Kindle the Flames introduces pre-teens to robotics and programming

Friday, March 11, 2016

Students work with the Alice 3 programming environment to create movies and video games.

An Oklahoma State University mechanical and aerospace engineering Ph.D. candidate has started a program to spark an interest in robotics and computer programming among Stillwater middle school students. What’s the key to Allan Axelrod's success with his program? Video games, of course.

The program, Kindle the Flames, was launched in 2014 when Axelrod partnered with fellow student Alex Suhren and Emily States, of the Stillwater Public Library, to create a summer engineering program for middle and high school students.

At OSU, Axelrod, from Fort Meyers, Florida, researches how robots learn.

“The human performance data in robots is increasing,” Axelrod said. “Robots do the randomized aspect. Maybe they learn. Maybe they don’t. I’m learning how they learn.”

Through Kindle the Flames, Axelrod teaches the students how to create their own movies and video games. He teaches them using the Alice 3 programming environment, an introductory programming platform easy to pick up by beginners. In addition, the students get to work with robotic gaming demonstrations on occasion.

“Alice is as simple as it gets,” he said. “The kids basically drag and drop what they want in the program, but it’s also nice because they can see the programming ‘underneath the hood’ if they’re curious as to how it works.”

Students operate the unmanned vehicle aircrafts with the goal of landing them on the moving Roomba robots.

As part of a video game design club at the Stillwater library, students get 15 minutes of video game playing at the beginning and end of the session to induce creative ideas for their own games. The club meets at the library every second and fourth Friday of the month.

Occasionally, robotics gaming demos are also held where students work with converted Roomba Robots and unmanned aerial vehicles. The goal for their game is to land the UAV on the moving Roomba using a controller from a PS3 video game console.

“Giving the kids a controller and not a keyboard makes them think it’s a game,” he said. “It’s also makes it easy for them to understand and figure out. Robotics can be a lot of fun, and it can also be practical. Even if you’re not a roboticist, there is interaction in many different fields kids are interested in.”

Financial support for Kindle the Flames was provided by the Oklahoma State University DASLab under Dr. Girish Chowdhary. This has encouraged many members of the lab to volunteer in the outreach program and inspire students’ creativity.

“Because of this support, the kids are creating great things,” Axelrod said. “One student, Micha made a hidden items game, where you dive into objects to search for them. Another student, Alleyn, is working on a 3D version of the Atari Asteroids game, which he had learned about during the 15 minutes of playtime.”

Axelrod is working with the Stillwater Public Library to expand the program to high school students beginning next year. He expects to earn his Ph.D. in May 2019. He received his master’s in mechanical and aerospace engineering from OSU in May 2015 and his bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from the University of Florida.

Story by Matt Cohlmia

PHOTOS: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ostatenews/albums/72157664115661402