Bringing robotics into formal education using the Thymio open source hardware robot

Mobile robots are valuable tools for education because of both the enthusiasm they raise and the multidisciplinary nature of robotic technology. Mobile robots give access to a wide range of fields, such as complex mechanics, sensors, wireless transmission, mathematics, and computer science, among others. As mobile robots sense the environment and take actions based on their perception, they seem to display intentions of their own [1]. This impression of intelligence, the permeating presence of robots in science fiction, and their projected use in our society give a sense of touching the future. Despite their potential as educational tools, robots are still not as widespread in schools as they could be. Among the possible reasons, we believe that the following five play a key role: 1) Although many research projects are developing innovative and interesting educational robots, few reach sufficient maturity to become distributed and accessible to schools. 2) A versatile robot performing interesting behaviors is a complex piece of technology and therefore expensive. This prevents most schools, which have a limited budget for equipment, from acquiring educational robots. 3) Introducing robotic tools into teaching activities requires investment in time and training for the teachers [2]. Therefore, to be accepted by teachers, robots must be both accessible with minimal effort and accompanied by well-prepared educational material shared among colleagues. 4) Robot construction, use, and programming is often perceived as a boyish activity in our Western society [3],