vending

The Car Project

We began building a car today. It all looks so complicated. There were over 16 steps for us to do, and each step required a lot of legos. We decided to assemble the legos and build the car every 3 steps. Each of us went for legos for a step and then came together to work on the actual building of the car. Carefully following the instructions, we built our car through hard and intense work.

We connected everything and then found that we did not have a horn and any lamp on the car. We then went back for the front lamps and the back lamps and a horn. Then we began to set the car moving. It was easy for us to set the car move forward and then turn back after several seconds. However, it was not easy to write codes to make the lamps on or off at expected time. Sonja was on the computer and we discussed for a while and then found out the way to make only the front lamps on while the car move forward and only the back lamps on while the car moved backward. However, the horn refused to make sound even if the codes were right. We asked the instructor and with her help we found that the horn needed a certain touch by hand. What a discovery!

Lesson Plan
Grade level: 4-12
Materials for the class:
_a set of instructions in assembling the fan ( logo dacta)
_lego sets
_computer
_Control Lab Software
_Technology investigations and inventions books 9701-3 project books

Objectives:
nto know how important parts of car work, such as horns, motors, lights and wheels
nto assemble the lego set into a car.
ncontrol the car by using logo programming language.
nlet the students learn how to make the car move forward and backward, how to make the lights on and off and how to horn the car all at the same time.

Procedure:
_ ask the students to form groups of two or three
_ have the students to assemble the car following the instruction of the booklet
_ have them connect the car with the control panel and control lab software
_ let the students explore how to control the car by using logo language
_ let them explore how to make the horn, the lamps and the motor work at the same time.

For using logo language, or examples of lego logo use, go to the following sites:

Logo for Kids
Logo Learning
New Robotics Inventions