March's Top 10 post on Robots and Physical Computing blog.

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  Lego Robot and Neural Networks

  An overview of using Lego RCX  robots for teaching neural networks present at workshop in 2011. Derby presentation from Scott Turne...
• 

  Superheroes, Code Competition and Scratch

  A Coding competition for primary school aged children was recently launched;  aimed at helping teachers to become more confident with teach...
• 

  Micro:bit, Servo control with Micropython or blocks

  You can control servos (small ones) from a Micro:Bit directly. Following a link from the David Whale (Twitter  @ whaleygeek ) , thank you, t...
• 

  USB Robot arm control with Python and Raspberry Pi

  I was asked recently if the USB robot arm could be programmed - I knew the answer was yes. The Arm came from the CBiS Education Robot Arm ...
• 

  PS3 Controller to move a USB Robot Arm

  Guest Blogger Hiren Mistry, Nuffield Research Placement Student working at the University of Northampton. How to use a PS3 Controller to...
• 

  Narinder's Swarm Robots

  This time not my experimentation but by a colleague and student I was supervising. Some interesting work has been developed by Narinder ...
• 

  How to produce a Microbit neural network

  This is really part two of a set of post  in response to a question from Carl Simmons ( @Activ8Thinking ) concerning building a   micro:bit ...
• 

  How to videos... Web based Augmented Reality

  Video 1: How to produce a simple web-based augmented reality application. Video 2:  Using AFrame and AR.js to create AR - this tim...
  
  
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  Scratch speaking German, French, Spanish.....

  Scratch 3 the gift that keeps on giving; including the new extensions are Text to Speech and Translate; Text to speech - does as the name su...
• Junkbots goes to the Big Bang Northamptonshire #TBBNorthants

  In tweets (Big Bang Northamptonshire  https://www.learnbydesign.co.uk/event/big-bang-northants-2019/ ) Fantastic junkbots being built ...

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All opinions in this blog are the Author's and should not in any way be seen as reflecting the views of any organisation the Author has any association with. Twitter @scottturneruon

Superheroes, Code Competition and Scratch

A Coding competition for primary school aged children was recently launched; aimed at helping teachers to become more confident with teaching coding skills. Any educator working with primary scjool aged children  (e.g. Teacher, Code Club Leader, etc) can run the competition whether they are familiar with coding or completely new to it. All the session planning is done for you so you can learn alongside your pupils. The resources include 

- 12 weeks of lesson planning for absolute beginners (children and teachers!) 
or 
- shorter 6 week version for those who already have a little experience with using Scratch. 

The resources can be used for computing lessons or to run within an after-school club.

It is open for children in years 4, 5 and 6 working in teams of 3 - 6 children. 

The aim is to create a short computer game using Scratch featuring super heroes who use their super powers for good. To register for the competition and access all the resources click on this link 
http://bit.ly/YoungCoders2019 

For a bit of fun, I wondered what my solution would look like if I was using Scratch. Well, one of the coolest features in Scratch (along with speech-to-text; translation; controlling LEGO;...) is the video sensing. So my idea was to make the user the superhero by using a webcam and the user position on the screen to make falling rocks disappear when touched.

The code below controls the falling rocks, adding 1 to a counter when the person in the camera appears to touch the rock. 

The code below is attached to the stage and just sets up the initial conditions when the green flag is pressed.

If you want a copy of the code or to play with it go to: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/292925459/

To register for the competition and access all the resources click on this link 
http://bit.ly/YoungCoders2019  

All opinions in this blog are the Author's and should not in any way be seen as reflecting the views of any organisation the Author has any association with. Twitter @scottturneruon

Junkbots goes to the Big Bang Northamptonshire #TBBNorthants

In tweets (Big Bang Northamptonshire https://www.learnbydesign.co.uk/event/big-bang-northants-2019/ )

Fantastic junkbots being built at Big Bang Northamptonshire #ttbbnorthants @UniNorthants @UoNComputing @UoNSchools pic.twitter.com/uGyYgSN6Oe

— Dr Scott Turner (@scottturneruon) February 27, 2019

Come and play with Red and junkbot #ttbbnorthants pic.twitter.com/WdbyL1AZLi

— Dr Scott Turner (@scottturneruon) February 27, 2019

Junkbot being built at Big Bang Northamptonshire #ttbbnorthants @UoNComputing @UoNSchools @STEMatUN @UniNorthants pic.twitter.com/EuH5rYOjZF

— Dr Scott Turner (@scottturneruon) February 27, 2019

Thanks for your support. Every time I looked across at yr table you were surrounded by happy children learning about robots 😀 https://t.co/k2hy5Dn9iY

— STEAM at UN (@STEMatUN) February 27, 2019

All opinions in this blog are the Author's and should not in any way be seen as reflecting the views of any organisation the Author has any association with. Twitter @scottturneruon

Young Coders Competition 2019

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Young Coders Competition 2019

The Young Coders Competition is a competition for primary schools aimed at helping teachers to become more confident with teaching coding skills. Any educator working with primary school aged children  (e.g. Teacher, Code Club Leader, etc) can run the competition whether they are familiar with coding or completely new to it. 

All the session planning is done for you so you can learn alongside your pupils. The resources include 
- 12 weeks of lesson planning for absolute beginners (children and teachers!) 
or 
- shorter 6 week version for those who already have a little experience with using Scratch. 

The resources can be used for computing lessons or to run within an after-school club.

It is open for children in years 4, 5 and 6 working in teams of 3 - 6 children. 

The aim is to create a short computer game using Scratch featuring super heroes who use their super powers for good.

As well as planning, the pack also includes:

·         Introductory assembly slides and script to launch the competition/club in your school

·         A3 poster to remind children about the competition

·         Educators FAQs with all key information you need close at hand

·         Student ‘cheat sheet’ with all the key rules on, so you don’t have to keep reminding them!

To register for the competition and access all the resources click on this link 
http://bit.ly/YoungCoders2019

The Young Coders competition is a collaboration between the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists, Computing Subject within the University of Northampton and the STEM Ambassador Hub East Midlands.

By taking part in this competition, the children get a chance at becoming the Young Coders Crew 2019. Each child in the winning 3 teams will receive personalised certificates and all children will receive certificates of participation.

Competition Rules

·         You must be in years 4, 5 or 6 to enter.

·         You must have a team of 3 to 6 children to enter.

·         You must create a game in Scratch relating to the theme: Superheroes who use their powers for good.

·         Any violence, even for the greater good, will mean automatic disqualification.

·         After you have finished making your game, you must create a 2 minute video explaining what you did, how it works and how your game meets our marking criteria.

·         Videos must be submitted by Friday 23^rd May

·         The judging criteria is as follows:

Functionality and innovation (50%)	Marketing (25%)	Community responsibility (25%)
Does the game work as intended? Is the game easy to use? Is the game imaginative? Does the game include original and well-written code?	Aesthetics of the game – Does the game display correctly and look nice? Creativity and design of your game’s name Presentation of your game on the video	Is your game accessible for its target audience? I.e., is it suitable for the age range you built it for? How does your game address the theme of Superheroes doing good?

All opinions in this blog are the Author's and should not in any way be seen as reflecting the views of any organisation the Author has any association with. Twitter @scottturneruon

10 most read post on Robots and Physical Computing Blog in January 2019

To read more please click on one of the links below:

Posts

Entry
Scratch speaking German, French, Spanish..... 25 Jan 2019,
Speech with EduBlocks on BBC microbit 20 Aug 2018,
Micro:bit, Servo control with Micropython or block... 1 Oct 2016,
4Tronix Bit:Bot Neuron Controlled Edge follower 23 Dec 2016,
Scratch and web-cams in Scratch 3 3 Jan 2019,
USB Robot arm control with Python and Raspberry Pi... 17 Aug 2016,
PS3 Controller to move a USB Robot Arm 8 Aug 2017,
Top 5 posts in 2018 from the Robots and Physical C... 31 Dec 2018,
WebVR 4 Playtime: Putting Objects into Augmented R... 14 Jul 2018,
WebVR playtime 2: video, 360 video and objects 27 Feb 2018,

All opinions in this blog are the Author's and should not in any way be seen as reflecting the views of any organisation the Author has any association with. Twitter @scottturneruon