Our Level 1 (L1) Course is is the ‘Learn’ phase for students (from ages 9 to 13). This course introduces students to the world of robotics and coding concepts systematically and thoroughly. We align curriculum with BC ADST curriculum.
Level 1 – Robotics: (Age 9 to 13):
Level 1 Robotics is an introductory (Level 1) course on Robot platforms, hardware & firmware. Students write, compile and run programs on a variety of robots, including but not limited to micro: bit based electronics platforms. They use visual coding or the language python. The course offers a structured sequence of programming activities in real-world project-based contexts.
Robotics programming sessions include real, physical robots for students to build and program. Each month focus on specific areas. Some months focus on building, some focus on electronics & programming, some focus on programming etc. However, our robots change every month or other month. Students program robots using an easy to use, drag and drop interface or a python-like interface (each robot is different). Some of the day-to-day activities include programming a robot hand to grab objects with five fingers, programming a drawing robot that use real paper and markers to draw shapes or pictures. Students will also program robots to traverse mazes or program them to walk on four legs.
Robotics build sessions let students build robots from ground up and then program them using leading open-source chipsets like micro: bit and popular programming languages like python.
As for curriculum, BC ADST curriculum is covered and goes beyond. BC ADST curriculum can be found here . Total course duration is around 80 hours and close to half of that is optional at home assignments.
Key Modules:
| Module 1: Fundamentals: Students gain a historic foundational understanding of both hardware and software portions of Robots. Big Ideas (key concepts) in robotics. |
| Module 2: Navigation: Foundational concepts/theory of Robot programming and attaining precision in movements. Robot math and key math topics necessary. |
| Module 3: Sensors: Various sensors robots use and adjust actions based on those. |
| Module 4:Electronics basics, circuits, breadboarding & micro bits & build micro: bit based robots. |
| Module 5: Control: Complex logic portions in processing input and programming for more intelligent decisions. The user will learn to include sensor feedback, popular topics like line following, obstacle avoidance, maze solving etc. with robots. |
| Module 6: Power Technology & Introduction to Mechatronics. Uses of power technology, Renewable and non-renewable sources of energy. Conversion and transmission of energy, kinetic and potential energy, effect of mass and inertia on speed and distance. |
| Module 7: Ethics and Humanism aspects of Robotics: |
Level 1 – Computer Programming: (Age 9 to 13) :
This is an introductory and comprehensive (Level 1) course on Computer Programming. This course is focused on Computer Programming which includes both theory and learning via projects. This starts off with programming concepts and proceed as a regular python course. Python is a very powerful, industry strength programming language that is an extremely valuable skill to have. The objective is to learn just one language deeply which will enable the students to learn any programming language by themselves in future (Java, C, C++ or even the ones not invented yet!). So we solely on the programming language of Python. As for curriculum, BC ADST curriculum is covered and goes beyond. BC ADST curriculum can be found here.
Key Modules:
| Module 1: Introduction to Python: This module introduces the text-based programming language of Python. The module covers Python IDEs, syntax, data structures, formatting & error handling. Modifying programs in python. |
| Module 2: Complex functions and programming technics. Review of ‘big ideas’ and computational thinking approach. Simple projects that practice these concepts and team projects. Students create algorithms, flowcharts & documentation and peer review these artifacts. |
| Module 3: Introduction to testing, debugging methodology. Do’s and Don’ts in testing and debugging. Students are introduced to the idea of working as a team to achieve larger coding projects, modularizing, defining roles and responsibilities, interfaces etc. |
| Module 4: Projects involving Python. Concepts like object-oriented programming in Python. Classes and Inheritance. |
| Module 5: Review of Python standard libraries. Projects involving the use of these. |
| Module 6: Advanced Concepts in Python: Artificial Intelligence routines in Python, Micro Python for Internet of Things (IoT) programming etc. |
General:
METHODOLOGY – OUR LEVEL 0 TO LEVEL 3 APPROACH
- Level 0 (ages 6 to 8) is our Excitement phase where we trigger the students’ interest and curiosity for technology.
- Level 1 (ages 9 to 13) is our Learn phase, where we follow the BC curriculum and go beyond to enhance the students’ understanding of electronics. Build a strong base knowledge on the topic.
- Level 2 is our Experience phase where students do a series of 2-3 month long projects for two years, gaining experience in various aspects in the field. Ie; Put the learning from Level 1 to test, practice & refine.
- Level 3 is our Expertise phase which is a full one-year team project spanning multiple disciplines and done in partnership with secondary schools. This is an invitation only project.
Kids can choose to do Level 0 more than once and it will remain engaging because we are always using new robotic kits. Also, as kids become more comfortable and take a deeper dive into our L0 kits, they can gain an overall better understanding of the robots, and transition into Level 1 better. Note: All other levels (L1/L2) are done only once.
General Notes:
- Pre-Requisites for Level 0 classes: Kids should be able to take instruction and be able to read basic English words and sentences before attending the class. No other pre-requisites.
- Kids who are special need, who are on the spectrum etc. please do not join the class. We are offering Parent Participation Classes at our center (17720 57 Ave Surrey, BC V3S 1H2) and in several schools in the evening. Please join those instead.
- There will be non-screen (ie; no laptops/tabs etc. to rest their eyes) breaks in during the program and students play games like Jenga & Uno to manage long stay. Please pack some extra snacks if they are staying from school dismissal to 5:30 pm.
- Parents can see lot of pictures and videos of student’s classes in our facebook group (invitation only for parents) to see progression and so parents can ask better questions to their kids.
CRL CLASS/PICKUP LOCATION AFTER THE COURSE: 17720 57 AVE SURREY BC V3S9C1.
What is new in 2023-2024?
1. We are moving to a semester system to make our programs more affordable.
- Term 1: Oct 2023 to Dec 2023
- Term 2: Jan 2024 to Mar 2024
- Term 3: Apr 2024 to Jun 2024
2. Payment/Cancellation/Refund policy: Payment is done while registering for the first term and first day of each term automatically.
- Monthly Payment for the course at the center and online courses. The payments will be automatic deductions on first of the month for 9 months ( Oct 2023 to Jun 2024). To cancel for any reason, there is a two-week notice required. (Ex: email us at info@cloverdalerobotics.ca by March 15,2024 to cancel by end of March 2024).
- All students receive a course completion certificate at the end of the course
3. From September 2023 onward, Cloverdale Robotics prioritize Digital Arts tools for this semester. We do not teach how to draw, art theory, but more so introduce students to tools, and help them with creation techniques, so they are more self-sufficient and can create digital arts on their own.
4. We provide progress reports to parents for each term. Parents can also view pictures and videos of classes, videos of activity done by students in our closed Facebook group.
5. We are including more robot build activities in the course. There are a lot more of hands on ‘robot build’ than previous year.
6. We maintain a student to teacher ratio of 12:1 so all kids can get attention. Teacher Biographies are in our team section.
7. Twenty (20) spots available. First come first served. Registration is open. Reserve your spots early.
8. We have increased the timeframe of many of the Level 0 and Level 1 robotics classes to 1.15 hour or 1:30 hours in order to accommodate more robot build sessions. So the sessions are longer. But this increases total cost of classes too. Parent participation classes and online classes will remain at 1 hour itself.
9. Classes will be starting 7th October (Saturdays) 2023 and will go on till June 3rd week of 2024.
11. SCHOOL PICKUP AVAILABLE FROM many CLOVERDALE/LANGLEY SCHOOLS on weekdays as afterschool programs: Please see weekdays classes to register for weekday afterschool programs at our center in Cloverdale.
General Question:
Robotics Vs Coding Vs Digital Arts: Which course should take?
In a general sense, Robotics always involve physical objects and coding on them. There are mechanical, electronics, and coding portions in robotics. So it is a combination of multiple disciplines. Robotics is for kids who like build things, like to work on hands on things but also to code a bit etc. An engineering, experimental mindset is required. They should also have the GRIT to continue failure after failure.
Coding is for kids who are comfortable in coding. They could sit and code for long hours in front of a computer and not get bored with it.
Digital Arts is for imaginative kids. Creative types. Period. Our course does not teach them ‘arts’ we just introduce a lot of new digital tools that they can express their imagination using the new world tools. It is ideal for kids who already take art lessons somewhere else, or newbies who just to just try it out.
For more specific questions, please check our FAQ section.
