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Robots aid in students’ learning

Kate FieldingSouth Western Times
Robots invaded Bunbury Public Library last week, but it was children who had control over what the robotic creatures did. As part of a Telstra Kids Fund Digital Futures Program, the ‘Robots are coming’ workshops allowed Bunbury kids to program robots like NAO to dance and respond to commands under the watchful eye of Telstra WA area general manager Boyd Brown.
Camera IconRobots invaded Bunbury Public Library last week, but it was children who had control over what the robotic creatures did. As part of a Telstra Kids Fund Digital Futures Program, the ‘Robots are coming’ workshops allowed Bunbury kids to program robots like NAO to dance and respond to commands under the watchful eye of Telstra WA area general manager Boyd Brown. Credit: South Western Times

A unique workshop featuring robotic guests helped Bunbury children learn vital skills in technology last week.

Bunbury Public Library hosted the humanoid robots during the ‘Robots are coming’ workshop on Thursday.

The workshop allowed children to learn vital skills in computer coding and “computational thinking” while playing with state-of-the-art robots as part of the $500,000 Telstra Kids Fund Digital Futures Program.

Telstra Western Australia area general manager Boyd Brown said the workshops were about arming local kids with the skills they needed for the “jobs of the future”.

“Technology and innovation are a central part of Australia’s future and this program is about building these abilities in our local kids,” Mr Brown said.

“Why robots? Because they’re fun.”

Children used computer codes to program a range of robots including NAO the humanoid robot and EZ-Robots to move and interact.

The library now has a robotics suite for on-going learning and workshops thanks to Telstra.

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