The Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose, California, created an interactive exhibit called Social Robots, aimed at children 6 years of age and older. These robots are created using sensors, controllers and actuators. The project aims to get kids directly involved in hands on activities constructing their own robot, and build awareness of the technology they may already encounter at home or elsewhere. The project is a very good definition of embodied computing because the kids can see the sensors, and make tactile connections, complete circuits, and add actuators to create a physical response. It seems to be primarily a mechanism project, rather than a computation project for the kids, but does seem to be successful in this aim. Museums are wonderful contexts to introduce kids to technology that is not screen-based, and expand their knowledge and access to materials that demystify (or add narrative / enchantment to) the increasingly ubiquitous technology in their lives. I would hope that this would perhaps spark a conversation with the children’s parents about the Roomba vacuum at home, how computers work, how cars are built, etc. and encourage kids to learn more in a hands-on way.

Many early interactions with technology and coding seem to be using the concept of “blocks” to teach kids. Google and Osmo use blocks to teach coding, as seem below with Google’s Project Bloks,

and this Social Robots project uses physical blocks that attach to each other to house the sensors and make wired or material connections. This breaks down the process from lots of tiny wires and complex sensors, and makes the connections easier to create, to see, and to manipulate physically by children. The blocks create a “language” of technology that helps the learning process. I’m not sure if the specific output of this project is highly successful in the physical “robots” it makes, but it does seem to be fun to use and teach basic concepts through direct interaction with embodied computing.

Here’s a news story about the project, and a link to the exhibition.

http://www.ktvu.com/community/98892114-video

https://www.thetech.org/plan-your-visit/exhibits/social-robots