Lego Robots Help Romeoville Students Learn

Submitted by Valley View School District 365U

Photo: Lewis University graduate student Alejandro Rodriguez helps Martinez 7th grader Connor Delaney program his Lego robot during STEM Club at the Romeoville middle school.

The smiles on their faces tell it all.

Once a week for the past five weeks, as many as three dozen Martinez Middle School students have willingly stayed after school to work with Legos.

“They’re not so much learning how to build Legos, they’re learning how to program Lego robots,” said Kim Perry, faculty advisor for the Martinez STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) Club. “They followed directions on how to put it together and now they’re learning how to tell it to turn left or turn right or to use arms to pick things up. Right now they all look like bricks on wheels. But by the end, we’ll have different-looking robots.”

Made possible through the efforts of the Three Rivers Educational Partnership (TREP), the STEM Club project features visits by Lewis University students Alejandro Rodriguez and Kaelyn Williams who assist and encourage the Martinez students.

“I want all of them to be computer program nerds,” said Rodriguez, a Lewis graduate student majoring in information security. “It’s cool to see some girls in this program because the technology arena is so male-dominated.”

“We work together,” added Williams, a senior majoring in special education and elementary education who will student teach in Joliet second semester. “I have no experience with these robots but I work with kids all day, every day.”

“It’s been awesome. We’ve had kids who struggle in regular classrooms that are thriving with science in here,” Perry said. “It’s all about mechanics and engineering. It kind of opens their eyes to possibilities.”

The robotics kits will remain at Martinez for the club’s use through Dec. 2. After that, they head to another school somewhere else in Will County.

“People are having fun doing this,” said 8th grader Andrew Koroma, who firmly believes he now can program a robot on his own. “I learned how to build a robot.”

“Every time I leave here, I’m smiling. I love it,” Rodriguez said.