Robotics Curriculum & Courses

In this unit, participants assemble the ShieldBot robot by integrating its three core subsystems: Mobility, Power, and Control. They follow a structured build process and execute diagnostic programs to validate mechanical and electrical connections, ensuring the robot is ready for software development and autonomous behavior.

In this unit, participants perform a system validation by inventorying ShieldBot components and confirming their integrity through functional tests. They use structured checklists to verify that all hardware elements are present and operational, establishing a reliable foundation for the robotics build and programming phases. 

In this unit, learners set up and calibrate the Loco Positioning System, then use it to fly the Crazyflie through coordinate-based missions. They work with both TWR and TDoA modes and advance to multi-drone coordination, gaining firsthand experience with autonomous navigation and swarm operation. 

In this unit, learners explore assisted flight modes including altitude hold, hover, and position hold. Using the Flow Deck, they examine sensor-based stabilization and velocity control, and tune values in the PID controller to see how it affects the drone’s ability to correct and hold position. 

In this unit, learners gain the essential setup skills for working with the Crazyflie platform. They assemble the drone, configure the software environment, attach sensing decks, and update firmware. After verifying stability with a grounded test, they complete a manual test flight before moving on. 

In this unit, you will learn about the basics of electrical soldering and get comfortable with the tools. You will learn about soldering tools (soldering iron, solder, flux, etc.), soldering safety procedures, what makes a good solder joint (tinning, heating, applying solder), and checking continuity with a Multimeter. 

Learn how to program Events with the Gyro Sensor! The robot build for this unit is Bot-it. 

Program the Strawberry Sorter to make decisions so that it can... sort strawberries! You will use if-then-else blocks to program simple decisions and looped decisions. The robot design for this unit is the Strawberry Sorter. 

Block-based Coding Practice with Virtual SPIKE Prime provides students with a fully programmable robot that allows students to develop their programming and sensor integration skills using Blocks. The simulated environment is designed to resemble a robotics competition table, encouraging robotics teams to help prepare for competitions. 

Python-based Coding Practice with Virtual SPIKE Prime provides students with a fully programmable robot that allows students to develop their programming and sensor integration skills using Python. The simulated environment is designed to resemble a robotics competition table, encouraging robotics teams to help prepare for competitions.

Participants work together to lift a payload using only their own drones. This exercise emphasizes mission planning, flight plan development, team coordination, and adapting to unexpected conditions. Students will calculate components of lifting force and understand how to sum and cancel force vectors from multiple sources. 

Skills Developed: Mission planning, flight plan development, team planning, coordinated multi-robot operation, considering risk, adapting to unexpected conditions, calculating relevant components of oblique forces. 

Autonomous Systems are comprised of hardware and software enabling machines to operate independently. In this unit, participants will configure their JetBot, including software, network requirements, assembly, and initial operation. 

Identify patterns and program with loops to repeat behaviors. The robot design for this unit is the Strawberry Sorter.

This unit introduces the core principles of object manipulation using robotic end effectors. By assembling and refining a servo-powered arm, participants gain practical experience with topics including balance, stability, and the effects of load placement on performance. 

 Learn how Machine Vision can be integrated into robotics systems to automatically perform tasks such as image detection and quality control.