Botley the Coding Robot
© 2018 Learning Resources
There are no apps, tablet or iPhone required to use this $60 rolling robot that is powered by 3 AAA batteries. Instead, you drive it around (or send it commands) with a custom remote control. An optical sensor on the bottom lets Botley follow black lines, and a front IR sensor lets you avoid collisions. Programs are created by pressing a sequence of direction commands, and then executing the batch with a big green go button. There are sounds associated with each command, which you have to keep in your mind as you count out each number of steps. That makes this robot hard to use, but it also is a good memory exercise. A set of jigsaw puzzle shaped tiles let you create courses. See also Code & Go mouse.
$60, Smart Toy
Teaches: spatial reasoning, Mathematics