National Robotics Week 2025 (AKA RoboWeek) is happening April 5th-12th. This is the perfect time to introduce your students to the wonderful world of robotics! Robots are here. We interact with them daily. But do your students understand what a robot is? How are they created? Why do we use them? How a basic understanding of robotics is important to their future? These engaging activities will introduce your middle school students to the basics of robotics and help you celebrate National Robotics Week 2025!
Short on time? Grab a no-prep robotics activity on TPT.
1. Assign a robotics Webquest
What is a robot? What are the parts? Why do we use robots to do jobs humans could do? Send your students off to do their own research and answer a list of provided robotics-themed questions. Start your lesson by having students share their thoughts and opinions (and probably misconceptions too!) about robots. Then send them off to learn all about robots and their essential role in today’s society.
2. Research a real-world robot
Did you know there are pizza-making robots that work in restaurants, rescue robots that help during natural disasters, and bee robots that assist with pollination? Explore all the amazing robots that exist in the real world and discover the role robots play in our society today with a research project. After your students research a robot of their choice, they can create presentations to share with the class.
3. Celebrate with a robot-themed movie day
There are lots of great movies and documentaries about robotics and real-world robots. Here are some that are perfect for middle school!
- AlphaGo (2017): This award-winning documentary will teach students about artificial intelligence. They will learn about the game of Go, why games are often used to develop AI systems, and the impacts of AI on humanity.
- Good Night Oppy (2022): In this amazing documentary, students will learn the story of a Mars rover named Opportunity and meet the engineers and scientists involved in Oppy’s journey. They will discover some of the many marvels of space exploration and real-world STEM applications.
- PBS NOVA “Rise of the Robots” (2016): This engaging documentary will teach students about robots in the real world and their impacts on society. They will follow contestants in the US Department of Defense’s DARPA Challenge as they build rescue robots and experience highs and lows throughout the competition.
- Spare Parts (2015): This fantastic film is based on the true story of an unlikely high school robotics team that competes and wins big at MIT’s annual underwater robotics competition. Your students will love rooting for the underdogs and thinking about the importance of teamwork and perseverance.
4. Learn to code!
Hardware is an essential part of robotics, but programming is equally important. An introductory coding activity can introduce your students to this 21st-century skill and be a lot of fun. Code.org offers a wide range of hour-long activities for all ages and skill levels.
5. Teach about robots with a choice board
Use a robotics choice board and let your students choose how they want to learn about robots this week. Do they want to play a game? Complete a research project? Make a poster? Giving your students a choice in how they learn will increase engagement and result in an incredible week of learning!
Ready to celebrate National Robotics Week 2025?
Check out these ready-to-go lesson plans for a fantastic RoboWeek! You’ll find robotics-themed Webquests, research projects, movie guides, choice boards, and more. Your students will learn new skills, explore the pros and cons of integrating robots into our society, and be inspired to learn more about real-world robots.
