Steps to Starting a Robotics Club in Your School

As more elementary schools’ educational approaches include STEM (or STEAM hopefully) philosophies, more are including robotics as part of their offerings. Many schools have an after-school Robotics Club and some have included robotics as a daily class offering, often starting at the kindergarten level.

Primarily using the several levels of products offered by Lego, schools are finding that students respond well to the various concepts taught and reinforced when building a robot and then programming it to accomplish a specific task. Such classes provide students with both the opportunity to work as a team to build the robot and to develop individual skills in learning and using a programmed language. The sense of accomplishment felt by everyone when the robot successfully completes its task also makes robotics a student favorite.

That exposure at a young age, besides providing a wide variety of learning and skill improvement, also allows students who are more interested or technology-inclined to work at a higher level and seek more difficult challenges. Offering students a Robotics Club as an activity at the middle school and high school level provides that opportunity and outlet for these students to enhance their skills – skills that many will use as a basis for their college and career choices.

Having students design, develop, program, display and compete with their robot creations within your school will be a part of the Robotics Club’s efforts, although there are several national organizations that provide not only school competitions, but the resources needed to do so fairly. Being challenged to create a robot to perform a specific set of tasks, efficiently and effectively, is a great goal for a Robotics Club. Creating it so that it can compete with other schools raises the interest level for students to work together, improve their programming skills and think “outside of the box.”

However, before you sign up for the next FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) competition in your area hoping to field a school team, take the time to build your club so it serves your school first.

• Assess the Interest: Spread the word that a Robotics Club is being formed. Distribute an interest survey to students, and visit your school’s classes to give a short presentation (make sure to include English and arts classes along with science, math, technology and computer science).

• Make Friends with Your Supporters: Make a presentation to your school administration, faculty or school board so they know what’s happening. Check with your feeder elementary and middle schools to see what they are doing with robotics – you might be surprised). Contact the local makerspace to connect with their Robotics Clubs, and reach out to the other middle schools or high schools in your area to see who is doing what.

• Develop a Plan: Visit other Robotics Clubs to discover what equipment is needed. Assess what your school has already, such as computers, space and tools. Develop a preliminary budget and a schedule for club activities, which would include field trips to other clubs and competitions.

• Find your Resources: Connect with the Robotics competition in your area for information on competitions, training, grants (most provide significant funding to schools to get a Robotics Club started), and competition levels and schedule. Contact any local tech companies to see if they have any resources to lend or donate (computers, funding, people to help), and determine potential funding sources – in and out of the school.

• Just Start: Even if you don’t have anything ready but a space and time, get your club together to discuss your goals and plans with the students. You can gain their input, discuss different robot types and materials, establish student leadership within the group, and set up different teams (design, build, program, operation) with the club.

• Use the Internet: Even without robotics kits or modules or your own computers, there’s plenty that a club can do and learn about online including design techniques, programming and competition requirements.

• Borrow, beg, but not steal: Because technology is so ubiquitous in our society, older but not obsolete hardware gets discarded by schools, offices, companies, towns and communities on a regular basis so reach out via every possible avenue to let everyone know that your school now has a Robotics Club.

Because those competitions want all students and schools to succeed, most offer grants and other funding resources to help schools start and maintain their Robotics Clubs. Besides the FIRST competition, there are dozens more including VEX Robotics World Championship, DARPA Robotics Challenge, RoboCup and World Robot Olympiad.

While connecting with other school clubs, ask about the competitions that they participate in and often sponsor events for at their facility. And, of course, once you get going, consider hosting an event at your school; besides the competitions, there are often non-competitive events held just so students can bring what they have created and demonstrate for other students to see, critique and help improve.

It may seem daunting to consider starting a Robotics Club in a school where none has existed and the computer science teacher is not interested, but you will find it easier than you thought and far more rewarding. The club advisor will often be learning right along with the club members and should not feel that they have to have all of the answers. One of the best parts of such a club is the level of discovery that the students experience, not only discovering how a robot works, but discovering more about themselves.