Dolgeville Central School District

Local fifth graders recently had the chance to learn programming skills and then program Lego robots to perform tasks during a Herkimer-Fulton-Hamilton-Otsego BOCES Honors Program event.

The Mohawk Regional Information Center (MORIC) made the workshop possible, Herkimer BOCES Honors Program Coordinator Deborah Schoff said.

“Laurie Yager from the Mohawk Regional Information Center developed and presented this program to give our learners access to 21st century classroom tools,” Schoff said. “During this workshop, students engaged in real-world problem-solving and collaborative learning while being exposed to STEM concepts such as engineering design and computer programming at a concrete level.”

The Lego Robotics Herkimer BOCES Honors Program event took place over the course of two days – with students from different schools on each day – at the Herkimer BOCES Gateway Center in Herkimer. Fifth graders from Central Valley, Herkimer, Poland and Richfield Springs participated on March 11. Fifth graders from Dolgeville, Frankfort-Schuyler, Little Falls and West Canada Valley attended on March 12.

“Students spent the day working in pairs to learn and master programming goals,” Schoff said. “After mastering a programming goal, students experimented with the robot by programming it to complete a task. This hands-on workshop was engaging and a favorite for our students.”