Coding activity
Automation Station
Act out your morning routine — wake up, brush teeth, get dressed, eat — and notice how you do the same steps EVERY day. That's a loop, just like computers use!
Materials and setup
- paper
- pencil
- timer
How this changes by age
Pre-K (ages 3–4)
Act out your morning routine — wake up, brush teeth, get dressed, eat — and notice how you do the same steps EVERY day. That's a loop, just like computers use!
Steps
- Act out your whole morning routine in order: pretend to wake up, brush teeth, get dressed, eat breakfast.
- Now do it AGAIN, exactly the same. And one more time! You did the same steps EVERY day — that is a loop in a computer!
- Pretend to be a robot doing the morning routine. Follow the steps in order, exactly the same each time.
- Ask: 'What if a robot did your chores? What would you tell it to do?'
- Draw a picture of a robot helper doing one of your daily tasks.
- Tell a grown-up one thing that surprised you.
Learning objectives
- Identify repetitive tasks in daily life
- Connect repeating routines to the concept of loops
- Imagine how automation could help with daily tasks
Kindergarten (ages 5–6)
Design a robot helper! Pick a boring, repetitive task and write step-by-step instructions for a robot to do it automatically. Learn that automation means making machines do repetitive work for us.
Steps
- List 5 tasks that are boring because they repeat: watering plants, sorting laundry, setting the table.
- Pick one task. Break it into exact steps a robot would follow.
- Add a loop: 'REPEAT for each plate: pick up plate, place on table, add a fork and knife.'
- Draw your robot performing the task. Label each step with a number.
- Discuss: 'What is good about automation? (Saves time, does not get bored.) What is tricky? (Robots cannot handle surprises.)'
- Tell a grown-up one thing that surprised you.
Learning objectives
- Decompose a repetitive task into precise sequential steps
- Apply loop thinking to automate repeated actions
- Discuss benefits and limitations of automation
Early elementary (ages 6–8)
Think like an automation designer. Analyze daily tasks, identify which ones can be automated, and design simple automated solutions that could help a home or business run better.
Steps
- Make a list of 8-10 tasks you do in a day. For each, note whether it repeats the same way each time.
- Categorize: which tasks are repetitive (same steps every time)? Which require creativity or decisions? Only repetitive tasks can be easily automated.
- Pick 3 automatable tasks. For each, write the automation program: steps, loops, and any IF conditions needed (IF clothes are dirty THEN put in washer).
- Estimate whether automation would save a little time, a lot of time, or mostly reduce boring repetition.
- Design an automation plan for your family: the task, the solution, why it helps, and any downsides.
- Add one line about who benefits most from your idea: a parent, a teacher, a store owner, or someone else.
- Discuss: 'What jobs have been automated in the real world? (Factory assembly, self-checkout.) How did that change things?'
- In one sentence, tell a parent or sibling what surprised you today.
Learning objectives
- Analyze tasks to determine which can be automated based on repetitiveness
- Write automation programs using sequential steps, loops, and conditionals
- Compare the likely effort savings of automation versus manual work
Upper elementary (ages 8–10)
Explore the world of automation and its impact on society. Research real automation technologies, design one of your own, and think about where human judgment still matters in schools, homes, and businesses.
Steps
- Research 4 real-world automation examples: factory robots, self-driving cars, automated farming, chatbots, or recommendation algorithms. For each: what does it automate, who benefits, what still needs a person, and why might a business choose it?
- Design an automation system for a process you know: school lunch line, library checkout, homework submission. Draw the flowchart with decisions, loops, and error handling.
- Think about edge cases: what happens when your system encounters something unexpected? Design error-handling procedures.
- Compare: where is automation helpful, and where might you still want a human making the final decision? Write both sides fairly.
- Write a prediction: what tasks that humans do today may be automated more in the future? What tasks still seem to need a human?
- In one sentence, tell a parent or sibling what surprised you today.
Learning objectives
- Research and analyze real-world automation technologies and their impacts
- Design automation systems with error handling and evaluate societal implications
- Explain why organizations adopt automation and what tradeoffs come with it
Safety and evidence note
Read the full activity before beginning. An adult should supervise tools, heat, food, outdoor work, movement, and experiments as appropriate. Completion records that the activity was done; the child’s explanation, work sample, photo, or demonstration is stronger evidence of learning than a completion check alone.
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