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SLIS 761: Dashing through the Curriculum


https://www.slj.com/?detailStory=slj-reviews-kid-friendly-robots-dash-and-dot-test-drive
There are countless ways to teach coding to children. Not just websites and apps, but hardware too.  Dash and Dot are two programmable robots created by Wonder Workshop to get elementary-aged children started with coding.  Using the scaffolded apps, users can create increasingly complex code to program the robots to make sounds, flash colored lights, move attachable arms, and navigate paths.  Of the two robots, only Dash is mobile.  The robots have been around for several years and have amassed a satisfying library of lessons available on blogs, the web, Pinterest, and Youtube.  In a brilliant marketing strategy, Wonder Workshop has curated much of this content on their own website and social media.  Wonder Workshop also hosts a virtual competition every year, which encourages long-term, iterative, and team-based problem solving.     



Using the third edition of the Technology Integration Matrix (TIM) by the Florida Center for Instructional Technology (FCIT), we can explore the ways Dash and Dot enable learning (2019).  The TIM juxtaposes five learning environments and five levels of technology integration, creating a matrix of 25 ways technology can support learning.  The levels of tech integration begin with Entry-- a didactic, teacher focused way to introduce technology-- and move through Adoption, Adaptation, and Infusion towards student independence and innovation through Transformation.  The meaningful learning environment identified by FCIT are not ranked and include Active, Collaborative, Constructive, Authentic, and Goal-Directed.

https://fcit.usf.edu/matrix/matrix/

Since Dash and Dot are designed for exploration and play, we'll skip right over the Entry level of the TIM.  Entry refers to teachers using technology to deliver curriculum, which Dash and Do would not be successful with.  The second level, Adoption, involves the educator directing use of the technology step-by-step.  While the first lessons with Dash and Dot maybe indeed fall under Adoption, the robot duo is really designed for student-directed self-exploration.  Once the apps are downloaded and the students know how to navigate them, then the real fun can begin.  Most Dash and Dot lessons fit snuggly into the Adaptation level.  Students use the robots to solve problems or puzzles and the teacher stands-by as a facilitator.  Students may even be allowed to choose the puzzles or invent their own uses for the robots.  All this falls under Adaptation.

Reaching the next level requires a paradigm shift.  The focus can no longer be on how to use Dash and Dot, but whether to use Dash and Dot. Infusion largely involves students creating, or being given, a problem or activity and deciding whether Dash and Dot would be a useful tool for the job.  Could I attach a lever arm and have Dash catapult marshmallows?  Can I have Dash carry a pencil to my friend across the room?  Could Dot work as an alarm clock?  These are the kinds of questions students could be asking, then programming the robots to do.  Finally, Wonder Workshop's Wonder League Robotics Competition touches on Transformation.  True transformation, of course, involves students using technology in new and innovative ways that are not possible without the tech.  Much in the way the internet has transformed all of our lives.  However, the Robotics competition scratches the surface of Transformation.  Students are able to solve higher-level problems.  The complex problems require goal-setting, monitoring of successes and failures (Goal-Directed), teamwork and expert coaching (Collaborative), and extensive, innovative exploration of the robots' capabilities (Active).


Educators interested in deepening their understanding of Dash and Dot can find a great overview in School Library Journal.  This 2015 article provides a solid review of the hardware, apps, and applications of Dash and Dot (Sansing, 2015).  Heidi Neltner created a Smore newsletter chock full of resources to help teachers get started with the robot duo (n.d.).  For media specialists, Ontario librarian, Karissa Fast, gives pointers on hosting a robot club in the library using Dash and Dot (2017).   One of the best places to go for ideas on how to use Dash and Dot is Wonder Workshop's own website.  Teachers are allowed to post activities they have done, and lessons are aggregated on Wonder Workshop's Educational Resources page.   Those wishing to branch out from Wonder Workshop curated content can also find curriculum packs for sale on the web, such as these created by Exploring Robotics (n.d.).

References and Resources

Wonder Workshop, Inc. (2019). Wonder Workshop.  Retrieved from https://www.makewonder.com/

Sansing, C. (2015). SLJ Reviews Kid-Friendly Robots Dash and Dot | Test Drive.  School Library Journal. Retrieved from  https://www.slj.com/?detailStory=slj-reviews-kid-friendly-robots-dash-and-dot-test-drive

Exploring Robotics. (n.d.). Elementary Robotics Curriculum for Dash and Dot. Retrieved from https://www.exploringrobots.com/index.php/grade-levels/elementary-schools-grades-k-5/curriculum-for-dash-dot.html

Fast, K. (2017). How to Run a Robot Club in Your Library. Ontario Librarian. Retrieved from
https://ontarianlibrarian.com/2017/03/27/how-to-run-a-robot-club-in-your-library/

Florida Center for Instructional Technology. (2019). Technology Integration Matrix [3rd ed.]. Retrieved from https://fcit.usf.edu/matrix/matrix/

Neltner, H. (n.d.) Getting Started with Dash and Dot. Retrieved from https://www.smore.com/cvjzs-dash-and-dot

Wonder Workshop. (2019). Educational Resources. Retrieved from https://education.makewonder.com/curriculum/code-to-learn

Wonder Workshop. (2019). [Pinterest Board] Teacher Projects with Dash and Dot. Retrieved from https://www.pinterest.com/Make_Wonder/teacher-projects-with-dash-dot/










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  1. Rachel HellmanOctober 6, 2019 at 10:02 PM

    This is such a good overview of Dash and Dot and application of the technology integration matrix! Your examples helped me get a better handle on the framework as well as thinking about all the ways these adorable robots could be included in a variety of subjects. Great post!

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