Robotics Has Got It Covered

Robotics is a fantastic way for teachers, parents, and caregivers to allow children in their care the opportunity to grow in many important areas. Because of how fun robotics is for children (and adults too!) kids buy-in quickly and often. This means they will be more likely to reap the benefits it offers. Teachers  will love that robotics is easily differentiated for students from all levels and backgrounds, and can be linked into different subject areas. Parents, caregivers, and homeschool families will love that they can connect so much different learning with robotics.  

Keep reading to learn more about the benefits of robotics for young children.

Hands On Learning

Robotics allows children to engage in hands-on-learning. Instead of reciting facts, completing a worksheet, or watching a video, they work with the robot and robotic elements to engage with multiple concepts at once. Especially at a young age, children learn best by being immersed in their learning in a tangible way. Robotics is the ideal hands-on-learning experience!

Motor Skills

Speaking of hands, young children are still developing fine and gross motor skills. While they get lots of practice with pencils in a traditional learning environment, robotics offers a different, wholesome opportunity to develop motor skills. With robotics, kids learn to place pieces and maneuver parts carefully. Especially when robotics is included in learning and play often, children’s motor skills will benefit greatly.

Exploration and Problem Solving

With robotics, children are allowed to explore. Sometimes the best way for a child to learn is to give them free reign with a new concept, idea, or device. Robotics is a perfect example of this. With a robot kit at hand, you can step back and watch a child’s brain work through the problem and figure it out. Problem solving is a life-long skill that is hard to teach explicitly. The best way to learn problem solving is to solve problems with an adult as a guide and model. The best part is when the child finally figures out the problem, and their eyes light up. Robotics really gives young minds a great opportunity to grow. 

Teamwork

When your child works with Robotics in a group setting, they will have to learn to work on a team. Like problem solving, this is a skill that needs to be learned in an immersive way. It’s one thing to talk about teamwork, but kids will learn best by doing. Having an adult or adults there to guide and model is important, but it takes practice to become a team player. When young children work together on a robot kit, they’ll quickly learn how teamwork can make amazing things happen. Learning to be a positive team player will benefit children their entire lives. 

Following Instructions

Giving kids an opportunity to explore with Robots is one of the best ways to allow them to reap a lot of the benefits of robotics. Another benefit though, is practice following instructions. Even when exploring, young children will have to follow certain guidelines about carefully keeping track of pieces and parts, taking turns with group members, or meeting a certain goal with their robot. They’ll learn that to meet their goals, following some basic guidelines is important.  

Robotics is a STEAM Activity

Robotics is most definitely viewed as a STEM activity, but it also ties in things like reading, writing, and design. This means robotics is a full on STEAM activity and can be tied into all subject areas. Robotics easily takes care of covering Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths, but students also benefit from keeping log books, or writing to explain about what they do and see. It’s easy and beneficial to tie in a book to the robotics lesson, giving kids an opportunity to practice their reading skills as well. When building a lesson or choosing an activity for your child, it’s nice to know that robotics can tie it all together in a fun and exciting way. 

Robotics Helps Social Emotional Development

Social Emotional Learning (SEL) and Development is an extremely important part of a child’s overall development. In fact, many experts agree that social emotional development is even MORE important than academic growth in the early years of a child’s life. Again, robotics has got this covered. Some important pillars of most SEL curriculum includes developing perseverance and grit, identifying and working through frustration, and taking pride in oneself and one’s work, to name a few. When working with robots, it’s inevitable that kids will become frustrated. They will have to persevere to build and code the robot correctly. And when they are able to do all of that, they will be able to take pride in their work! 

Robotics is Exciting

Robotics is exciting! Kids will quickly buy-in to a robotics lesson or activity. Their excitement will be palpable as you pull out the kits and give a quick tutorial on how to treat and use them. Sometimes getting a child to practice their time-tables or read a book is like pulling teeth, but usually they will be super excited to pull out the robotics kits. They’ll hardly even notice when you tie in math, reading, writing, social skills, etc. into the activity. With all of these amazing benefits wrapped up in robotics, it’s a win for everyone when children are excited to do it. 

Robotics gives teachers, parents, and caregivers the opportunity to practice so many important skills with their children. When you’re ready to reap the benefits of robotics for young children in your home or your classroom, check out Zobotics Kits to get you started. Your children (and you!) will love working with robots!