Sphero engineering - build and race
Design and build a chariot to attach to the Sphero and carry a LEGO figure around our race track!
The Neon quality mark shows this activity has been reviewed and meets Neon's quality standards.
Overview
In this workshop students have to design and build a chariot to attach to the Sphero to carry a LEGO figure around a race track. Older students are given a budget to 'buy' materials. Maths skills, problem-solving, resilience and teamwork are all developed in this action-packed session.
Skill Supply workshops aim to develop a desire to learn about STEM and how it is used in everyday life. They offer an engaging link to engineering, the curriculum, and Gatsby Benchmarks while highlighting future career possibilities.
Capacity
Minimum of 10 participants, maximum of 32 participants.
Cost
From £599 for a full day's session. Contact the provider for a full quote tailored to your requirements.
Dates and location
Skill Supply does not charge travel costs on top of their workshops if the location is within one hour of their office in Sandbach, Cheshire. For travel times over this, they will charge mileage, and for over 2 hours they may need to add accommodation costs on top. Full quotes can be offered before purchase.
Duration
This is a half-day workshop that can fit into a morning or afternoon session of school within normal school timings.
Details
- School subject
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- Technology/computing
- Design and technology
- Engineering
- Maths
- Physics
- Curriculum links
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- Design and technology
- Computing
- Physics: Electricity and electromagnetism
- Engineering
- Technologies - Craft, design, engineering and graphics
- Sciences - Forces, electricity and waves: Electricity
- Computing science
- Technologies - Craft, design, engineering and graphics: Application of engineering
- Design thinking and engineering
- Physics: Electricity
- Design thinking and engineering: Engineering
- Technology & design - Design
- Technology & design - Communication: Use of ICT tools (including 3D modelling)
- Sciences - Forces and energy: Using electricity
- Technology & design - Control: Incorporate control systems in products
- Technology & design - Manufacturing
- Technology & design - Control
- Group size
- Small groups, Whole class
- Participation level
- Hands-on
- Duration
- Half day
Half day
- Cost
- Cost applies
- Location
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In-school
- UK-wide
Learning outcomes
- Improve engagement, interest or enjoyment in STEM subjects
- Attainment and progress
- Develop engineering employability skills
- Improve awareness and aspirations for STEM-related study and careers
- Challenge stereotypes by showing the diversity of disciplines, people and skills involved in engineering
Frameworks
Gatsby benchmarks
The Gatsby benchmarks are a framework for good careers guidance for schools across all of England and in some areas across the rest of the UK. This experience helps your school to reach the following benchmarks:
- 2 - Learning from career and labour market information
- 3 - Addressing the needs of each pupil
- 4 - Linking curriculum learning to careers
- 5 - Encounters with employers and employees
- 6 - Experiences of workplaces
- 7 - Encounters with further and higher education
EqualEx
- Introduce and Inspire
Essential skills
The essential skills every young person needs to succeed in education and their future career. Find out more at the Skills Builder Partnership. This experience builds the following skills:
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Enrichment framework
- 5 - An accessible and engagement enrichment offer
Testimonials
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Fantastic, engaging and fun afternoon. Dom pitched this event exactly right for our students. They all achieved the brief and created brilliant trailers, developing their thinking, creative and engineering skills.
— Ed Bond, KS1 - KS5 -
Skill supply visited our school to run two sessions with our Year 7 and 8 students. The sessions were really well planned. The students could see the role that engineers play in society and got to learn about the range of engineers. The task of using the Sphero robots and designing a carriage allowed the students to be engineers. They used their problem solving and teamwork skills. They also were able to evaluate and take on each others ideas to improve their design. The students learnt a lot and really enjoyed it. See quotes below from some of our Year 8 students who took part: "It was fun and creative. It made me think I would like to be an engineer in the future." "I got to use lots of skills that engineers use. I got to explore new things." "I was able to learn new things. It was a new fun experience racing our robots. It opened my creative mind and I enjoyed working with my peers." I would highly recommend this activity.
— Alyson Taylor, KS3 -
We ran 2 workshops for our Y9 students and they really enjoyed it. The tasks were meaningful and engaging and the students loved racing their chariots. They were well planned and included some useful thinking points such as how much each part might cost and whether it was really needed. The students had the freedom to be creative and to solve problems on their own but when difficulties did arise they were dealt with quickly so that the workshop flowed really well. I would definitely recommend.
— Chris Brown, Secondary
