After a several year hiatus, CTS was back at Tech Fest at The Works Museum in Bloomington earlier this month. The interactive family event offers a variety of STEM activities to kids ranging in age from pre-K to third grade.
“CTS was thrilled to participate in person at Tech Fest this year,” says Gina Baas, CTS associate director. “We try to connect with students of all ages as part of our K-12 outreach, and this event is a great opportunity to get younger students excited about engineering, technology, and transportation.”
More than 400 people attended the April 15 event, visiting tables staffed by more than 80 volunteers from 13 organizations.
At the CTS table, attendees experimented with Ozobots—small, desk-friendly robots—either by drawing and color-coding a path for them on paper or by using a more advanced online coding system.
In addition to demonstrating basic robotics and coding concepts, the hands-on activity can help kids understand some of the technology behind connected and automated vehicles (CAVs). The Ozobots detect color codes and use them to follow a specific route, paralleling the way CAVs use pavement striping and roadway signs to navigate.
Check out The Works Museum’s video highlights from the event to see the Ozobots in action!
