🚨 PERFECT FOR THE END OF THE YEAR WHEN STUDENTS NEED HANDS-ON, HIGH-ENGAGEMENT STEM ACTIVITIES THAT STILL KEEP THEM LEARNING! 🚨

Transform your robotics classroom into a hub of industrial innovation with this interactive blackline master companion activity designed to accompany the online “Automate It” robotics lesson! Students will identify manual inefficiencies, brainstorm prototypes, and program a LEGO® SPIKE™ Prime robot to perform fully autonomous, sensor-driven tasks while recording their thinking, pseudocode, and performance analysis directly into their interactive notebook pages.

This resource is designed to keep middle school students actively engaged through real-world automation, iteration, sensor-based triggers, and computational thinking challenges.

Perfect For:

• Middle School Computer Science
• Robotics & Engineering
• STEM Labs
• Technology Applications
• End-of-Year Engagement
• After Testing Activities
• Sub Plans

Recommended for:

• 7th–8th Grade (Advanced/High School Credit)
• Advanced 5th–6th Grade
• Introductory High School Robotics
  
  

What’s Included:

✔ Interactive blackline master student page including the following:

• Problem identification and success criteria mapping
• Brainstorming and prototype sketching (2 distinct designs)
• Prototype evaluation and peer feedback sections
• Pseudocode and algorithm planning

✔ Answer key with sample student responses

✔ Teacher implementation guidance

✔ TEKS-aligned lesson support

Students Will:

• Identify repetitive tasks at home or school that can be optimized through robotics.
• Design and Construct a robotic prototype using sensors as inputs and motors as outputs.
• Master Autonomous Repetition by transitioning manual triggers into sensor-based "Wait Until" sequences.
• Apply Iteration using "Loop" blocks to ensure the robot performs a task indefinitely.
• Debug Automation Logic to ensure the robot completes a cycle three times in a row without human help.
• Analyze Efficiency by comparing their automated prototype to manual methods.
  

Skills Covered:

• Automation & Autonomous Repetition
• Sensor-driven loops ("Wait Until" and "Repeat" blocks)
• Algorithm development & sequencing
• Prototyping & Iterative Design
• Problem Decomposition
• Efficiency Comparison (consistency, speed, and error reduction)
• Technical writing & engineering evaluation
  

TEKS Alignment:

Aligned to Texas Technology Applications TEKS including:

• Employability Skills
• Creativity & Innovation
• Communication & Collaboration
• Critical Thinking & Decision Making
• Digital Citizenship
• Technology Operations & Concepts
  

Teacher Notes:

• This lesson works great as a 1–2 day activity (45-60 min periods).
• Ideal for end-of-year enrichment to keep students learning while transitioning from "playing" to true computational thinking.
• Minimal prep required—just provide LEGO® SPIKE™ Prime kits, printed blacklines, and online access.
  
  

⭐ LOVE THIS LESSON? This activity is part of a larger 6-part LEGO® SPIKE™ Prime robotics series designed to progressively build student coding and computational thinking skills.

👉 Grab the COMPLETE 6-LESSON BUNDLE: click here!!

Thank you for supporting our store and helping students become future-ready problem solvers! 🤖✨