(Apr 9, 2024)
Our Past-President Chase Thacker presented the latest information on his work with “Rolling Robots”, a group of age-appropriate robotics-design educational programs for children. Their students have done well on VEX Robotics international competitions. The major age-groups are:
- VEX 123 (age 4-5) – basic login & commands
- VEX GO (age 5-6) – (simpler version of VEX IQ)
- VEX IQ (age 7-10) – plastic parts, motors, sensors, block coding, beginners competitions
- VEX VRC (age 11-17) – metal parts, advanced motors & sensors, autonomous coding
- VEX U (or AI) (age 17-university) – computerized design, 3-D printing, AI, 2 robots/challenge
The students learn coding by moving labeled colored blocks on a screen to assemble a program, rather than writing long lists of traditional complex coding commands:
Competitions are like athletic contests, with robots throwing & catching objects:
The winners:
