Inside the Classroom: Susan Johnson - Pike Middle
Inside the Classroom: Susan Johnson - Pike Middle
Inside the Classroom is a series that visits Northwest ISD campuses throughout the year and highlights the magical moments that happen between teachers and students each and every day across the entire 234 square miles of NISD.
Northwest ISD’s Middle School Robotics Competition is less than a month away, and students all across the district are honing their skills in preparation.
That is why the latest edition of Inside the Classroom takes you to Susan Johnson’s Robotics I class at Pike Middle School. Inside Pike’s newly opened building, Ms. Johnson’s robotics lab features a wall full of windows on two sides and is certainly an inviting space for students to explore their inner engineer as they prep their robots.
When we visited, the Panthers and their robots were taking on numerous challenges to make sure they’re prepared for the competition on May 1.
At the competition, each NISD middle school will bring their top three teams to compete inside VEX robot arenas at the Outdoor Learning Center. In order to bring their best teams, each school holds an internal competition, and Ms. Johnson is helping her students build up confidence ahead of the upcoming contest.
The class was split into groups, or teams, and they started by ensuring their VEX Clawbots were built correctly and fully operational. Teams then had to complete three drills that became progressively more difficult, culminating in a two-minute session inside the VEX arena.
First, groups completed what Ms. Johnson called “basketball drills.” Each member of the team used the robot’s controller to drive it back and forth over a series of lines, similar to basketball players running up and down the court and touching various lines during practice. This drill taught students the basics of driving their robots.
Students then took part in the “box challenge.” In the hallway outside of her room, Ms. Johnson had four small boxes set up. Each team member had to collect a box with the robot’s claw, then stack all four together. This taught students how to combine their driving skills with operating the robot’s claw.
For their last challenge, teams brought their robot to the VEX arena to simulate the district-wide middle school competition. One student drove the robot through the challenge while another served as a spotter.
At the NISD competition in May, students use their Clawbot to score as many points as possible. They score points by getting balls into a bucket, turning props to their team’s color, parking on tiered platforms and much more. The competition features one minute in which robots move autonomously using codes created by students, then two minutes of driver-controlled time.
Ms. Johnson’s teams had multiple class periods to get through the three challenges, so they were all at different points in their journey. When we visited, two teams had already completed sessions in the arena, so they were working to improve their scores.
They also could complete Vex VR (virtual robots) Challenges that helped them hone their coding skills needed for the autonomous portion of the competition.
On the day we visited, some groups completed their box challenge, others completed their basketball drills, and one team even had to spend the entire class period troubleshooting. With Ms. Johnson’s help, they replaced batteries, updated software and much more, but struggled to figure out why their robot wouldn’t drive. With just minutes left in class, one student noticed the round hole in the wheels wasn’t compatible with the square driveshaft.
No matter where each team was in their preparation for competition, Ms. Johnson did an excellent job of balancing giving students freedom to work independently while also providing just enough support to keep them confident and engaged.
No matter how well they can drive or code a robot, these Panthers are getting real-world lessons in problem solving, collaboration, communication and many other skills that they will take with them throughout life.
Check back regularly all year as we continue to visit students and teachers throughout Northwest ISD and offer a rarely seen look Inside the Classroom.