Why Can Robotics Be Helpful for Children/Adults on the Spectrum?

Answer: because they're cool!

This seems like a silly and simplistic answer to this question. However, autism research has a history of showing that using a student's interests for teaching is a highly effective strategy for learning new skills and supporting positive behavior.

Other reasons that robots can be a helpful teaching tool include:

• People with autism are often naturally interested in technology, so you can use it to increase motivation for learning,
• Learning about robotics, electronics, and technology can help students learn stills that may help them in the workforce,
• The skills involved in building robots can help develop and improve fine-motor skills (even simple robot-building kits designed for children provide lots of opportunities for fine-motor skill practice),
  
• Learning electronics and robotics can lead to social/educational opportunities. I'd love to see more students with autism join the robotics teams at their high schools. Meeting others with similar interests can increase opportunities for friendship and socialization.
  
• Again, robots are cool. Robots are an age-appropriate interest for almost any age and a child's peers may think robots are cool as well. It's a great starting point for playdates and friendship.
  

Science education is important for all students! As a special education teacher, I have seen some IEPs (Individualized Education Programs) that include very few science goals. I think it's easy to overlook science instruction for students with autism or other exceptionalities because we are focusing on other areas that need help, such as life skills, communication, or fine-motor skills. I believe that science is important for all students because you can use it for teaching important skills such as problem-solving, cause-and-effect, doing experiments, etc. I hope to show you on this website how you can use science to teach other goals too. You'll be able to use science for any number of skills, including communication, fine-motor, and more! If you're not a "science person," don't worry. I will try to make all of the activities here as easy and user-friendly as possible.

Thank you so much for being here and reading this. It shows that you are dedicated to your students' or child's education, and that is wonderful!