Engineering Design Day: A Sphero Obstacle Course Challenge for 3rd–5th Grade Coders

This spring, I had the opportunity to work with a group of enthusiastic 3rd to 5th graders participating in a coding club at their local elementary school. Over several weeks, these young learners were introduced to the basics of coding through Apple’s Everyone Can Code Puzzles curriculum. We also mixed in unplugged coding activities and hands-on lessons using the Sphero EDU Blocks curricula with Sphero BOLT robots.

For our grand finale, we hosted an Engineering Design Day—a culminating event where students put their skills to the test. Working in teams, they designed and built obstacle courses using recycled materials, then programmed their Sphero robots to navigate them using block-based code in the Sphero EDU app.

This image contains a sample of recyclable craft supplies that were used for youth to create their obstacle course
Alt text: This image contains a sample of recyclable craft supplies that were used for youth to create their obstacle course during Engineering Design Day.

Four students collaborate while building an obstacle course for a Sphero robot to navigate during Engineering Design Day.
Alt text: This image shows four students collaborating while building an obstacle course for their Sphero robots to navigate.

Engineering Design Day was the perfect way to blend creativity, coding, and collaboration. It challenged students to problem-solve, iterate, and work together—core components of STEM learning. Watching them design, test, and refine their obstacle courses was a powerful reminder of how capable and inventive young learners can be when given the tools and space to explore like engineers.

Scroll down to see some of their imaginative creations—and feel free to download and adapt the lesson plan for use in your own coding or STEM programs!

 

This image shows one of the student-designed obstacle courses created with recycled materials during Engineering Design Day.
 
This image shows one of the student-designed obstacle courses created with recycled materials during Engineering Design Day.
 
This image shows one of the student-designed obstacle courses created with recycled materials during Engineering Design Day.
 
This image shows one of the student-designed obstacle courses created with recycled materials during Engineering Design Day.
 
This image shows one of the student-designed obstacle courses created with recycled materials during Engineering Design Day.

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