Gearing up for the future
(Photo by MARY MALONE) Sandpoint Middle School seventh-grader Stacey O’Connell, left, notices the approach of their teacher as eighth-graders Jayden Lewis, second from left, and Braden Kappen, second from right, used the gear models their groups built in robotics class to engage in battle — which they were not supposed to be doing, of course.
(Photo by MARY MALONE) Sandpoint Middle School seventh-grader Caleb Shaw, left, tests his groups 6:1 spur gear project Thursday during robotics class as two of his group members, eighth-graders Dillon Rawlings, center, and Jayden Lewis, right, look on.
(Photo by MARY MALONE) Sandpoint Middle School seventh-grader, Jordan Birkhimer, works on his groups gear crank during Thursday's robotics class.
Editor's note: This is the second in a series of articles focused on some of the new electives as Sandpoint Middle School that give seventh- and eighth-grade students a jumpstart in learning hands-on skills. This article features Mary Marienau's robotics class; the next story will look at the industrial technology program with Dick Ross.
SANDPOINT — Busted. Sandpoint Middle School eighth-graders Jayden Lewis and Braden Kappen got the look from their robotics teacher, Mary Marienau, Thursday when they decided to use the crank arms attached to their K'Nex gear projects to engage in battle.
After all, the pair were supposed to be finishing up the projects with their groups, using K'Nex parts and the directions provided to build the gears.
"It's basically just a gear model," said seventh-grader Jordan Birkhimer, adding that his group built a gear crank. "The teacher is just wanting us to learn how to use the K'Nex and gears."
While working on a 6:1 spur gear in the other group, seventh-grader Caleb Bradshaw explained the difference between a 6:1 gear ratio and, for example, a 1:1 gear ratio. The gear ratio, he said, is determined by the number of teeth on the gear wheel.
"The ratio of teeth from this one to this one, this one has six times as many," Caleb said, pointing to the two different gear wheels on his group's project. "So for every one tooth on this gear, there is six on this one."
Along with many of the new electives offered to SMS students, the robotics class is funded through local and state grants.
Later in the semester, the students will use some of the skills they are learning to build robots, which were purchased through a Panhandle Alliance for Education grant, as were many of the supplies for the robotics class. Also, along with two other teachers at the school, Marienau received a $2,500 grant from the Idaho STEM Action Center, which allowed her to purchase LittleBits electronic building kits.
"It's for introducing circuitry to the students and when I put in for the STEM grant, it was one area I thought we needed to expand on," Marienau said.
She said the LittleBits are fairly expensive, and she was able to purchase about 16 large kits with the STEM grant.
It is the first year the class has been taught at SMS, and the second semester just started with a new group of students.
The class starts out by introducing students to programming and just started on the K'Nex. Marienau assigns the students a gear they need to build and they have to make sure it works and answer related questions. The students will use online sites such as code.org for programming and a building design program similar to Legos.
"You have some students who, on the design part and working on their iPads and putting stuff together, that's what they enjoy doing, that's where their strength is," she said.
"But then you have other students who their strength is the building part, and (it's about) trying to meet all of their needs and keeping all the students inspired somehow as you go along."
Marienau said the class is not just for working with robots and programming, but is expanded to include a STEM curriculum in order to "touch bases on a lot of different things." She said it is important, especially at their age, to introduce the students to a variety of things to see what they "attach" to.
"I am still kind of morphing the program because I am trying to get a better variety in there where we are using the science, we're using the technology, we're using the engineering and mathematics — it's challenging, but it's exciting," Marienau said.
Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.