Learning Resources Botley the Coding Robot - Code Games for Boys and Girls, Robotics for Kids, STEM Programming, Scientific Building Toys, Engineering Gift Set

Our kids were super excited to get Botley the Coding Robot. We have a 3-year old, a 5-year old, and an 8-year old. They could hardly wait to get Botley out of his box. Set up was fairly easy, and required 5 AA batteries (2 for the remote, 3 for the robot). Our 5-year old enjoyed putting the stickers on some of the activity set pieces while the 8-year old read some of the instruction booklet (he was excited to code). We started Botley on the "Line" feature where he can follow a thick black line on the included cardboard play space (like a 2-sided puzzle that can be assembled many different ways). It was pretty fun and the younger kids thought it was great. You can draw your own thick black line on white paper and Botley will supposedly follow it, but we haven't tried this yet. The 8-year old was itching to code so we flipped the board over and tried to follow the coding challenges from the booklet. He jumped right to Challenge 6 and it took him a few minutes to get the hang of it, but once he got started he really enjoyed it. He spent 45 minutes working coding and playing with Botley, trying to get him to do different things. The 5-year old wanted a turn to code next and was very excited. She is a "do it myself" girl so once I explained the steps she really got into it. We used the deck of cards to keep track of the moves she wanted Botley to make, then coding them into the remote. She was so pleased with herself when Botley did the things she "told" him to do! She seemed really satisfied with it. She played with Botley for about an hour the first day, though with adult assistance. The 3-year old was obviously too young for the "ages 5+" recommendation, and with good reason. He liked rolling the balls, LOVED pushing the buttons on the remote, and trying to steal Botley and/or the remote from his siblings the entire day. PROS: - Easy to set up. - Adorable, endearing beeps and noises (uh-oh!, oooooh!). - Remote beeps and lights up to indicate that the button was pushed (when coding), which is very helpful. - Comes with a set of cards so kids can put the "moves" in order to help with the coding. - Booklet has 10 coding activities (in increasing difficulty) to get kids started on coding. CON: - Hard to share, not a great toy for multiple children to play at once I highly recommend a Botley for the 5-9 year old in your life, but if you have more than one child, I recommend you buy two!

My 5 yr. old son loves Botley! He has such a cute little voice and sounds so friendly. The set includes such a nice variety of pieces. You can use the 12 cubes and 8 rods to construct a maze that Botley can then be programmed to run through. The cubes can also be stacked to construct a small wall, that Botley can then be programmed to run into and knock down with his attachable arms. There are also 40 coding cards to be used in conjunction with this cube & rod maze or as a stand alone. The child lays out the coding cards and then follows the coding cards one by one while they enter the code into Botley. Then they watch him to make sure that the code they entered follows their desired pathway. If it does great, they can add to it or delete it and try a different combination. The set also includes 2 cones, 2 balls, 2 flags, and a large orange circle that is supposed to be used as Botley's goal to reach. The cones, balls, and flags are nice to use as obstacles which Botley is suppose to overcome. One of the options on the remote is labeled, "Object Detection" and this indicates to Botley that when he runs into one of the obstacles, he is suppose to figure out how to maneuver around it....he has not been successful so far at doing this though and still completing the rest of his course....but this might be user error. The robot also includes 6 double-sided cardboard cards. They measure roughly 6 x 6" each. One side is black and white and the other is multi-colored. When Botley's settings are switched to "line" mode, he runs along the black line outlined on the black and white side of the cards. This feature also seems a little finicky. Sometimes he just spins in a circle because he cannot find the black line so it is important to line him up precisely. Also, the cards really cannot be used easily on a carpeted surface because sometimes the robot's wheels get caught on the carpeting and this pushes him off the black line and he gets stuck. Of all his features this is the one we have struggled with the most. I also wish that they had included about 10x the number of these cards. The path it makes is tiny and short and is really a waste of time to set up. He cannot transition from the cube & rod maze to the black & white maze on his own so they cannot be combined, unfortunately. I wish they had developed a ramp feature so that this was possible because, it would have greatly increased the mobility of Botley and the number of different possible builds for the maze. As it stands both maze options are very small and thus limited. The other side of the cards are brightly colored and designed to practice some more advanced/independent coding opportunities. My son is just starting out and is only 5 years old and so we have only used this option once. But, it does seem to have great possibilities and I'm looking forward to him being able to use this option more in the future. I love that the sound can be turned off (for when the parent gets tired of hearing it or when there is a sleeping sibling in the house). I also think it was such a cute idea to include a list of "secret coding commands" in the instruction booklet. These allow him to preform cute tricks in which he says, "Hi" and spins etc. I don't love that we have gone through about 20 AAA batteries since purchasing it less then 1 month ago. It does have an off switch and this has not been used as effectively as it should have been and yet, I do think that simply using one D-cell battery in both the robot and the remote would have been a much better approach. Overall, we love him and recommend him as a great beginning coding toy. #learningresources #botley

Botley is a fun robot. He teaches our son critical thinking skills, problem reasoning, cause and effect, turn taking, and even coping skills when things do go the way he expected them to go. Things I noticed when we got him: -He is not ready to use out of the box. He needs 5 AAA batteries, 2 for the remote, 3 on him. -There are also stickers you need to put on the pieces - My son is 5, it is harder for a young kid to work him with no coding experience. There needs to be an adult to read the manual to help them know how to do the object detection (you need to put in a certain sequence and not just push the button. Just pushing the button will make Botley make a horn noise until object is removed. The sequence you put in will have him go around it. He doesn't go around on its own.) -You also need to press the trash button every time he finishes a sequence to get him to do a new one. All of the above is not bad things, they are just things we learned from trial and error. What we love most about Botley so far: -He is screen free -The black line feature is so fun! My 5 year old loved watching Botley go across the line and just "know where to go!" -You can create mazes and goals for Botley to go through with the included poles, cubes, and balls. My son enjoyed cheering for Botley to make a goal! It even prompted our son to ask higher level questions (which as a teacher, warmed my heart!), such as, "I wonder if I move this over here, what will Botley do?" He provides hours of fun and creativity. We are excited to continue to play with him and watch our son's coding skills grow and flourish. We are happy with our purchase!

Functions good. My 7year old is still learning how to work with it. Takes a bit to learn how to work with objecy detection. I would buy the pack with all accesories, wish I did. It is better than just this basic pack. That is on me. I shoulf have gotten the one with all accesories. Definite value for the money. Sparks creativity in kids and adults. Easy to asseble, size is good. Seems durable till now.

My 8 year old LOVED this! Excellent toy.

I recently purchased Botley the Coding Robot to test its usefulness in the classroom as an introduction to coding. Botley was simple to use and understand while still providing enough challenge for older students. I started with four students in the 3rd grade, and all four were engaged and enthralled. Botley teaches them to think through a path and plan, then helps them see how their plan either succeeds or fails. It gives instant feedback because Botley can only do what they tell it to do. This is a critical skill for understanding the basic idea of code and allows them to make corrections based on immediate feedback. The kit comes with a set of cards that match the buttons on Botley's remote, which allows students to visually plan the code before implementing it. When the code is successful, they can simply add on to it and keep going. When the code fails, a single button will erase Botley's memory so they can begin again. I also turned my own children lose with Botley after a few basic instructions. My fourth-grade son, who has some previous coding experience, was able to quickly understand and implement the loop feature to help Botley navigate through mazes that he created. Botley was also simple enough for him to turn around and teach his kindergarten sister how to use. It entertained the two of them for several hours, and both said they would happily play with it again as we only briefly experimented with its line feature. I can see them creating complex patterns for Botley to follow in the future. Overall, I see this having usefulness both at home and in the classroom. It is a great hands-on introduction to the basic concept of code without relying on any smart device. I intend to hand it to older students as well, because I think they will still have fun with it. I intend to purchase several more to keep at school. I'm sure my students would enjoy races to see who can program Botley to complete a task first. Great product, simple to use, and it won't break the bank.

Great item to learn coding for the children! Many sub-items are included for this particular product which provide good value for money. Movement of the bot is smooth and accurate! Uses conventional battery, but it seems run for a while without replacement. Overall, great bot product for children learning coding.

This robot is really cute. My 5 year old loves it. It's easy for him to do basic programs. And he's excited about learning the more advanced programs. However, it is not able to follow a black line. I contacted Learning Resources support and they walked me through some troubleshooting steps, but none of them worked. Disappointed it doesn't do everything it says.

A mis hijos les encantó lo malo que no incluye baterías

What a fun learning resource. It is good for early codes, and keeps the kids engaged with the tactile learning. They enjoyed building on the codes and making new ones. The robot itself is durable and the control is small enough for small hands. It’s easy for young learners.

Took longer to put batteries in than learn how to use.

mon fil est heureux

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