At Larrakeyah Primary School, we believe in providing unique learning opportunities to nurture and extend the abilities of our high achieving students. One such exciting project is the ‘Bat Scram’ Robotics Project for our Year 5 and 6 students.
Our digital technology specialist teacher designed a program for our year five and six students to design Ev3 Robotics scarecrows that would scare away birds from our school garden. The students showed a key interest in this project, so then we decided to pull some of the students aside and work on an accelerated learning program where we would actually build a life size model and solve the problem. How can we stop batch from eating mangoes from our local mango farms? To do this, we used the design thinking model. Students had to empathise with the problem where we had someone from NT Wildcare come in and bring a small bat to help our students empathise. The students were able to think about the bat, and from there developed that we wanted to make it a safe way.
We didn’t wanna harm the bats, we wanted to scare them away from the mango trees. After we empathise, we defined the problem further. We then ideated solutions to the problem. We created prototypes, and from those prototypes we are going to now share or collaborate to create a big version of their robot.
And how we’re going to do that, we’re going to use solar. We’re going to use batteries. We’re going to use coding and collectively build a renewable energy source so that we’re also looking after the environment.
The end goal will be that the bats remove themselves from the mango farms using ultrasonic sound and lights.
Students developed and extended their understanding on how to build a renewable technology to put out in the field to remove bats from mango farms in a way that will not harm them or cause any environmental damage. The students also engage with the four Cs for 21st century learning through this process, practicing creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking skills.
From a school level, we learnt the importance of accelerated programs for our high achieve and that also aligns with our annual school improvement plan, and we intend on creating more programs for the future.
Experiences like this project allow students the ability to develop skills in the four Cs, which will help their future education. We are developing optimistic problem solvers and change makers. Students are engaging with industry and solving real world problems.
From here, the students will benefit from learning how to use renewable technologies and energies. So hopefully they can help remove carbon emissions and things in the environment that we struggle with in society, and they’ll have a better understanding on how robotics work in that industry.
