Now this young man is making things happen! Marques Brownlee

When it's normal for you to read about another Black teen being shot or how bad Black students are doing in school it's refreshing to see someone doing something different. Now how many college students you know possess enough clout that they can hold an interview with the CEO of a major mobile phone company?  Well that's exactly what you can witness below.  Marques Brownlee has been doing tech review for quite some time now and it has paid off for him in a big way.  Although he doesn't deal in robotics, I'm highlighting him on here because he's a prime example of what can be done it you put your mind to it.  Much continued success Marques Brownlee.

Take a look at this young man

I'm excited to present to you a highlight video showcasing just a minor accomplishment of an upcoming young man, Kyle Castlin.  It was an honor to see a young Black male with enthusiasm to achieve and to be better than Joe average.  This young man stretched himself and selected robotics as his senior project despite never having programmed before.  Hats off to his parents for encouraging and instilling good values into this young man.  Take a look at the video below.

He's going all tha way!

Big CONGRATS! to Kyle Castlin for completing the main portion of his senior project.  Kyle wanted to do something with robotics and programming.  He wanted to do this and had very little prior knowledge in either so that alone is commendable.  Since he likes basketball and is good at it, we decided to incorporate that into his project.  What Kyle built is basically a mock up for something that would be in a full size gym.  The tennis ball represent regular basketballs.  Basically, as you shoot a ball in the hoop the robot would be responsible to sending it back to you.  But that's just scratching the surface of what you could do with this project.

Senior Project update!

Wow things are really shaping up with Kyle's Senior project.  This young man is in the process of putting the finishing touches on the structural portion of the "machine".

  Mocking it up.

 Quick inspection

 The hopper

 Putting on the flaps

Ta Da!

Train your children!

Expose your children to S.T.E.M careers early so they know what path they will take.

http://www.nbcnews.com/business/what-career-do-teens-want-i-dont-know-many-say-8C11129187?ocid=msnhp&pos=3

First Look at the Lego Mindstorms EV3 kit!

Over the weekend I had an opportunity to use the brand new LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 kit.  Here is a video of the un-boxing with my student Kyle.

LEGO Mindstorm 3.0 Sept 1, 2013

The New Kit is available on September 1st!

That's the word on the street.

The PICS from the S.T.E.M.S Fair 2013!

Here they are Folks!  Just a little snap shot of all the fun that went down on Saturday  08/24/13.  There's a stereotype that Black and Minority children can't learn, but I'm here to tell you that it is totally unfounded. These children are just as bright and able as any children, but like all children they must be guided and trained by knowledgeable parents and teachers.  Take a look at some potential high achievers!

This is a pic of one of the students working it out during this relay challenge.  (The student had to use a tilt control to navigate the Lego robot from the starting point to a designated place on the playing field and then back without tipping over and with a fast time.)

She's got it under control.

 Just a one of the many Winners

 Awe what a nice Class Pic!

 This Father and Son Duo.  Hope to see some BIG things from the Junior!

 Close up of the Tilt control  (Connected via Bluetooth on my Evo)

 Look at that creation

 Brother and Sister Duo  (lower left and top right)

Shout out to the Staff at St. Philip AME Church

S.T.E.M.S. FAIR!!!

It's was a blast Folks!  What a great pleasure to see so many young people out with an interest in Science and Engineering!  Here's a little snap shot of what took place on yesterday.

Just a reminder to come out this Saturday...

Come out this Saturday for the S.T.E.M.S fair!  See the post below for all the info.

S.T.E.M.S Fair @ St. Philip A.M.E. Church!!

It's that time again!  It's the start of school and what better way to get a young person's brain going than to attend the S.T.E.M.S Fair at St. Philip A.M.E. Church in Atlanta Ga?  If you're not familiar with S.T.E.M.S it stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math and Service.  This year has a space theme.  I will be there presenting a space themed robotic creation.  There will also be opportunities for students to learn how to write code using a software developed by M.I.T!  Take a look at the flyer.

Saint Philip A.M.E. Church

Family Life and Administration Center

1607 Richard Allen Drive, SE

Atlanta, GA 30317

www.saintphilip.org

Rev. William D. Watley, Senior Pastor

TRS Robotics Summer Camp CANCELLED

**NEW DATES**
The Microsoft Store has confirmed that the TRS Robotics Summer camp will be available to take place starting July 8 thru the 24th  on Mondays, Tuesday, and Thursdays from 8:30 to 10:30 am.  Don't waste the summer away, stimulate your mind by learning how to program Lego Robots!  All of the robotics kits and computers will be supplied so all you'll need to bring is a hunger for learning.  At the end of the course we'll hold a challenge, break the students up into teams and have them compete for prizes.  It's going to be a BLAST!  So far there are only eight spots available so stay in touch so that you don't miss open registration.  We're accepting students from 6th-9th grade.

The camp cost $100 per week for each student with a $30 fee to reserve one of the eight spots.  The registration fee goes towards the first week's fee.
Registration is now open.  

Browse around on this site and you'll find background information about me, video of previous challenges, and other resources.  If you're interested in private robotic tutoring lessons with your student click on the links on the right side of the page or go to the tutoring tab above to find out more information.

REGISTRATION HAS BEEN CANCELLED

Check out the Canyon Challenge video.

Start preparing your children now!

Eventually robotics will replace many service jobs.  Teach your children how to think now.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/100592545?goback=%2Emid_I152729776*45_*1

Here's the code that I have for the Canyon Project

The camp maybe over at the MS store, but that doesn't mean that the learning has to stop.  I left off work on a program that would allow our robot to start on a particular colored circle, transverse the Canyon without falling off, location another colored circle, pick up an object and then bring it back to the original circle.  Shew!  Take a look at the code and see if you can figure out what's happening.

TRS ROBOTICS Summer Camp **UPDATE**

Hello everyone.  I've got an update on the current status of the summer camp.  Due to some schedule conflicts with the Microsoft Store the summer camp will not be able to finish the remaining weeks as planned.    There is a chance that the camp will return the week after July 4th and run through the rest of the month of July.  This option is mainly dependent upon demand and anticipated participation.  Contact me and let me know how much you'd like your child to be involved and we will make it happen!  Until then, stop by the blog often and browse the posts.  I will be putting up some of the code that we came up with during the last two weeks of the camp.

Traverse the Canyon

Young mind at work!

Edge Finder Robot

SPOTS ARE STILL AVAILABLE!

We had a BLAST on yesterday.  For our first plunge into the world of robotics we watched a brief video and discussed what exactly is a robot.  Turns out that we have some BRIGHT minds in our camp.  We covered what's the difference between Autonomous, semi-autonomous, and remote controlled robots and what each type is good for.  We also explored the use of EXOSKELETONS and where example of such things are found in nature.  During the second portion of our session we got down to the nitty gritty of building the driving base for the robot (as seen above).  The young man has very few problems following instructions.

Join us for today's session where we'll begin to dive into the programming side of things!

*Please note that today's session will end at 12:30 pm due to a corporate wide event at the Microsoft Store.  (the unveiling of the NEW XBOX!)  You are encouraged to attend as the first 25 people will receive a 3 month xbox live Gold membership!*


SPACES ARE STILL AVAILABLE.  DON'T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY!

Day ONE Monday May 20th, 2013

Good Morning.  Thank you for being apart of the TRS Robotics Summer Camp!  Also, thank you for giving your student an opportunity to further develop the logical and critical thinking skills that are needed not only to program and design robots, but also in everyday decision making.   This week we will cover topics such as who I am, what are robots and why are they important, what are the several types of robots available today, and what kind of robots might we see in the future.  We will also be introduced to the Lego Mindstorms Nxt 2.0 kit, it's parts, and how it operates.  Once we have built the basic driving base we will begin running basic programs to familiarize ourselves with the software.  IT'S GOING TO BE AN EXCITING WEEK!

Click the appropriate link below to pay for this week.  Pre-registered Students will click on the $70 Paypal button for this week only.  Non-preregistered Students will need to pay the $100 Paypal button below.

PRE-Registered Student Name Contact Info

(WEEK 1)Student Name Contact Info

Open Registration will END ON FRIDAY May 17th!!

**If this is your first time here click on the EVENTS tab above to find our more about the camp.**

Don't miss this opportunity to reserve your child's spot at the TRS Robotics Summer Camp.  Open Registration will end on this Friday May 17th so that I'll have time to reconfigure the site to receive weekly camp payments.  Those of you who have already reserved your spot will select the $70 button on Monday.  If there is a spot available on Monday and you want your child to participate you will need to select the $100 weekly fee button.  Once the first week has been completed there will only be a $100 weekly fee button to select.

Click on the button below to reserve your child's spot.

Student Name

Contact Info

Tentative Georgia Tech visit!

Hello everyone.  I wanted to make you aware of the activities that I'm working on for week 5 of the summer camp.  If you have read the previous post you're aware that we will not be able to use the Microsoft Store facility during the week of June 17th through the 21st.  So I'm looking into taking the students on a field trip to some of the Robotics Labs at Georgia Tech!  I'm starting the ground work now and I will keep you posted!

**IMPORTANT**

The camp will now be meeting on MONDAYS, TUESDAY, THURSDAYS, AND FRIDAYS.   This is due to a scheduling conflict at the MS store during the week of June 17th to June 21st (the fourth week).  As of right now it is TBD if well be able to secure another location in order to meet that week.  I will keep you posted.  Please sign up for email notifications by submitting your email address in the box on the top right of this page.

Let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Check out this 7 year old girl

Wow!  This 7 year old girl has created her first mobile app!  It's never too early to start learning in science and technology.  Sign up for the TRS Robotics Summer Camp at the post below this one.

Registration is NOW OPEN!!

*If this is your first time being here visit the EVENTS page for more info about the camp*
**PLEASE NOTE that the correct dates for the camp are May 20th through June 27th**

Registration is now officially open!  Act fast, I don't know how long the eight spots will last.  Be sure to download the TRS Robotics Summer Camp waiver form.  trsthinktank.com/trs_waiver.pdf
Please make sure you put the student's name in the text box when you pay your deposit.  This is a non-refundable deposit.   If you get the all spots are full message, please email me at trsrobotics@hotmail.com
and let me know that you are interested in having your child to participate.  I will contact you if I'm able to add more spots.
Click on the BUY NOW button below and it will take you to the Paypal checkout.  You may need to signup  for an account in order to complete the transaction.

Feel free to contact me if you have any problems.  Damon Padgett 678 438-0568
Please note that the receipt will be listed under GAME SKILLS which is the company that I created my Paypal account under.  So It is legit.

Student Name

TRS Robotics Summer Camp Waiver form.

Please take a moment to look over the waiver form.  Upon the first day of camp you will need to bring a signed copy of this document.  If you have any question or concerns feel free to email me at

trsrobotics@hotmail.com

TRS Robotics Summer Camp Waiver form

Just came across this video.  It's inspiring innovation.  Wouldn't you want your child to leave a mark on the world?

OPEN REGISTRATION Begins April 29th!!!

It's official. Open registration will be available starting April 29th! On that day you'll be able to pay your $30.00 deposit that serves to reserve one of the eight spots available for the summer camp.  This deposit will be applied to first week's fees.  This deposit is non-refundable. Once all eight spots have been filled I will make an alternate registration where your child will be put on a waiting list. In the event that a student is out you will be contacted and given the opportunity to fill that spot. We're going to have a fantastic time learning how to build and program Lego robots to perform specific tasks. We'll be going over the same skills that are used by colleges and professionals so you don't want to miss this opportunity! Be sure to visit this site often as I will be posting important information.

Also, please make note that all payments will be made online via Paypal.

 dBp

Here's a treat for all of you future engineers and scientists out there.  Check out this Lego Mindstorms Rubik's Cube solver, CubeStormer II.  It holds the Guinness World Record for solving a Rubik's Cube.  We  won't be building one of these during our summer camp, but the principles are the same.  You have to be able to create order of operations and sequences as well as mechanism to carry them out.  Take a look!

SAMPLE CODE

Hey parents, can you figure this out?  Here's a picture of the code that TRS students will learn during our summer camp.  We'll be using the Lego Mindstorm GUI/programming language to create the programs for the robots.  It's pretty intuitive once you know what the symbols mean.  Don't let the ease of use fool you though, some pretty complicated logic can be created using this stuff.

Why code?

Check out this video from Code.org.  This is what many people don't understand about how to prepare your children for the future.
http://www.code.org/

TRS CHALLENGE 2012

This is a short video from the TRS CHALLENGE 2012.  We will be having a similar type event at the end of our summer camp so don't miss out!