Abstract:

Elementary school pupils like to play and prefer a playful form of teaching. Didactic games enable them to move from a carefree childhood to the realm of knowledge. Turning a school into a huge playground, creating a pleasant, creative atmosphere in the classroom does not have to be challenging. We want for children to feel good at school, for them to enjoy going there, for them to voluntarily take part in various activities that are prepared for them and to only have pleasant experiences. The fundamental objective of alternative educational strategies is that the learner is not just a passive recipient of knowledge, but that he/she is actively involved in the cognitive process. During the educational game, pupils spontaneously acquire certain knowledge and skills that are in line with the educational goals without realizing that they are learning.

One possibility to teach programming in a playful way is to program toys and robots. Unfortunately, schools are not sufficiently equipped with programmable robots or robotic kits. Our experience confirms that programmable toys as well as robotic kits can be adequately replaced by emulators or simulators of these devices. A significant advantage of these tools is also that they can be effortlessly used in the distance form of teaching as an adequate replacement for robotic kits and robot programming. Programming in a simulation environment is as fun as programming a real robot. The compiled and debugged program for robot control can be tested by a visualized simulation experiment in virtual space. Based on a survey using a questionnaire method, we found that this form of teaching programming suits elementary school pupils and that they consider it fun.

Keywords:

Programming, robotic kits, robots programming, simulation, emulation.