930 March 2020
  • BOOST, EV3, NXT, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • News
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
Dr. E’s WeDo Challenges and Dr. E’s MINDSTORMS Challenges encourage students from around the world to solve open-ended LEGO robotics challenges and post their solutions for other students to see. Dr. E’s MINDSTORMS Challenges Here are […]

Continue reading "New Cycles of Dr. E’s Challenges Are Here" →

New Cycles of Dr. E’s Challenges Are Here

  • BOOST, EV3, NXT, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • News

Hour of Code With Robotics

  • 2 December 201824 July 2020
  • Cross-Platform, EV3, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • News
Posted by Wayne Burnett
The Hour of Code is a global initiative to introduce young people (and those young at heart) to computer science. The Hour of Code takes place during Computer Science Education Week, which is held annually […]

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Hour of Code With Robotics

  • Cross-Platform, EV3, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • News

Privacy Policy

  • 30 November 201830 November 2018
Posted by Rob Torok
Who we are Our website address is: http://www.legoengineering.com. What personal data we collect and why we collect it Comments When visitors leave comments on the site we collect the data shown in the comments form, […]

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Privacy Policy

LEGO for the Blind: Touching the Untouchable

  • 29 November 201830 March 2020
  • Big Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Guest Contributor
By guest contributor, Matthew Shifrin, a blind LEGO builder. It was the morning of my thirteenth birthday, and I was filled with the usual birthday excitement. I was most eager to see my friend Lilya. […]

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LEGO for the Blind: Touching the Untouchable

  • Big Ideas
  • Reflections

Alternative Programming Languages for LEGO MINDSTORMS

  • 29 November 20182 April 2019
  • EV3, NXT, RCX
  • Reference
Posted by Wayne Burnett
For anyone getting started with LEGO MINDSTORMS, the EV3 Software provides a great introduction to programming, but sooner or later you and your students might be ready for something different. For example, one option is […]

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Alternative Programming Languages for LEGO MINDSTORMS

  • EV3, NXT, RCX
  • Reference

Using Video to Assess Robotics Students

  • 21 November 20181 May 2020
  • Cross-Platform
  • Big Ideas
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
It’s okay to fail, you’re on camera! My school is in a 1:1 iPad district. Every student in our district from 2nd through 12th grade is given an iPad for use in school. As the […]

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Using Video to Assess Robotics Students

  • Cross-Platform
  • Big Ideas
  • Pedagogy

Cranes

  • 19 November 201821 November 2018
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Katie
In this series of challenges, students will design and build motorized crane that uses a pulley and a string to lift and lower heavy objects. They can incorporate gears into the design to provide enough […]

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Cranes

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

Harvey Mk II: Improved Quick EV3 Robot Build

  • 27 September 20182 April 2019
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To
Posted by John Burfoot
Harvey Mk II is an improved version of the ever-popular Harvester quick EV3 robot build that was published in 2013. This version features improved stability and has more LEGO connection holes for external attachments. Building instructions: […]

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Harvey Mk II: Improved Quick EV3 Robot Build

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To

Rapidly Prototyping Strider – Smoother, Stronger, Faster

  • 30 August 201818 July 2022
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Wade
This summer we used our Strider optimizer coupled with rapid prototyping in LEGO to refine its 10-bar linkage. In a tiny fraction of the time it took us to refine TrotBot’s linkage in our garage, we […]

Continue reading "Rapidly Prototyping Strider – Smoother, Stronger, Faster" →

Rapidly Prototyping Strider – Smoother, Stronger, Faster

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections

Snail Car

  • 23 August 20182 April 2019
  • BOOST, Cross-Platform, EV3, NXT, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
Challenge Use gears to make a motorized car that moves as slowly as possible. Here are the rules: Your snail must include a power source such as an EV3 brick or WeDo hub, one or […]

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Snail Car

  • BOOST, Cross-Platform, EV3, NXT, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas

Ramp Climber

  • 23 August 20181 May 2020
  • BOOST, Cross-Platform, EV3, NXT, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
The challenge Design and build a car that can climb as steep a ramp as possible. Engineers repeatedly test their creations and use the results to make improvements to their designs. As you test your […]

Continue reading "Ramp Climber" →

Ramp Climber

  • BOOST, Cross-Platform, EV3, NXT, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas

Meet the Creator: Akiyuki Kawaguchi

  • 29 May 201820 December 2018
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Asha
Akiyuki Kawaguchi is a twenty-seven year old engineer from Japan. He is well-known for his clever Great Ball Contraption (GBC) modules and sorting machines. He uses mostly LEGO Technic and MINDSTORMS in his creations. He […]

Continue reading "Meet the Creator: Akiyuki Kawaguchi" →

Meet the Creator: Akiyuki Kawaguchi

  • Big Ideas

Meet the Creator: Paweł “Sariel” Kmieć

  • 25 April 201825 April 2018
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Asha
Paweł “Sariel” Kmieć lives in Warsaw, Poland. He has designed over 200 LEGO model vehicles including cars, trucks, trains, and ships. His models have been featured on Top Gear, Jalopnik, and Engaget websites, among many […]

Continue reading "Meet the Creator: Paweł “Sariel” Kmieć" →

Meet the Creator: Paweł “Sariel” Kmieć

  • Big Ideas

Hurricane Disaster Recovery

  • 19 April 201823 April 2018
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Lana Pereira
I teach a robotics class at a middle school in Central Florida near Orlando. My classes are mostly 6th grade with a few 7th graders, and I have between 30 and 32 students per class. In […]

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Hurricane Disaster Recovery

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

Reflections on Vassilis Chryssanthakopoulos

  • 27 March 201827 March 2018
  • Big Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Asha
Vassilis Chryssanthakopoulos was an internationally acclaimed LEGO robotics designer and a MINDSTORMS Community Partner (MCP). He realized his dream of creating an innovative educational concept  though the creation of blast in 2015. In 2017, he extended […]

Continue reading "Reflections on Vassilis Chryssanthakopoulos" →

Reflections on Vassilis Chryssanthakopoulos

  • Big Ideas
  • Reflections

DIY Walkers: Klann’s Mechanical Spider

  • 26 March 201826 March 2019
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Inspiration
  • Reflections
Posted by Ben Vagle
This creation is a LEGO-based version of Klann’s Mechanical Spider, which makes use of one of the best known walking mechanisms, the Klann linkage. The Klann linkage was designed by mechanical engineer Joe Klann and […]

Continue reading "DIY Walkers: Klann’s Mechanical Spider" →

DIY Walkers: Klann’s Mechanical Spider

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Inspiration
  • Reflections

EV3 Sensors

  • 22 March 201830 March 2020
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reference
Posted by John Burfoot
Sensors provide robots with information about their environment. With the sensors that come with the EV3, you can make a robot respond to being touched, react when someone or something comes too close, follow a line, […]

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EV3 Sensors

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reference

WeDo Sensors

  • 21 March 20182 April 2019
  • WeDo
  • Reference
Posted by Wayne Burnett
Both versions of the WeDo kit (2.0 and 1.0) come with two sensors. These sensors give students the opportunity to experience how robots sense the world around them. Motion sensor The WeDo 2.0 motion sensor (part […]

Continue reading "WeDo Sensors" →

WeDo Sensors

  • WeDo
  • Reference

What to Buy (WeDo 2.0)

  • 1 March 20182 April 2019
  • WeDo
  • Getting Started
Posted by Wayne Burnett
Planning on introducing the LEGO WeDo into your class? Here are some ideas on what you need to get started. Note: This guide is for LEGO Education WeDo 2.0, which comes in a blue container. […]

Continue reading "What to Buy (WeDo 2.0)" →

What to Buy (WeDo 2.0)

  • WeDo
  • Getting Started

Meet the Creator: Lee Magpili

  • 27 February 201827 February 2018
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Asha
Lee Magpili is a LEGO Education Designer who lives in Billund, Denmark.  Lee was the lead model designer for the LEGO® MINDSTORMS® Education EV3 Core Set. He is also well-known for many large creations including EVan, SI3RRA, […]

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Meet the Creator: Lee Magpili

  • Big Ideas

Does LEGO BOOST Have a Place in Education?

  • 20 January 20182 April 2019
  • BOOST
  • Review
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
LEGO BOOST was released in 2017,  joining MINDSTORMS and WeDo in the LEGO robotics line-up. Unlike those two products, BOOST was designed solely for the retail market. BOOST has received rave reviews and a number […]

Continue reading "Does LEGO BOOST Have a Place in Education?" →

Does LEGO BOOST Have a Place in Education?

  • BOOST
  • Review

How to Toggle a Motor On/Off With a Touch Sensor

  • 16 November 20172 April 2019
  • EV3
  • How To
Posted by Josep Fargas
Starting with a simple challenge involving a touch sensor and a motor, this learning sequence shows how to turn a motor on and off with a touch sensor using flow control structures that include: waits […]

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How to Toggle a Motor On/Off With a Touch Sensor

  • EV3
  • How To

Using PocketLab with Simple & Powered Machines

  • 16 November 201722 December 2017
  • Machines & Mechanisms
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Susan Bitetti
What happens when you pair LEGO Education’s Simple & Powered Machines set with a pocket-sized all-in-one set of sensors? This summer, Tufts Center for Engineering Education and Outreach hosted a group of science and technology […]

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Using PocketLab with Simple & Powered Machines

  • Machines & Mechanisms
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections

Meet the Creator: Anton Vanhoucke

  • 16 November 201714 April 2022
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Asha
Anton Vanhoucke is from Delft, the Netherlands. He is an online strategist at Fabrique, a strategic design agency, developing new services and communication strategies. Anton has always wanted to be an inventor and combines his love […]

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Meet the Creator: Anton Vanhoucke

  • Big Ideas

Online Training Courses

  • 31 October 20171 August 2022
  • EV3, NXT, RCX
  • Reference
Posted by Wayne Burnett
There is a range of training courses and related support materials available for teacher’s online. The websites below differ in length, focus and cost, but all provide teachers (and sometimes students) resources and skills to […]

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Online Training Courses

  • EV3, NXT, RCX
  • Reference

Insights From Robodogs Robotics Summer Camp

  • 19 October 201718 July 2022
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Aaron Maurer
How do you design a robotics camp that pushes the envelope for repeat customers while also keeping the learning entry low enough for new students to feel success? How do you come up with new […]

Continue reading "Insights From Robodogs Robotics Summer Camp" →

Insights From Robodogs Robotics Summer Camp

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

How to Wait for More than One Sensor Condition

  • 19 October 20172 April 2019
  • EV3
  • How To
Posted by Josep Fargas
The Wait block is one of the simplest blocks in the EV3 Software, and provides one of the simplest flow control structures. Its basic function is to pause the execution of a program until a […]

Continue reading "How to Wait for More than One Sensor Condition" →

How to Wait for More than One Sensor Condition

  • EV3
  • How To

Hexapod TrotBot: A classroom-friendly DIY walker

  • 19 October 201727 September 2018
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Ben Vagle
I recently had an internship at the University of Denver’s Innovation Floor, where I wrote curriculum on walking machines geared toward a middle school audience. I’m going to pilot this curriculum by teaching a class […]

Continue reading "Hexapod TrotBot: A classroom-friendly DIY walker" →

Hexapod TrotBot: A classroom-friendly DIY walker

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections

Why Doesn’t My Robot Drive Straight?

  • 21 September 20171 May 2020
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Featured
  • How To
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Rob Torok
It seems reasonable to expect that when you program a robot to drive straight, it should just work. And, of course, this is what the Move Steering block in the EV3 Software is designed to do. The Move Steering block makes use of […]

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Why Doesn’t My Robot Drive Straight?

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Featured
  • How To
  • Pedagogy

Meet the Creator: Jason Allemann

  • 5 September 20177 September 2017
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Asha
Jason Alleman is well known for his LEGO kinetic sculptures and unique MINDSTORMS models. He has a degree in Engineering, and enjoy building models that have some kind of interesting motion. He is an inspiration to other LEGO […]

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Meet the Creator: Jason Allemann

  • Big Ideas

Meet the Creator: Arthur Sacek

  • 27 July 201716 November 2017
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Asha
Arthur Sacek is a native of Sao Paulo, Brazil. He has a background in product design and has worked for Zoom Education for Life for many years. He is known for his amazing LEGO machines including […]

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Meet the Creator: Arthur Sacek

  • Big Ideas

How to export an EV3 data file (*.rdf) to Excel

  • 27 July 20177 September 2017
  • EV3
  • How To
Posted by Rob Torok
To open an EV3 data file (*.rdf) in Excel (or equivalent application), the trick is to convert it to a (*.csv) file using the the Tools > Export Datasets menu option in the EV3 Software. […]

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How to export an EV3 data file (*.rdf) to Excel

  • EV3
  • How To

Light and Dark Scavenger Hunt

  • 6 July 201720 December 2018
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Rob Torok
This challenge provides a basic introduction to datalogging with EV3. Datalogging enables you to collect data from one or more sensors connected to the EV3 brick over a period of time. It is possible to […]

Continue reading "Light and Dark Scavenger Hunt" →

Light and Dark Scavenger Hunt

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

Meet the Creator: Kristal Dubois

  • 4 July 201727 September 2018
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Asha
Kristal Dubois began building with LEGO as an adult and enjoys creating intricate mechanical models. Kristal is a high school mathematics and chemistry teacher and lives with her partner, Jason, in Ottawa, Canada. Together they […]

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Meet the Creator: Kristal Dubois

  • Big Ideas

EV3 books

  • 4 July 201731 July 2022
  • EV3
  • Reference
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
MINDSTORMS EV3 books written for educators Bratzel, Barbara. STEM by Design: Teaching with LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Dwivedi, Sanjeev, and Dwivedi, Rajeev. Your guide to Excel in First Lego League: Robot Architecture, Design, Programming and Game Strategies […]

Continue reading "EV3 books" →

EV3 books

  • EV3
  • Reference

General LEGO Technic and robotics books

  • 4 July 20171 August 2022
  • Cross-Platform
  • Reference
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
Robotics books Ceceri, Kathy and Sam Carbaugh. Robotics: Discover the Science and Technology of the Future with 20 Projects Chow-Miller, Ian. Integrated Robotics Chow-Miller, Ian. Math, Programming, and Controllers Chow-Miller, Ian. Sensors and the Environment Heffernan, John. […]

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General LEGO Technic and robotics books

  • Cross-Platform
  • Reference

WeDo books

  • 4 July 201731 July 2022
  • WeDo
  • Reference
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
Books using WeDo 2.0 Gergert, Vyacheslav. 4WD Buggy with double hinged suspension unofficial building instruction for LEGO WeDo 2.0 Gergert, Vyacheslav. Trebuchet: Self-charging Model for LEGO WeDo 2.0 Isogawa, Yoshihito. WeDo Line Tracer: The Yoshihito’s […]

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WeDo books

  • WeDo
  • Reference

Make Way for Ducklings

  • 23 June 20171 May 2020
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Featured
Posted by Rob Torok
The classic children’s book Make Way For Ducklings by Robert McCloskey provided inspiration for a workshop at the LEGO Learning Symposium 2016. Led by the EDGErs, the workshop was intended to provide participants with an opportunity to explore some intermediate […]

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Make Way for Ducklings

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Featured

Meet the Creator: Kevin Clague

  • 2 June 20177 September 2017
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Asha
Kevin Clague is a Senior Principal Hardware Engineer at Oracle Corporation. He is also the head coach for Eagan Minnesota’s FIRST Tech Challenge teams. Kevin has been an avid LEGO fan since the introduction of […]

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Meet the Creator: Kevin Clague

  • Big Ideas

EV3 TrotBot Version 2: Inspired by a Galloping Horse

  • 4 May 201718 May 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Ben Vagle
In the same way that it is more tiring to do lunges than it is to simply walk, robots with bumpy gaits require more power than robots with smooth gaits. This may not be a […]

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EV3 TrotBot Version 2: Inspired by a Galloping Horse

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections

Meet the Creator: Yoshihito Isogawa

  • 1 May 201718 March 2018
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Asha
Yoshihito Isogawa is the author of the LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Idea Book and the LEGO Power Functions Idea Book series, as well as other LEGO titles. In addition to creating LEGO moving models and conducting educational […]

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Meet the Creator: Yoshihito Isogawa

  • Big Ideas

Robotics challenges: Workshop handouts

  • 23 March 201717 August 2017
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Rob Torok
Here are some of the challenges that I give to my robotics students that I’ve also given to teachers at various workshops. Most of these are based on classic robotics challenges. Some have previously been documented on […]

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Robotics challenges: Workshop handouts

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

Meet Pi

  • 20 March 20173 March 2022
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Kasia Nogalska
Some mathematical constants are difficult to explain, especially for young students. I believe that science is not only formulas and theory but also experiments. The best way to explain it to children is showing effects […]

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Meet Pi

  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy

Meet the Creator: Anika Brandsma

  • 19 March 201719 May 2022
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Asha
Anika Brandsma is a graduate student undertaking Mechanical Engineering at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands. She is well-known for her robotic animals as well as for bringing LEGO Friends and LEGO Elves sets […]

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Meet the Creator: Anika Brandsma

  • Big Ideas

Tilt-to-Drive Android App for WeDo 2.0

  • 22 February 201721 December 2017
  • WeDo
  • How To
Posted by Rex
I’ve created an Android app for controlling a LEGO WeDo 2.0 skid-steer car. It was made using the MIT App Inventor. I’ve posted the build instructions and app programming here in my blog.  

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Tilt-to-Drive Android App for WeDo 2.0

  • WeDo
  • How To

A Week in the Life #12: Robot Monsters!

  • 9 February 201718 July 2022
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
I teach an introductory course using the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 set. My students are 7th graders who are required to take the course and may not necessarily have any background in programming/building. My school is […]

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A Week in the Life #12: Robot Monsters!

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

Getting started with STEM and EV3

  • 7 February 201711 May 2017
  • EV3
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Kasia Nogalska
“I hear and I forget. I see and remember. I do and I understand.” This well-known quote describes the most effective method of teaching students. If you let children play football or basketball, they discover […]

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Getting started with STEM and EV3

  • EV3
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

DIY Walkers: Strider

  • 29 January 20177 February 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Ben Vagle
Strider is an entry-level walker we created when we were trying to discover a linkage mechanism that mimicked the gait of a galloping horse for TrotBot. We explored many options, and one of them led to Strider […]

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DIY Walkers: Strider

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections

Light and Gryo Sensor Calibration

  • 25 January 20171 June 2017
  • EV3
  • How To
Posted by Benjamin
Some sensors need to be calibrated to make sure they work correctly. I’ve made an EV3 project to help my FIRST LEGO League teams calibrate their sensors and would like to make it available to […]

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Light and Gryo Sensor Calibration

  • EV3
  • How To

DIY Walkers: TrotBot using EV3

  • 28 December 20167 February 2017
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Ben Vagle
In my previous post, I shared some of my exploration of walking mechanisms using mainly LEGO Technic. Here is a MINDSTORMS EV3 version I have just built. The challenge with this build was maximizing performance […]

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DIY Walkers: TrotBot using EV3

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections

Cookie Decorating Robot

  • 14 December 201630 March 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Sam
The Tufts Center for Engineering Education (CEEO) turned twenty in October 2016. To mark the occasion, we built a cookie decorating robot for the 20th Anniversary Celebration, and delivered smiles and custom cookies to adults […]

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Cookie Decorating Robot

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

NXT-NXT remote control in LabVIEW

  • 23 November 201622 March 2018
  • LabVIEW, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Rob Torok
The idea for this challenge is to design and build an NXT-based remote control that you will use to steer an NXT-based robot vehicle through an obstacle course or maze as fast as you can, […]

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NXT-NXT remote control in LabVIEW

  • LabVIEW, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

The Maze Challenge: Great for all levels and ages

  • 2 November 201630 March 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Katie
I teach several classes and camps for kids ages 8-14 using Mindstorms EV3/NXT. I teach small classes (about 8-12 students) with two kids, one robot, and one computer. We usually start out with the basics: […]

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The Maze Challenge: Great for all levels and ages

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

DIY Walkers: The TrotBot walking mechanism

  • 2 November 201618 July 2022
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by Ben Vagle
I was part of the team that developed the TrotBot linkage mechanism in LEGO, and then helped to scale it up to the size of a minivan. We gained a ton of knowledge from the […]

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DIY Walkers: The TrotBot walking mechanism

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections

EV3 Simulator using RobotC: QEV3BotSim

  • 31 October 201618 July 2022
  • EV3
  • News
Posted by John Burfoot
Stan Simmons, an Associate Professor at Queen’s University in Canada, has developed a free Windows-based LEGO EV3 simulator as an adjunct to his physical robot classes, QEV3Bot Simulator. Although the LEGO Mindstorms NXT and EV3 […]

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EV3 Simulator using RobotC: QEV3BotSim

  • EV3
  • News

Open Roberta Lab

  • 22 October 201618 July 2022
  • EV3, NXT
  • News
Posted by Sara Willner-Giwerc
Open Roberta Lab (https://lab.open-roberta.org/) is a free, drag-and-drop, cloud-based programming platform. We played around with it last year and wrote about how to use it to program a LEGO EV3 robot. (Check out this article if you’re […]

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Open Roberta Lab

  • EV3, NXT
  • News

Dr. E’s Challenges: Meet the Leapers

  • 7 September 201623 April 2018
  • EV3, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
Dr. E’s Challenges are monthly, open-ended LEGO robotics activities for students around the world. Each month, a new challenge is announced. Students tackle the problem and publish videos and photos of their solutions on the […]

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Dr. E’s Challenges: Meet the Leapers

  • EV3, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas

Crossing the Gap

  • 31 August 20166 April 2020
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Andrew Clark
Crossing the Gap is a free-form robotics activity that requires a minimal amount of setup. It is an excellent choice for novices, but can also present a challenge to experienced students. One of our after-school […]

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Crossing the Gap

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

The importance of recording your work

  • 31 August 201631 August 2016
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Asha
LEGO offers an amazing opportunity for students to build both easily and quickly. You don’t have to get specialized pieces and tools to make a robot or an engineering model. Students love being able to […]

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The importance of recording your work

  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

Rookie EV3 tip: Motor “On” mode

  • 10 August 20167 September 2017
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To
Posted by Seshan Brothers
One of the common misunderstandings when programming the EV3 is that if you turn the motor “On”, the robot will just start moving. This mini-challenge is to make beginners aware of what the “On” mode […]

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Rookie EV3 tip: Motor “On” mode

  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To

Create apps for NXT with MIT App Inventor

  • 3 August 201616 December 2016
  • NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Svein-Tore Narvestad
MIT App Inventor is a web-based tool for creating apps for Android phones. The apps you create are stored on a server and can be downloaded to your phone or computer as well. In this […]

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Create apps for NXT with MIT App Inventor

  • NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

To light or not to light

  • 7 July 201621 December 2017
  • EV3
  • How To
Posted by Josep Fargas
This article highlights one of the difficulties in using the legacy RCX lamp with MINDSTORMS EV3 platform and presents an approach for overcoming this difficulty. It also presents a strategy for synchronizing mutliple lamps with […]

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To light or not to light

  • EV3
  • How To

A Week in the Life #11: Sumobot to Battlebot

  • 28 June 201623 February 2017
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
I teach an introductory course using the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 set. My students are 7th graders who are required to take the course and may not necessarily have any background in programming/building. My school is […]

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A Week in the Life #11: Sumobot to Battlebot

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

A Week in the Life #10: Candy Sorter

  • 27 June 201630 March 2017
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
I teach an introductory course using the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 set. My students are 7th graders who are required to take the course and may not necessarily have any background in programming/building. My school is […]

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A Week in the Life #10: Candy Sorter

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

LEGO Learning Symposium 2016

  • 7 June 20168 June 2017
  • Conferences
Posted by Rob Torok
The 6th LEGO Learning Symposium was held 6-7 June 2016 at Tufts University (Boston, USA). Teachers, administrators, and other educational partners from 16 different countries came together over the two day event to explore how […]

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LEGO Learning Symposium 2016

  • Conferences

A LEGO WeDo learning sequence for younger students

  • 1 June 201621 August 2020
  • WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
Posted by Wayne Burnett
This learning sequence is intended for students as young as 5 years old. It provides a  structured introduction to building with standard LEGO bricks before progressing to the WeDo kit. LEGO Education markets the WeDo […]

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A LEGO WeDo learning sequence for younger students

  • WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started

Dragster

  • 20 May 20161 July 2016
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Rob Torok
The idea for this challenge is to design and build a dragster than can measure and display its speed. The robots will be racing on a 4-metre race track with a black finish line at […]

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Dragster

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

The Sound of Music

  • 13 May 2016
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Rob Torok
The idea of this challenge is to make a musical instrument using the EV3 brick. You should try to emulate the real instrument’s look and sound. Note: Although this framed as an EV3-based challenged, it […]

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The Sound of Music

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

Scratch and LEGO WeDo

  • 4 April 201616 December 2016
  • WeDo
  • Getting Started
Posted by Mike
You may have heard of the computer programming language Scratch. It’s a child-friendly system where you code by dragging around colored blocks and snapping them together – and for that reason some schools call it ‘Computer […]

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Scratch and LEGO WeDo

  • WeDo
  • Getting Started

NXT exercises – One approach

  • 2 February 2016
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Craig
Another mentor and I developed the approach described below after we hit several roadblocks trying to show concepts, show programming examples, and then have the students replicate the demonstrated work. Instead of setting examples and […]

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NXT exercises – One approach

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

Astronaut Tools

  • 29 January 2016
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Ethan Danahy
In the first-year intro-to-engineering class at Tufts University, Aaron Johnson and I created a “space themed” project around developing tools that could be used by astronauts in space in order to perform typical tasks that […]

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Astronaut Tools

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

Assessing student work in robotics and engineering

  • 10 December 20151 April 2016
  • Cross-Platform
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Rob Torok
In this video, Professor Ethan Danahy from Tufts University provides insights to his philosophies of assessment within his first-year intro-to-engineering course on robotics (using LEGO MINDSTORMS and LabVIEW Graphical Programming) and the techniques he uses […]

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Assessing student work in robotics and engineering

  • Cross-Platform
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

Poseidon: Underwater exploration with EV3

  • 4 December 20151 April 2016
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Mohd
Poseidon is an underwater robot created by the Junior Convent Robotic Club (JCBOT) as part of Malaysia’s National Robotic Competition. This article is written by the team’s trainer and teacher, Mohd Zaki bin Ghazali. All […]

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Poseidon: Underwater exploration with EV3

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

A Week in the Life #9: Walk This Way…

  • 23 November 201514 December 2017
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
I teach an introductory course using the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 set. My students are 7th graders who are required to take the course and may not necessarily have any background in programming/building. My school is […]

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A Week in the Life #9: Walk This Way…

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

Introducing EV3 Basic

  • 16 November 201521 December 2017
  • EV3
  • News
Posted by Nigel
The biggest weakness of the LEGO EV3 system may be that its icon-based programming interface is so very different from the textual programming languages that professional programmers use. Using a textual programming language with the […]

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Introducing EV3 Basic

  • EV3
  • News

A Week in the Life #8: Moving With Linkages

  • 9 November 201521 September 2016
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
I teach an introductory course using the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 set. My students are 7th graders who are required to take the course and may not necessarily have any background in programming/building. My school is […]

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A Week in the Life #8: Moving With Linkages

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

A Week in the Life #7: Sensor Fun

  • 26 October 201510 February 2016
  • EV3
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
This is the eighth of probably fourteen in a series of posts, each chronicling in detail the ins and outs of my Robotics class. I teach an introductory course using the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 set. […]

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A Week in the Life #7: Sensor Fun

  • EV3
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

Design, build, and program recycling solutions

  • 17 October 201524 June 2016
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Kellie Taylor
5th grade robotics project Equipment/Materials: 8 laptops 24 Mindstorms kits Internet access Purpose: To design, build, and program a working model for a real world recycling problem. In addition, students were required to demonstrate their […]

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Design, build, and program recycling solutions

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Pedagogy

Pixy for LEGO: Vision sensing for NXT and EV3

  • 16 October 201518 July 2022
  • EV3, NXT
  • News
Posted by Jesse
Charmed Labs have just released a version of Pixy (a vision sensor for Arduino) for LEGO Mindstorms. It’s a smart vision sensor, with the ability to learn and track colored objects with a single button press. The […]

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Pixy for LEGO: Vision sensing for NXT and EV3

  • EV3, NXT
  • News

A Week in the Life #6: Faster and Steeper

  • 12 October 201510 February 2016
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
This is the seventh of probably fourteen in a series of posts, each chronicling in detail the ins and outs of my Robotics class on a weekly basis. I teach an introductory course using the […]

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A Week in the Life #6: Faster and Steeper

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

Robotics Competitions

  • 30 September 201531 July 2022
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reference
Posted by Wayne Burnett
There are several ways to introduce LEGO robotics into your school or club. Dr. Amy Eguchi suggests three ways: thematic, project, and competition (see Alemisis, 2013 who references Eguchi). This post introduces some of the more […]

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Robotics Competitions

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reference

A Week In the Life #5: Vroom, Vroom, Up, Up, and Away!

  • 30 September 201510 February 2016
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
This is the sixth of probably fourteen in a series of posts, each chronicling in detail the ins and outs of my Robotics class on a weekly basis. I teach an introductory course using the […]

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A Week In the Life #5: Vroom, Vroom, Up, Up, and Away!

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

GPS accuracy testing with LEGO bricks

  • 10 September 20157 September 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Unlike normal GPS units, commonly found in smartphones or your car, that are accurate to roughly three meters, differential GPS uses two GPS receivers to get a reported accuracy of three centimeters! That’s a little […]

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GPS accuracy testing with LEGO bricks

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

Open Roberta: A review

  • 10 September 201518 July 2022
  • EV3
  • News
Posted by Sara Willner-Giwerc
Open Roberta is a free, drag and drop, cloud-based platform for programming LEGO EV3 robots. Check it out at this link: http://www.open-roberta.org/en/welcome/ and see below for my video summary and review. To use Open Roberta, you […]

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Open Roberta: A review

  • EV3
  • News

A Week in the Life #4: Knock It Off!

  • 25 August 20156 April 2020
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
This is the fifth of probably fourteen posts, each chronicling in detail the ins and outs of my Robotics class… That’s how I normally begin posts in this series. This is a short digression to […]

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A Week in the Life #4: Knock It Off!

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

How to reconnect a task split

  • 6 August 201521 December 2017
  • EV3
  • How To
Posted by Rob Torok
This article describes a method for “reconnecting” the separate paths of an EV3 program after a task split. It’s usually best to avoid task splits where possible, especially because of the risk of them leading […]

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How to reconnect a task split

  • EV3
  • How To

Wait Time

  • 6 August 20153 April 2020
  • Cross-Platform
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Londa Posvistak
Year after year, it is my goal to continue to grow and improve the robotics program we have. After evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the class, an identified improvement was the need of a […]

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Wait Time

  • Cross-Platform
  • Pedagogy

Iteration, collaboration, and documentation

  • 23 July 201524 April 2018
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Iteration, collaboration, and documentation are integral parts of engineering design. This challenge is intended to provide students with an opportunity to develop their understanding and appreciation of these important ideas. To run this activity, first […]

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Iteration, collaboration, and documentation

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

Energy losses

  • 23 July 201523 April 2018
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
One of the most important topics of engineering and design is losses. In many classes, we ignore losses (such as friction) to simplify problems while learning the physics of engineering. But when we solve real life […]

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Energy losses

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

Iteration and efficiency

  • 23 July 201518 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Efficiency is important in engineering, not only in materials but also time, money and energy. It is important for a young engineer to learn the value of an efficient product. Anyone can build a bridge […]

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Iteration and efficiency

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

How to build and safely use a bridge tester

  • 10 July 20156 January 2016
  • Cross-Platform
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Wade
Because I described how my students and I used a bridge tester to prepare for scaling up our walking machine in my TrotBot post, I thought I should describe how to use a bridge tester […]

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How to build and safely use a bridge tester

  • Cross-Platform
  • Pedagogy

TrotBot Walking Machine

  • 5 July 20151 May 2020
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Featured
Posted by Wade
After teaching a challenge-based LEGO Engineering class for two years, I wanted to offer a really difficult challenge for a dozen of my most motivated students (grades 6-8). I settled on linkage-based walkers, like Theo Jansen’s Strandbeest. […]

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TrotBot Walking Machine

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Featured

Liebherr Crawler crane finished!(?)

  • 26 June 201527 July 2016
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Melissa
This post continues the story of Melissa and her son, Lex, and follows on from their first post here and second post here. This is my last post on my build of the Liebherr Crawler […]

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Liebherr Crawler crane finished!(?)

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

The Incredible Machine

  • 4 June 201516 August 2016
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Andrew Clark
One of our after-school robotics classes just finished our “Incredible Machine” unit. The kids are required to plan the layout and overall design BEFORE touching any LEGO, and then have to keep communicating with the […]

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The Incredible Machine

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

What is creativity?

  • 4 June 201530 November 2018
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Guest Contributor
This post is by guest contributor, Dr Tim Patston, Geelong Grammar School. In January of this year I began my position as Coordinator of Creativity and Innovation at Geelong Grammar School. Here at Geelong Grammar we […]

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What is creativity?

  • Pedagogy

The build begins (and stops and starts)

  • 4 June 201527 July 2016
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Melissa
This post continues the story of Melissa and her son, Lex, and follows on from their first post here.   Lex was excited to get going on the build since pieces had arrived (some from […]

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The build begins (and stops and starts)

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

A Week in the Life #3: Wave Goodbye

  • 21 May 201510 February 2016
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
This is the fourth of probably fourteen posts, each chronicling in detail the ins and outs of my Robotics class. I teach an introductory course using the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 set. My students are 7th […]

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A Week in the Life #3: Wave Goodbye

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

Regular, old, LEGO Engineering (and some accidental learning)

  • 21 May 20156 January 2016
  • Cross-Platform
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Melissa
We homeschool. Unschool primarily, or hackschool, if you like. Our son, Lex, will turn thirteen this summer and has spent his life following his own interests, learning from the world around him and creating his […]

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Regular, old, LEGO Engineering (and some accidental learning)

  • Cross-Platform
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

EV3 Projectile Launcher

  • 8 May 20151 May 2020
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Featured
Posted by Sara Willner-Giwerc
This is the EV3 projectile launcher, inspired by RobotlCare’s Ball3r. The goal behind the EV3 Projectile Launcher is to provide students with a way to explore projectile motion by creating a LEGO EV3 robot to generate […]

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EV3 Projectile Launcher

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Featured

Mathematics and LEGO robotics at CIPCE

  • 7 May 201521 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Big Ideas
  • News
Posted by Rob Torok
The Center for Initiatives in Pre-College Education (CIPCE) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has published a substantial collection of lessons and units aligned to the Common Core Learning Standards in Mathematics (CCLSM) that make use of […]

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Mathematics and LEGO robotics at CIPCE

  • Cross-Platform
  • Big Ideas
  • News

A Week in the Life #2: Starting to Wave

  • 29 April 201531 October 2017
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
This is the third of probably fourteen posts, each chronicling in detail the ins and outs of my Robotics class. I teach an introductory course using the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 set. My students are 7th […]

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A Week in the Life #2: Starting to Wave

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

A Week in the Life #1: Play Well!

  • 22 April 201531 July 2022
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
This is the second of probably fourteen posts, each chronicling in detail the ins and outs of my Robotics class. I teach an introductory course using the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 set. My students are 7th […]

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A Week in the Life #1: Play Well!

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

A Week in the Life #0: The GBC Debacle

  • 14 April 201510 February 2016
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
This is the first of probably fourteen posts, each chronicling in detail the ins and outs of my Robotics class. I teach an introductory course using the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 set. My students are 7th […]

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A Week in the Life #0: The GBC Debacle

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

From Sequential Programming to State Machines

  • 14 April 201527 June 2019
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To
Posted by Josep Fargas
In this unit, we will explore some common algorithms for line following in a very systematic way, starting with well known “sequential” approaches, and then contrasting these with a “state machine” approach. We will see […]

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From Sequential Programming to State Machines

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To

Programming Bluetooth on EV3

  • 13 April 20151 August 2022
  • EV3
  • How To
  • Reflections
Posted by John Burfoot
On 27 February 2015, a small group of EDGErs went to LEGOLAND in California for an EV3 Hackathon. This post documents one of the projects that came out of the event. Wireless projects using Bluetooth […]

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Programming Bluetooth on EV3

  • EV3
  • How To
  • Reflections

Magic Moments

  • 7 April 201521 December 2015
  • EV3
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
Sometimes things come together in your class in such a way as to cause a smile to hit your face and remain there for the whole day. Here’s one such event: Why it’s cool: The […]

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Magic Moments

  • EV3
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

Building with RCX/NXT lamps and EV3 pieces

  • 5 April 201521 December 2017
  • EV3, NXT, RCX
  • How To
  • Reflections
Posted by John Burfoot
On 27 February 2015, a small group of EDGErs went to LEGOLAND for an EV3 Hackathon. This post documents one of the projects that came out of the event. At the EV3 Hackathon, I was […]

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Building with RCX/NXT lamps and EV3 pieces

  • EV3, NXT, RCX
  • How To
  • Reflections

RCX USB tower support

  • 31 March 201521 December 2017
  • RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Getting Started
  • How To
Posted by Rob Torok
This article provides instructions for installing the necessary drivers to use the RCX USB tower with ROBOLAB for LabVIEW. These instructions have been tested on Mac OS X 10.9 and 10.10 as well as 32-bit and […]

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RCX USB tower support

  • RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Getting Started
  • How To

Darkness or darker?

  • 31 March 201526 March 2019
  • EV3, LabVIEW
  • Big Ideas
  • How To
Posted by andiPi
In this article, we look at the difference between fixed and relative thresholds in LabVIEW, that is the “darkness” and the “darker” settings in the Wait for Light Sensor block. Note: This article builds on […]

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Darkness or darker?

  • EV3, LabVIEW
  • Big Ideas
  • How To

Greenhouse Challenge

  • 31 March 201518 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Marc-Irwin
I’m finding gardening to be an attractive theme for STEM education in general and specifically to girls. Using the LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 brick to introduce control systems, design, and data logging. The LEGO Friends theme […]

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Greenhouse Challenge

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

Boom-gate intersection (EV3 Hackathon 2015)

  • 24 March 20151 August 2022
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
On 27 February 2015, a small group of EDGErs went to LEGOLAND for an EV3 Hackathon. This post documents one of the projects that came out of the event. For the EV3 Hackathon, Magee and […]

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Boom-gate intersection (EV3 Hackathon 2015)

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

Experimental determination of Pi

  • 24 March 201521 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Big Ideas
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Marc-Irwin
The wheels on the bus go round and round, but how far does the bus go? In this activity you will use LEGO bricks to create a very simple car with an orange “tooth” on […]

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Experimental determination of Pi

  • Cross-Platform
  • Big Ideas
  • Challenge Ideas

Inside a Two-Step Simple Line Follower

  • 24 March 201518 July 2022
  • EV3
  • Big Ideas
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Josep Fargas
In this unit, we will use the datalogging tools available in the EV3 Software to study the internal operation of a two-step simple line follower with one Light sensor. It is a very simple but […]

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Inside a Two-Step Simple Line Follower

  • EV3
  • Big Ideas
  • Challenge Ideas

LEGO-based therapy

  • 28 January 20151 August 2022
  • News
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Rob Torok
LEGO-based Therapy is a social development intervention for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The goals of LEGO Therapy for such children are to: improve their motivation to initiate social contact with peers improve their […]

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LEGO-based therapy

  • News
  • Pedagogy

LEGO Education Elementary Conference, San Diego 2015

  • 28 January 201519 March 2015
  • Conferences
  • News
Posted by Ethan Danahy
Student-led learning and creativity through LEGO bricks, the Maker Movement in schools, and much more! This page is for the LEGO Education Elementary Conference hosted by LEGO Education and Tufts CEEO in San Diego California, on […]

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LEGO Education Elementary Conference, San Diego 2015

  • Conferences
  • News

Challenges in K-12 engineering education: Lessons from Massachusetts

  • 18 January 201529 January 2015
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Jonathan Dietz
Although technology/engineering has been a part of the Massachusetts state curriculum frameworks since 2001, meaningful implementation has been slow for a number of reasons. For example, technology/engineering is considered outside the purview of the liberal-arts. […]

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Challenges in K-12 engineering education: Lessons from Massachusetts

  • Pedagogy

Learning sequence: Learn to build with LEGO

  • 17 December 201418 July 2022
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, WeDo
  • Getting Started
Posted by CEEO
This sequence of activities introduces the basic LEGO system pieces. It’s great for beginners and works well with young children. It also introduces the concept of testing and redesigning. How can we build a sturdy […]

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Learning sequence: Learn to build with LEGO

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, WeDo
  • Getting Started

Blogs and other websites

  • 17 December 201431 July 2022
  • EV3, NXT
  • Reference
Posted by Rob Torok
Here are some noteworthy blogs and other general websites (that didn’t fit into a neat category!). They range from a neat collection of building projects not directly related to a particular curriculum to a web […]

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Blogs and other websites

  • EV3, NXT
  • Reference

Santa Claus’ sleigh

  • 11 December 201421 December 2017
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Wojciech-Syrocki
If you like the idea of inviting the Christmas spirit into the scientific world of robotics, take a look at our new model – the Santa Claus’s sleigh, consisting of functional riding sleigh, Santa himself […]

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Santa Claus’ sleigh

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

Optimal Prime: Another quick EV3 robot build

  • 9 December 20141 August 2022
  • EV3
  • How To
Posted by Benjamin-Popp
Some time ago, John Burfoot posted an EV3 build called The Harvester, a quick robot designed using just 49 pieces. I really liked the concept, so I played around with it a bit. The result was a […]

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Optimal Prime: Another quick EV3 robot build

  • EV3
  • How To

The Social Skills Network

  • 2 December 201421 May 2015
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Jay
The Social Skills Network is made up of of students and their teachers engaged at school and online in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics using LEGO EV3 challenges. It is made up of Robotics Social […]

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The Social Skills Network

  • Pedagogy

Learning STEM in the Classroom

  • 2 December 201427 September 2018
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Rob Torok
Chris Rogers, professor at Tufts University, explains why STEM education should be taught in the classroom in this video published by LEGO Education. See below for a transcript. Transcript My name is Chris Rogers and […]

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Learning STEM in the Classroom

  • Pedagogy

EV3 gone wrong: What to do when your EV3 stops working

  • 25 November 20143 May 2018
  • EV3
  • How To
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
The EV3 brick is a wonderful piece of technology, but like all technology, it sometimes has glitches. Here are some possible problems starting, stopping, and connecting the EV3 brick, with suggested solutions. Starting/stopping issues: The […]

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EV3 gone wrong: What to do when your EV3 stops working

  • EV3
  • How To

Exploring Thresholds

  • 18 November 201427 June 2019
  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Big Ideas
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Josep Fargas
This unit introduces an extremely simple exercise that allows students to think more deeply about the concept of a threshold and how to use it to make a robot react to its environment. It is […]

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Exploring Thresholds

  • Cross-Platform, EV3
  • Big Ideas
  • Challenge Ideas

What is the difference between engineering and technology?

  • 18 November 2014
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Jonathan-Dietz
Engineering is a design process, combining knowledge of the properties of materials, models that predict how these behave, and innovative thinking, to create often-novel solutions to human needs. In contrast, it may be helpful to […]

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What is the difference between engineering and technology?

  • Big Ideas

What is technology?

  • 11 November 201418 November 2014
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Jonathan-Dietz
Technology is the knowledge or expert skill of how to make things, from the Greek words technos (art or skill) and –ology (branch of knowledge), typically through the use of tools. Typical examples of technologies […]

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What is technology?

  • Big Ideas

What is engineering?

  • 6 November 20147 September 2017
  • Big Ideas
Posted by Jonathan-Dietz
Engineering is the process of designing of solutions to human problems. Engineers apply ingenuity in devising novel solutions, using expert knowledge of the properties of materials and systems to model the behavior of the design. In […]

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What is engineering?

  • Big Ideas

Robotics, LEGO, first day… What do I do?!

  • 6 November 201431 October 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Getting Started
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
This lesson is a great way to begin any class that involves LEGO Technic bricks. Young students starting with WeDo or Simple Machines, middle-school students beginning their first robotics class or even upper level grades […]

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Robotics, LEGO, first day… What do I do?!

  • Cross-Platform
  • Getting Started

Naked NXT/EV3 projects

  • 6 November 201420 December 2018
  • EV3, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by John Burfoot
For some projects, you might prefer to offer your students more time to learn advanced programming, and spend less time building. That means no extra LEGO pieces, motors, or external sensors –  just a “Naked” […]

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Naked NXT/EV3 projects

  • EV3, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

Learning Dimensions: Another way to assess

  • 6 November 20141 April 2016
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Jonathan-Dietz
Mike Petrich and Karen Wilkinson, from the Tinkering Studio at San Francisco’s legendary Exploratorium museum, have created an alternative Learning Dimensions Framework for the assessment of student engagement in project-based learning. Students are assessed for […]

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Learning Dimensions: Another way to assess

  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

Project rules to foster collaboration, not chaos

  • 1 November 20145 November 2014
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
 Projects are an engaging way to teach STEM concepts, engineering design, and a host of soft skills—collaboration, communication, resilience. However, a project-based classroom can easily veer towards chaos and ugly competition. How do you encourage […]

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Project rules to foster collaboration, not chaos

  • Pedagogy

Learning sequence: Learn about gears

  • 28 October 201422 June 2020
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, WeDo
  • Getting Started
Posted by CEEO
This suggested sequence of activities begins with an exploration of simple hand-powered gear trains. The second and third activities use gears to decrease the rotational speed of motor-powered music boxes and fans. The last three […]

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Learning sequence: Learn about gears

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, WeDo
  • Getting Started

Assessment tools for group projects

  • 14 October 201431 July 2022
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Dot
In our push to get more students involved in STEM subjects, we incorporated LEGO robotics into our high school Physics and our AP Physics 1 curricula. This meant that I had to develop a consistent […]

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Assessment tools for group projects

  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

Robotics: A fresh approach to learning?

  • 14 October 201421 December 2015
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Rob Torok
Robotics is a project-based activity that is motivating and engaging for many students. It draws on, and develops, learning related to the disciplines of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Background I’m a teacher in […]

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Robotics: A fresh approach to learning?

  • Pedagogy

WeDo activities and building projects

  • 14 October 201431 July 2022
  • WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reference
Posted by Wayne Burnett
The WeDo kit comes with 12 activities that start with a motivating animation, followed by easy to follow building and programming directions. LEGO Education offered a set of four Extension activities and the WeDo 8+ […]

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WeDo activities and building projects

  • WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reference

WeDo curriculum resources

  • 13 October 201431 July 2022
  • WeDo
  • Reference
Posted by Wayne Burnett
The WeDo kit can be used to support learning across the range of subjects. The guides that come with the WeDo and WeDo 2.0 software provide ideas of how to achieve mathematics, science, technology, engineering […]

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WeDo curriculum resources

  • WeDo
  • Reference

NXT books

  • 26 August 20141 August 2022
  • NXT
  • Reference
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
MINDSTORMS NXT books with an education focus Bracken, Chris, Damien Kee, and Rob Torok. Educate NXT Bratzel, Barbara. Physics by Design with NXT Mindstorms Church, William, Tony Ford and Natasha Perova. Physics with Robotics: An […]

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NXT books

  • NXT
  • Reference

Path planning in LabVIEW

  • 19 August 2014
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Phoebe
This summer one project I have been working on is path planning in LabVIEW for an EV3 robot vehicle. This project came from an idea I had for an AR.Drone. That idea was to create […]

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Path planning in LabVIEW

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas

“Elementary Robotics” book review

  • 14 August 20141 July 2016
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Anne Marie
Anne Marie Wyman received a copy of “Elementary Robotics” by John Heffernan for her post about The 6 tile challenge, and has kindly written this review… – Editor I recently read the book “Elementary Robotics” […]

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“Elementary Robotics” book review

  • Pedagogy

JumboBooks: An introduction to using microprocessors in LabVIEW

  • 14 August 201421 December 2017
  • EV3, LabVIEW
  • News
Posted by Jenny
The Center for Engineering Education and Outreach at Tufts University has created JumboBooks, a set of educational tutorials to program different devices in LabVIEW. The microprocessors used include the Arduino Uno, BeagleBone, LilyPad, myRIO, and ProtoSnap, as […]

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JumboBooks: An introduction to using microprocessors in LabVIEW

  • EV3, LabVIEW
  • News

EV3 Arduino Shield

  • 14 August 201421 December 2017
  • EV3, LabVIEW
  • Reflections
Posted by Phoebe
This summer at the CEEO, one project in progress has been an EV3 shield for Arduino Uno boards. The first shield was created by Tufts graduate student Jessica Scolnic. The idea is to make a […]

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EV3 Arduino Shield

  • EV3, LabVIEW
  • Reflections

Carnival LEGO

  • 14 August 201431 July 2022
  • Cross-Platform, Machines & Mechanisms
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Alicia-Crump
Everyone loves a good carnival. In addition to the fun, adrenaline, and excitement that carnival rides bring us, they also provide a perfect example of simple machines and motorized mechanisms in action. During this project, […]

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Carnival LEGO

  • Cross-Platform, Machines & Mechanisms
  • Challenge Ideas

Shake table

  • 12 August 201418 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Grace
Did you know that it’s possible to build an earthquake simulator out of only LEGO bricks? This is a cool teaching tool that my partners and I developed for a week-long civil engineering kids’ camp. […]

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Shake table

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

Virtual Explosion!

  • 16 July 201418 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Josep Fargas
The Second World War generated a big crisis in all aspects: economic, social, human values, etc., and artists were the first to react. Art needed a change and the “action painting” or “happening” was used […]

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Virtual Explosion!

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

STEM curriculum from Georgia Tech

  • 16 July 20141 August 2022
  • Cross-Platform
  • News
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
The Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) has posted their new SLIDER curriculum, Science Learning Integrating Design, Engineering, and Robotics, on their website. The problem-based curriculum includes two units, Energy and Force and Motion. It […]

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STEM curriculum from Georgia Tech

  • Cross-Platform
  • News

I no longer go to school to teach, I go to play!

  • 16 July 201420 May 2016
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Londa Posvistak
I no longer go to school to teach, I go to play. I have become a coach and a tinkerer – not a teacher. Coaching students to think, solve problems, and ask questions; encouraging them […]

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I no longer go to school to teach, I go to play!

  • Pedagogy

Dr E’s WeDo Challenges

  • 12 July 201414 October 2014
  • News
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
  “Make a device to help with some kitchen task–a pancake flipper, a salt shaker, or whatever you can imagine. Your device must include a motor or a sensor (or better yet, both!)” So began […]

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Dr E’s WeDo Challenges

  • News

LEGO Engineering Workshop, Boston 2014

  • 17 June 201424 August 2017
  • Conferences
Posted by Rob Torok
A LEGO Engineering Workshop was hosted by LEGO Education and Tufts CEEO in Boston on Friday, June 20th, 2014. The conference consisted of presentations and hands-on workshops on the integration of robotics into the classroom.   Activities […]

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LEGO Engineering Workshop, Boston 2014

  • Conferences

LEGO Engineering Conference, Chattanooga 2014

  • 10 June 201411 May 2017
  • Conferences
Posted by Chris
A LEGO Engineering Conference was hosted by LEGO Education and Tufts CEEO in Chattanooga, TN, on June 7th, 2014. The conference was hosted by the Chattanooga public library in their 4th floor maker space and […]

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LEGO Engineering Conference, Chattanooga 2014

  • Conferences

EV3 support for LabVIEW

  • 8 May 20143 April 2020
  • EV3, LabVIEW
  • News
Posted by Rob Torok
EV3 support comes to LabVIEW with the release of the LabVIEW Module for LEGO MINDSTORMS (formerly the NXT Module). As well as providing support for the LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3, this LabVIEW module includes updates and […]

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EV3 support for LabVIEW

  • EV3, LabVIEW
  • News

Site Contributors

  • 6 May 201419 July 2022
Posted by Rob Torok

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Site Contributors

LEGO Engineering Conference, China 2014

image of inventions
  • 26 March 201428 September 2017
  • Conferences
Posted by Chris
A LEGO Engineering Conference was hosted by LEGO Education and Tufts CEEO in Beijing on March 26th and Shanghai on March 28th 2014. We had presentations and hands-on workshops on the integration of robotics into […]

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image of inventions

LEGO Engineering Conference, China 2014

  • Conferences

Introducing BrickPi: LEGO bricks with a Raspberry Pi brain

  • 20 March 201422 December 2017
  • NXT
  • Review
Posted by John Burfoot
Third-party sensor manufacturer, Dexter Industries, has produced a small printed circuit board with sockets for sensors and motors to allow LEGO NXT (and some EV3) parts to operate using the increasingly popular and affordable Raspberry […]

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Introducing BrickPi: LEGO bricks with a Raspberry Pi brain

  • NXT
  • Review

The 6 tile challenge

  • 5 March 20147 September 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Anne-Marie-Wyman
 I recently ran a simple challenge that I called the “6 Tile Challenge” that worked well in my classes and got the point across that you should calculate the number of rotations before you drive […]

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The 6 tile challenge

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

EV3 Software compatibility with NXT

  • 4 March 20141 July 2016
  • EV3, NXT
  • How To
  • Reference
Posted by Rob Torok
This is a summary of the LEGO MINDSTORMS Education EV3 Software with the NXT brick and associated hardware. Remember: The NXT firmware cannot be updated using Firmware Update in the EV3 software. If you want […]

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EV3 Software compatibility with NXT

  • EV3, NXT
  • How To
  • Reference

LEGO Engineering Conference, Sydney 2014

  • 4 March 201428 September 2017
  • Conferences
Posted by Rob Torok
A LEGO Engineering Conference was hosted by LEGO Education and Tufts CEEO in Sydney, on 4-5 March 2014. The conference was held at Google’s Sydney offices for the first time, and consisted of presentations and […]

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LEGO Engineering Conference, Sydney 2014

  • Conferences

Robotics in Education workshop, Hobart 2014

  • 20 February 201424 February 2014
Posted by Rob Torok
This page is for the Robotics in Education workshop with Prof Chris Rogers held at New Town High, on 20 Feb 2014. For updates on what’s happening with robotics in Tasmania, be sure to join […]

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Robotics in Education workshop, Hobart 2014

The Wave and Beyond

  • 4 February 201428 April 2019
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Ian Chow-Miller
Teachers (and other people) often ask me how I go about getting my students to do some of their cool projects. The simple answer is I let them have as much freedom as I can […]

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The Wave and Beyond

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

EV3 tutorials: By students, for students

  • 18 December 201314 December 2017
  • EV3
  • Getting Started
  • How To
Posted by Rob Torok
Check out this awesome collection of tutorials that Sarah Lichtenberger’s fifth graders have produced. Topics include… MyBlocks Multi-tasking Follow an object Displaying the speed Displaying distance Using the Gyro Sensor For example, here’s one showing […]

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EV3 tutorials: By students, for students

  • EV3
  • Getting Started
  • How To

NXT-G examples: Motors

  • 17 December 201321 December 2017
  • NXT
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
These examples (ZIP) demonstrate a range of techniques for working with motors in NXT-G. Drive for time This code turns on Motor A for two seconds, and then turns it off. Similar code can be made […]

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NXT-G examples: Motors

  • NXT
  • How To

NXT-G examples: Sounds, displays, and delays

  • 17 December 201321 December 2017
  • NXT
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
These examples (ZIP) demonstrate some ways of working with sounds, displays, and delays in NXT-G. Controlling the Display This program uses two touch sensors combined with two Switches – all in an infinite loop – […]

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NXT-G examples: Sounds, displays, and delays

  • NXT
  • How To

The Harvester: A quick EV3 robot build

  • 10 December 201327 September 2018
  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To
Posted by John Burfoot
NOTE: See the updated version of this quick build here. Like me, you’ve probably spent countless hours trying to come up with a quick robot design for your students. I recently decided to spend a […]

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The Harvester: A quick EV3 robot build

  • EV3
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To

WeDo army tank with wireless remote control

  • 27 November 201321 December 2017
  • WeDo
  • Reflections
Posted by John Burfoot
Two Sydney Primary school students came up with the idea of building an army-style tank using several WeDo motors and a pair of rubber caterpillar tracks. Like most ambitious tank ideas, I assumed the students […]

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WeDo army tank with wireless remote control

  • WeDo
  • Reflections

LEGO Engineering Conference, Jakarta 2013

  • 18 November 20134 March 2014
  • EV3
  • Conferences
Posted by Rob Torok
A LEGO Engineering Conference was hosted by LEGO Education and by the Tufts CEEO in Jakarta, on 18 November, 2013. The day consisted of presentations and hands-on workshops on the integration of robotics into the […]

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LEGO Engineering Conference, Jakarta 2013

  • EV3
  • Conferences

Why I like educational robots

  • 18 November 20131 August 2022
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Craig
With all the available STEM options, we often get asked Why Robotics?  So here are some quick thoughts to kickstart your thirty second elevator speech for robotics program support. See what you think. I like educational robots because they […]

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Why I like educational robots

  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

Look Ma, No USB! Untethering the WeDo

  • 6 November 201310 June 2014
  • WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by Wayne Burnett
To keep the WeDo simple and easy to use for younger children, the WeDo doesn’t have an intelligent brick in its building materials. No intelligent brick, so no programming and no power. The USB hub […]

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Look Ma, No USB! Untethering the WeDo

  • WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas

Sharing robots with 300 students

  • 4 November 201331 July 2022
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Kellie Taylor
I am an engineering specialist for kindergarten through 5th grade students. Much as they would go to P.E. or Music weekly, my students come to my lab once a week for an hour each time. […]

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Sharing robots with 300 students

  • Pedagogy

Using EV3 software to run the NXT

  • 1 November 201321 December 2017
  • EV3, NXT
  • Getting Started
  • How To
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
The new EV3 software is backwards compatible with the NXT. But what exactly does this mean? What works? What doesn’t work? What sort of works? Here is a quick rundown: Programming: The NXT can be […]

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Using EV3 software to run the NXT

  • EV3, NXT
  • Getting Started
  • How To

RicEditor tutorial: Create a cannon game

  • 28 October 201314 December 2017
  • LabVIEW
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To
Posted by Svein-Tore Narvestad
Before you start This post is a tutorial on how to work with “RIC” image files to create a simple game using the NXT display. For an example of what the finished game will look […]

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RicEditor tutorial: Create a cannon game

  • LabVIEW
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To

LEGO Engineering Symposium 2011

  • 20 October 201317 December 2013
  • Conferences
Posted by CEEO
The LEGO Engineering Symposium is an annual gathering at Tufts University of educators, researchers, curriculum developers and other educational stakeholder who are looking to advance the state of K-16 education using hands-on tools. LEGO Engineering […]

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LEGO Engineering Symposium 2011

  • Conferences

LabView examples: Projects

  • 18 October 201321 December 2017
  • LabVIEW, NXT
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
Here are some example projects using LabView. Hand Puppet code LabVIEW for MINDSTORMS code for the LEGO hand puppet. Morse Code This example shows how to turn a user input into a corresponding sequence of […]

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LabView examples: Projects

  • LabVIEW, NXT
  • How To

LEGO 9V motor comparison

  • 18 October 201318 October 2013
  • News
Posted by Rob Torok
Philo has updated his excellent LEGO 9V Technic Motor comparison to include the EV3 large and medium motors. The comparison includes the results of his extensive performance tests for each motor.  

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LEGO 9V motor comparison

  • News

LabView examples: Programming structures

  • 11 October 201321 December 2017
  • LabVIEW
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
These examples (PDF) demonstrate the use of programming structures in LabVIEW. Acceleration and Case Structure This example shows how to use shift registers and case structures to produce an effect similar to acceleration. If the sensor […]

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LabView examples: Programming structures

  • LabVIEW
  • How To

Music box

  • 9 October 201318 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Design and construct a working music box in which LEGO mini-figures move while a song plays. This lesson is one in a series of introductory lessons that is applicable to all types of robotics kits. […]

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Music box

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas

LEGO Engineering Symposium 2010

  • 6 October 201327 September 2013
  • Conferences
Posted by CEEO
The 4th Annual LEGO Engineering Symposium was hosted by the CEEO at Tufts University on June 8-10, 2010. The symposium offered a series of presentations and hands-on development labs to nearly 90 participants over the […]

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LEGO Engineering Symposium 2010

  • Conferences

LabView examples: Sound

  • 4 October 201321 December 2017
  • LabVIEW
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
These examples demonstrate the use of sound in LabVIEW. Play Song This example demonstrates how to play a song in the NXT code. Sound as Response This program emits a beeping sound as an NXT […]

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LabView examples: Sound

  • LabVIEW
  • How To

Fan-tastic

  • 2 October 201318 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, ROBOLAB, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Design and construct a LEGO fan with at least one sensor and program it to run at variable speeds and have a stop/start function. Note: the RCX and NXT versions of the attachments use two […]

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Fan-tastic

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, ROBOLAB, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas

LEGO Engineering Symposium 2009

  • 29 September 201327 September 2013
  • Conferences
Posted by CEEO
The 3rd Annual LEGO Engineering Symposium was hosted by the Center for Engineering Education and Outreach at Tufts University on June 1-2, 2009. Under the theme of “LEGO Engineering for Girls: Building a diverse learning environment with […]

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LEGO Engineering Symposium 2009

  • Conferences

LabView examples: Display

  • 27 September 201321 December 2017
  • LabVIEW
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
These examples (PDF) demonstrate display control in LabVIEW. Create Points This example shows how to make points on the NXT screen given coordinates on the front panel. Displaying Sensor Values This examples shows how to display […]

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LabView examples: Display

  • LabVIEW
  • How To

ROBOLAB examples

  • 27 September 201321 December 2017
  • ROBOLAB
  • Downloads
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
These examples (PDF) demonstrate the use of various features in ROBOLAB. NXT multiple events Multiple events can be setup in the same code to track different variables. All event structures must have the same event landing. […]

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ROBOLAB examples

  • ROBOLAB
  • Downloads
  • How To

LEGO Engineering Symposium 2008

  • 22 September 201318 September 2013
  • Conferences
Posted by CEEO
The 2nd annual LEGO Engineering Symposium was hosted by the CEEO at Tufts University in 2008. Day 1 Download Symposium Day 1 presentations (ZIP) containing… John Field – LabVIEW: From the cradle to the grave. […]

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LEGO Engineering Symposium 2008

  • Conferences

LabView examples: Sensors

  • 20 September 201321 December 2017
  • LabVIEW
  • Downloads
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
These examples (PDF) demonstrate the use of sensors in LabVIEW. Graphing sensor values This program takes sensor values and graphs them on the front panel. Line follower This program is provided in the “Behaviors” section of […]

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LabView examples: Sensors

  • LabVIEW
  • Downloads
  • How To

RCX constructopedia

  • 20 September 201321 December 2017
  • RCX
  • Downloads
  • Getting Started
  • How To
  • Reference
Posted by CEEO
The RCX constructopedia (PDF, 55Mb) includes an extensive set of instructions designed to introduce beginners and advanced builders alike to new concepts in building with the RCX. 418 pages. Contents include: Stationary builds Sturdy structures Bracing […]

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RCX constructopedia

  • RCX
  • Downloads
  • Getting Started
  • How To
  • Reference

Scratch-ing the LEGO WeDo

  • 18 September 201321 December 2017
  • WeDo
  • Reflections
  • Review
Posted by emalick
I have been Scratch-ing with LEGO WeDo kits, and my high school level students absolutely love it. The LEGO® Education WeDo™ robotics kit is normally ear-marked as an elementary school product, and Scratch was developed […]

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Scratch-ing the LEGO WeDo

  • WeDo
  • Reflections
  • Review

EV3 rechargeable battery issue

  • 16 September 20132 September 2014
  • EV3
  • Getting Started
  • How To
  • News
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
Some of the new EV3 rechargeable batteries have a circuit error and do not work properly. After you recharge one of these defective batteries, install it in the EV3, and turn on the EV3, you […]

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EV3 rechargeable battery issue

  • EV3
  • Getting Started
  • How To
  • News

Robo-Sundae: The Experiment

  • 15 September 201324 April 2018
  • Cross-Platform, LabVIEW
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
It started as just the idea of creating a robot that could help. We wanted to think of a task or chore and make it easier through the use of LEGO Mindstorms and LabView 2010 […]

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Robo-Sundae: The Experiment

  • Cross-Platform, LabVIEW
  • Challenge Ideas

Strongest shape

  • 13 September 20139 March 2016
  • Cross-Platform, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Investigate different shapes in order to determine which shape is strongest. With results from your investigation, design and construct a number of roofs to be placed on a previously built house. Then test the structures […]

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Strongest shape

  • Cross-Platform, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas

LabView Examples: Motors

  • 11 September 201316 May 2019
  • LabVIEW
  • Downloads
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
These examples (ZIP) demonstrate motor control in LabVIEW. Front Panel Steering Control This example shows how to control the steering icon using the front panel. Position Control This example shows how to keep an object […]

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LabView Examples: Motors

  • LabVIEW
  • Downloads
  • How To

NXT Constructopedia

  • 7 September 201321 December 2017
  • NXT
  • Downloads
  • Getting Started
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
The NXT Constructopedia Beta 2.1 (PDF) is a set of building hints for the NXT Education Base Set (9797). It contains smaller hints and a few larger models. Its aim is to provide users with inspiration […]

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NXT Constructopedia

  • NXT
  • Downloads
  • Getting Started
  • How To

NXT-G power programming tips

  • 7 September 20136 September 2013
  • NXT
  • Getting Started
  • How To
Posted by Srikanth M
What to do, what not do, and where it pays to be cautious! This posts throws light on some very important aspects of programming robots in NXT-G. Any program that we write for NXT-G should […]

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NXT-G power programming tips

  • NXT
  • Getting Started
  • How To

Light at the beginning of the tunnel

  • 5 September 201318 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Think of a way to program a robot car to be afraid of the dark: as it moves into a tunnel, it reverses back out when it encounters a darker light reading. Resources Light at […]

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Light at the beginning of the tunnel

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas

Smart house

  • 2 September 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Design and construct a house that uses sensors to change itself in some way. For example, have the house greet incoming cars by turning the house lights on.  Resources Smart House lesson plan – NXT-G […]

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Smart house

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas

Create your own games with “RIC” files

  • 27 August 201310 March 2022
  • LabVIEW, NXT
  • How To
Posted by Svein-Tore Narvestad
One way to display information on the NXT screen is by using a “RIC” image file. Most of the default graphics that you see on the NXT use this file type. For example, the the […]

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Create your own games with “RIC” files

  • LabVIEW, NXT
  • How To

ROBOLAB programming references

  • 23 August 201320 May 2016
  • ROBOLAB
  • Reference
Posted by CEEO
Here are a collection of programming references for ROBOLAB… Quick start NXT guide for ROBOLAB 2.9 (PDF) Using ROBOLAB, 2003 (PDF) ROBOLAB reference guide v1.4 (PDF) ROBOLAB quick guide solutions (PDF) – These are the […]

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ROBOLAB programming references

  • ROBOLAB
  • Reference

Sample music: ROBOLAB

  • 22 August 201318 July 2022
  • ROBOLAB
  • Downloads
Posted by CEEO
Here is a collection of sample music files for ROBOLAB. The following pieces of music are included… Bach – Cello Suite #1 Bach – Minuet in D Bach – Prelude in C Beethoven – Ode […]

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Sample music: ROBOLAB

  • ROBOLAB
  • Downloads

Cross country adventure

  • 22 August 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Can you design and program a robot that can travel from one state to another across a large floor map of the USA (or a similar map of another part of the world)? Can you […]

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Cross country adventure

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

ROBOLAB quick guide

  • 21 August 201318 July 2022
  • ROBOLAB
  • Getting Started
Posted by CEEO
Here is a selection code examples and some simple challenges for the various modes of ROBOLAB, i.e. Pilot, Inventor, and Investigator. In each case, the idea is to copy the sample code and then see […]

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ROBOLAB quick guide

  • ROBOLAB
  • Getting Started

Image processing in LabVIEW

  • 21 August 201320 May 2020
  • LabVIEW
  • Downloads
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
The Image Processing VIs are a rudimentary set of image capture and analysis VIs that allow the user to grab images from a USB camera (using Chris Salzmann’s QuickTime VIs) and analyze them. These VIs […]

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Image processing in LabVIEW

  • LabVIEW
  • Downloads
  • How To

Third-party sensor update for ROBOLAB

  • 21 August 201318 July 2022
  • ROBOLAB
  • Downloads
Posted by CEEO
This third-party sensor update for ROBOLAB supports the HiTechnic IRSeeker v2 (in all four modes) and fixes a Vernier bug. Note: Requires ROBOLAB 2.9.4 or higher. Installation instructions Download and unzip Third-party sensor update (6/24/2010) […]

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Third-party sensor update for ROBOLAB

  • ROBOLAB
  • Downloads

Clap-on clap-off!

  • 20 August 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Design a robot that moves forward when you clap softly, and stops when you clap loudly. Resources Clap-on lesson plan – NXT+G (PDF)    

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Clap-on clap-off!

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

How to update the EV3 firmware

  • 19 August 201319 February 2016
  • EV3
  • How To
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
How to update the firmware on the EV3 using the LEGO MINDSTORMS Education EV3 software: First, make sure that the EV3 is on and connected to the computer. Under Tools on the menu at the […]

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How to update the EV3 firmware

  • EV3
  • How To

How to update the NXT firmware in LabVIEW

  • 19 August 201319 August 2013
  • LabVIEW
  • How To
Posted by Svein-Tore Narvestad
This is how to update the firmware on the NXT using LabVIEW for LEGO MINDSTORMS (LVLM) or LabVIEW for Education (LV4E). 1. First go to tools and select NXT Terminal: This window will pop up: […]

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How to update the NXT firmware in LabVIEW

  • LabVIEW
  • How To

How to update the NXT firmware in NXT-G

  • 18 August 201318 July 2022
  • NXT
  • How To
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
How to update the firmware on the NXT using NXT-G: First, make sure that the NXT is on and connected to the computer. Under Tools on the menu at the top of the screen, choose […]

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How to update the NXT firmware in NXT-G

  • NXT
  • How To

Echo locator

  • 17 August 201318 July 2022
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
How could you build a device that uses sound to indicate the distance to the nearest object? For example, as an aid for a person with vision impairment. Other than using the Ultrasound Sensor, are […]

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Echo locator

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

Dancing robot

  • 17 August 20131 July 2016
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Design, construct and program a dancing robot that has at least two moving parts and at most two motors. Set your robot’s dance to music. Resources Dancing Robot lesson plan – ROBOLAB + NXT-G (PDF) […]

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Dancing robot

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas

Find the hidden letter

  • 17 August 201318 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
In this activity, use a robot equipped with a light sensor to determine the hidden letter message (under a table or in another room). The letter will be determined using light sensor collected data on […]

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Find the hidden letter

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas

How to write efficient NXT-G programs

  • 17 August 20131 August 2022
  • NXT
  • Downloads
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
Writing Efficient NXT-G Programs (PDF) describes how to make your NXT-G programs as efficient as possible to create complex behaviours with a minimum of memory. These techniques are particularly relevant for competitions such as FIRST […]

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How to write efficient NXT-G programs

  • NXT
  • Downloads
  • How To

The Stubborn Car

  • 16 August 201327 June 2019
  • EV3, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Think of a way to design and construct the stubborn car: a car that will always return to its original place no matter how far it is rolled away from its starting point. Tip: How […]

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The Stubborn Car

  • EV3, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas

Tomb raider

  • 12 August 201318 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
The idea of this challenge is to have students set up several light sensors to log data over time. After the setup is complete, run the programs, turn off the lights in the room, and […]

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Tomb raider

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas

Ultrasonic touch guitar

  • 12 August 201318 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
The idea of this radical challenge is to use the ultrasonic sensor, touch sensors, and buttons on the NXT to create a guitar. The ultrasonic sensor can control the pitch of the note based on […]

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Ultrasonic touch guitar

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

Zombie attack

  • 12 August 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
In this activity, a group of students each build a robot. Each robot is assigned a number. It will then have to tag other robots with the number by using mail. Five tags and the […]

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Zombie attack

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas

ROBOLAB programming icons

  • 12 August 20131 July 2016
  • ROBOLAB
  • Reference
Posted by CEEO
The ROBOLAB Worksheet Kit (PDF) contains a set of images of the programming blocks used in the ROBOLAB. These can be used to create worksheets and instructions for students. See also ROBOLAB programming references.

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ROBOLAB programming icons

  • ROBOLAB
  • Reference

NXT-G programming icons

  • 12 August 201318 July 2022
  • NXT
  • Downloads
  • Reference
Posted by CEEO
The NXT Worksheet toolkit (ZIP) contains a set of images of the programming blocks used in the LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Software (NXT-G). These can be used to create worksheets and instructions for students. Note: These […]

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NXT-G programming icons

  • NXT
  • Downloads
  • Reference

Sound display

  • 12 August 201318 December 2015
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
The idea of this challenge is to collect and display sound data from the NXT sound sensor in real time on the LCD display of the NXT. You could include the ability to pause data […]

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Sound display

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

Third-party sensors: Code examples

  • 12 August 20131 July 2016
  • NXT, ROBOLAB
  • Reference
Posted by CEEO
Here is a collection of code examples for third party sensors. Codatex Download Codatex code examples (ZIP) including: RFID read NXT-G – This code will use the Codatex RFID sensor to find the correct RFID tag. […]

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Third-party sensors: Code examples

  • NXT, ROBOLAB
  • Reference

Drive in a square

  • 12 August 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
The goal of this activity is to make a robot car drive in a square path. Hint: Rotation sensors are great for controlling the angle of a car’s turn. Resources Square lesson plan – NXT-G […]

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Drive in a square

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas

Sample music: NXT-G

  • 2 August 201318 July 2022
  • NXT
  • Downloads
Posted by CEEO
Here is a collection of programs written in NXT-G that play a range of well known and some maybe not so well known tunes. Sample music NOTE: All files are zipped *.rbt files. See below […]

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Sample music: NXT-G

  • NXT
  • Downloads

NXT building tips

  • 2 August 201321 December 2017
  • NXT
  • Downloads
  • Getting Started
Posted by CEEO
NXT Building Tips is a brief PDF guide to tips and tricks for building with the LEGO NXT, including: Basic LEGO brick stacking Using pegs to connect beams Connecting beams using axles and bushings Constructing […]

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NXT building tips

  • NXT
  • Downloads
  • Getting Started

Tunnel vision

  • 2 August 201318 July 2022
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Design and construct a car and program it to drive through a tunnel, automatically turn on its headlights when it enters the tunnel, and turning them off when it gets to the other side.   […]

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Tunnel vision

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas

General building tips and tricks

  • 19 July 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Getting Started
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
Here are some tips for building with basic LEGO bricks, beams, and axles. Building a sturdy structure 1. Use interconnecting bricks. When you interconnect your bricks, the structure will not fall apart when you move […]

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General building tips and tricks

  • Cross-Platform
  • Getting Started
  • How To

Light theremin

  • 10 July 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
In this activity, use an NXT brick equipped with two light sensors to emulate a theremin. One sensor will change pitch as the amount of light sensed changes, and the other sensor will change volume as […]

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Light theremin

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To

Science through LEGO Engineering

  • 1 July 20137 September 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Getting Started
Posted by CEEO
The following four curricula are designed to introduce students (in Grades 3 to 5) to various science concepts through design-based LEGO projects. The first several lessons of each unit engage students in scientific explorations sometimes […]

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Science through LEGO Engineering

  • Cross-Platform
  • Getting Started

ROBOLAB 2.9.4c patch

  • 1 July 201321 December 2017
  • RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Downloads
Posted by CEEO
This patch for ROBOLAB 2.9 fixes a few major issues with both the RCX and the NXT and adds some new features, including support for many 3rd party sensors. Use the extended help area to […]

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ROBOLAB 2.9.4c patch

  • RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Downloads

Participating in the HALE project (High Altitude LEGO Extravaganza)

  • 1 July 201311 January 2016
  • Big Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Nevada, July 29th 2008 at dawn: Dr Eric Wang and his team are preparing two high-altitude balloons for launch in the middle of nowhere. Several payloads are tied together to form the electronic, mechanical and […]

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Participating in the HALE project (High Altitude LEGO Extravaganza)

  • Big Ideas

9797 NXT basic car instructions

  • 26 June 201331 August 2017
  • NXT
  • Downloads
Posted by CEEO
This is a very basic NXT vehicle. It is made exclusively of pieces from the 9797 NXT Education kit. This car was designed to be built very quickly so that it could be used in […]

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9797 NXT basic car instructions

  • NXT
  • Downloads

Amusement park ride

  • 22 June 20136 August 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Design and construct any amusement park ride of your choice. Resources Amusement Park Ride Lesson Plan NXT        

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Amusement park ride

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas

Rotation sensor challenge

  • 20 June 20132 November 2016
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Rotation sensors are very important in the field of engineering because they track and measure the motion of rotating objects. The NXT motors and EV3 large motors have built- in rotation sensors that are accurate […]

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Rotation sensor challenge

  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas

LabVIEW examples: Advanced

  • 20 June 201321 December 2017
  • LabVIEW
  • Downloads
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
These examples demonstrate some advanced features in LabVIEW. Using a Sub VI This example shows a possible implementation of a sub VI.  Sub VI’s are essentially consolidations of other code into one icon. Multiple NXTs […]

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LabVIEW examples: Advanced

  • LabVIEW
  • Downloads
  • How To

How can we build a sturdy wall?

  • 20 June 20133 April 2020
  • Cross-Platform, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
Posted by CEEO
Students will investigate the properties of sturdy structures by constructing a LEGO wall. The wall must be about 6 bricks high and withstand the “Flick Test”. The Flick Test involves flicking the top of the […]

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How can we build a sturdy wall?

  • Cross-Platform, WeDo
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started

NXT Bluetooth Text Messenger

  • 18 June 20136 April 2020
  • NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
How can you use your NXT to send a text message to another NXT? For tips on how to establish a bluetooth connection between two NXTs, see Bluetooth connection hints (PDF).  

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NXT Bluetooth Text Messenger

  • NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

Things that go bump

  • 18 June 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Design and construct a car and program it to travel in a straight line until it hits a wall. Once it hits the wall, program the car to reverse direction and continue until it hits […]

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Things that go bump

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas

Tractor pull

  • 18 June 201324 April 2018
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Design and construct a tractor that is capable of pulling a heavy load across a floor. Tip #1: Think about the system of gears that would produce the greatest amount of torque. Resources Lesson plan: Tractor […]

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Tractor pull

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Challenge Ideas

Voting booth

  • 18 June 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Think of an intelligent way to set up a “voting booth” to gather data, and plot this data on a graph for analysis.    What sensor(s) can be used to collecting this data? Touch sensor? […]

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Voting booth

  • Cross-Platform, NXT, RCX
  • Challenge Ideas

ROBOLAB for LabVIEW

  • 18 June 20131 August 2022
  • LabVIEW, RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Downloads
Posted by CEEO
ROBOLAB for LabVIEW is an add-on for LabVIEW that enables you to run the classic and much loved ROBOLAB within a current installation of LabVIEW. Notes This is not a standalone product, so a version […]

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ROBOLAB for LabVIEW

  • LabVIEW, RCX, ROBOLAB
  • Downloads

Managing robotics equipment in the classroom

  • 16 June 201318 July 2022
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
Any teacher using LEGO robotics in the classroom quickly develops strategies for dealing with the multitude of plastic pieces. Here are some suggestions. Kits Ideally, each pair or small group of students should have its […]

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Managing robotics equipment in the classroom

  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

Managing a project-based robotics classroom

  • 16 June 20131 July 2016
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
Running a project-based robotics classroom often raises new and different issues than those found in more traditional classrooms. Here are some tips for classroom management. Project Rules Set clear expectations for students. A sample list […]

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Managing a project-based robotics classroom

  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

Which LEGO kit?

  • 16 June 20134 January 2016
  • Getting Started
Posted by Barbara Bratzel
Getting started with LEGO robotics can feel overwhelming because there are so many options. Here is a brief guide to the various kits. Quick advice: If you are new to LEGO robotics and working with children […]

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Which LEGO kit?

  • Getting Started

NXT-A-Sketch

  • 14 June 201330 March 2020
  • LabVIEW
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
Just like its little red counterpart, the Etch-A-Sketch®, the NXT-A-Sketch lets you turn two knobs to draw your picture. However, rather than using a stylus and aluminum powder, the LEGO NXT model is entirely digital, […]

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NXT-A-Sketch

  • LabVIEW
  • Challenge Ideas
  • How To

Real World Engineering: Using the NXT to break apart blood clots

  • 12 June 201323 April 2021
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Big Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by CEEO
OmniSonics Medical Technologies, Inc. is a medical device start-up corporation located in Wilmington, Massachusetts, and was established in 1997. OmniSonics has developed a product that can be used in the treatment of vascular occlusive conditions such as […]

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Real World Engineering: Using the NXT to break apart blood clots

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Big Ideas
  • Reflections

Survival of the fittest: NXT style

  • 11 June 201318 July 2022
  • NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by CEEO
A group of Tufts University students stand around a squared-off area of linoleum cheering fervently. They scream things like “Go Moosie!” and “Your buzzard’s knocking my penguin!” The whole scene seemed somewhat out of place; […]

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Survival of the fittest: NXT style

  • NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections

NXT science / engineering fair experiments

  • 11 June 201320 February 2016
  • Cross-Platform, LabVIEW, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
The NXT brick is a great tool for more than just robotics. It can handle data logging for a variety of sensors over long periods of time and can run programs that will simulate large-scale […]

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NXT science / engineering fair experiments

  • Cross-Platform, LabVIEW, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

Motor vs Move – Part II: Action

  • 11 June 201321 December 2017
  • NXT
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
In Part I of Motor vs. Move, we looked at how the Move block incorporates a control algorithm to help robots move more accurately. What else is different between the Motor and Move block in […]

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Motor vs Move – Part II: Action

  • NXT
  • How To

Motor vs Move – Part I: The Control Algorithm

  • 11 June 201318 July 2022
  • NXT
  • Big Ideas
Posted by CEEO
If you are programming a robot with NXT-G, you may be wondering what’s the difference between the Motor and Move blocks? The answer to this question has a significant impact on how your robot will […]

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Motor vs Move – Part I: The Control Algorithm

  • NXT
  • Big Ideas

Tips for using LEGO materials with young children

  • 11 June 201318 July 2022
  • Pedagogy
Posted by CEEO
Getting started with LEGO materials in the classroom with young children can be exciting and challenging. This article gives you some tips for making it easier and more effective. LEGO materials are a great platform […]

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Tips for using LEGO materials with young children

  • Pedagogy

Artificial Intelligence: Exploring Movement

  • 11 June 201321 August 2020
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
Posted by CEEO
The way a creature is built greatly affects how it behaves. By observation, one can note that birds usually perch and fly, roosting high in the treetops, while fish use their fins to propel themselves […]

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Artificial Intelligence: Exploring Movement

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas

Thinking outside the box: A look into LEGO organization and sorting

  • 11 June 20138 June 2017
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by CEEO
Whether you have a classroom full of bricks and RCXs or a brand new set of Technic beams and NXTs, teachers who use LEGO materials all have a common problem—how to organize those all of […]

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Thinking outside the box: A look into LEGO organization and sorting

  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

A simple TETRIX robot

  • 11 June 201321 December 2017
  • LabVIEW
  • Getting Started
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
TETRIX is a robotics building system that was created by Pitsco. The system consists of aluminium elements for construction and powerful drive motors, controlled by an NXT brick. This article provides building instructions and programming […]

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A simple TETRIX robot

  • LabVIEW
  • Getting Started
  • How To

WeDo activities: The next level

  • 11 June 201321 December 2017
  • WeDo
  • Reflections
Posted by CEEO
The LEGO Education WeDo kit provides a fascinating opportunity in simple robotics and programming for young students. The kit has 12 activities that introduce valuable science and engineering concepts like pulley setups and gear trains […]

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WeDo activities: The next level

  • WeDo
  • Reflections

Real world engineering: Using the NXT for earthquake simulation

  • 11 June 20137 September 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Big Ideas
Posted by CEEO
Earthquakes are not all alike, and are identified by their strength on the Richter Scale of magnitude. The seismic waveforms generated during a quake depend on many factors including including fault geometry and rock type, […]

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Real world engineering: Using the NXT for earthquake simulation

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Big Ideas

Walking robots

  • 11 June 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform
  • Reflections
Posted by CEEO
High school intern Geoffrey Ramseyer explored new ways to make LEGO robots move without wheels. Check out the videos below to see these robots walk, hop, and scoot around!  

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Walking robots

  • Cross-Platform
  • Reflections

Sending LEGO MINDSTORMS to near space

  • 11 June 20138 July 2013
  • Big Ideas
Posted by CEEO
The Nevada Space Grant, the University of Nevada-Reno, National Instruments, the Energizer Battery Company, and the LEGO MINDSTORMS Team commemorated the 10th anniversary of LEGO MINDSTORMS by conducting an extravaganza where they sent LEGO MINDSTORMS […]

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Sending LEGO MINDSTORMS to near space

  • Big Ideas

NXT car with NXT bluetooth remote

  • 10 June 201321 December 2017
  • LabVIEW, NXT
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
The NXT’s Bluetooth feature enables NXTs to send messages to each other wirelessly. What’s that good for? Well, lots of things – including making your own remote control car (where you make the car and […]

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NXT car with NXT bluetooth remote

  • LabVIEW, NXT
  • How To

How to keep track of all those student projects!

  • 10 June 20131 August 2022
  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections
Posted by Kellie Taylor
As an elementary engineering teacher, I see approximately 550 students during the course of a week. In order to keep track of the numerous projects the students produce, I created simple name tags using large […]

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How to keep track of all those student projects!

  • Pedagogy
  • Reflections

What to buy (WeDo 1.0)

  • 4 June 20131 March 2018
  • WeDo
  • Getting Started
Posted by Wayne Burnett
Planning on introducing the WeDo into your class? Below are some ideas on what you need to get started. Note: This guide is for the classic version of LEGO WeDo, which comes in a white […]

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What to buy (WeDo 1.0)

  • WeDo
  • Getting Started

MIDI and the NXT

  • 3 June 20136 April 2020
  • Cross-Platform, LabVIEW, NXT
  • How To
Posted by CEEO
In this article, we talk about how you can make your own digital musical instrument with the LEGO NXT and connect it to an iPad using MIDI. The idea You can design and build your […]

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MIDI and the NXT

  • Cross-Platform, LabVIEW, NXT
  • How To

Datalogging in LabVIEW: Timed datalogging

  • 2 June 201318 July 2022
  • LabVIEW
  • How To
Posted by Svein-Tore Narvestad
A simple way to log data in LabView involves specifying a time interval between each measurement and the time interval over which the recording takes place. For example, we could measure the sound level for […]

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Datalogging in LabVIEW: Timed datalogging

  • LabVIEW
  • How To

LEGO WeDo Mac OSX 10.7 issues

  • 31 May 201318 July 2022
  • WeDo
  • How To
Posted by John Burfoot
With thanks to Esther Lee and John Heffernan, here are a couple of solutions if the LEGO WeDo themed activities do not appear (yellow LEGO face is greyed out) while operating LEGO WeDo software (v1.2) on […]

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LEGO WeDo Mac OSX 10.7 issues

  • WeDo
  • How To

What is LEGO WeDo?

  • 30 May 20136 March 2016
  • WeDo
  • Pedagogy
Posted by John Burfoot
LEGO WeDo is a robotics hardware and software platform specifically designed for Kindergarten to Grade 2 students. As with other LEGO Education products it follows the 4 C’s process – Connect to a story, Construct […]

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What is LEGO WeDo?

  • WeDo
  • Pedagogy

It’s not rocket science: Keep it simple!

  • 30 May 201321 December 2017
  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy
Posted by Damien Kee
The word ‘robotics’ can be a little intimidating to a teacher new to the field. I constantly encounter teachers who have been thrust unsuspectingly into the role of the ‘robotics teacher’ simply because they were […]

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It’s not rocket science: Keep it simple!

  • Cross-Platform, NXT
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Getting Started
  • Pedagogy

The Robo-Basketballer challenge

  • 29 May 20136 April 2020
  • Cross-Platform
  • Challenge Ideas
  • Reflections
Posted by