We will develop a new “Bio-inspired” robotics toolkit with Colorado Academic Standards (CAS) aligned activities. Kits will allow students to explore principles of biology and engineering by performing hands-on investigations using electromechanical elements that they don’t have access to at school.

Kits will feature:

1. Origami-based fold-able body and appendage designs inspired from a variety of insects (e.g., segment of a centipede, cockroach legs, ladybug wings, mantis claws);
2. Python/Arduino compatible open-source electronics to drive the robot and biologically inspired sensors (tactile antenna of a cockroach, visual LEDs & photoreceptors of a firefly) and displays for environment-robot, inter- robot and human-robot interactions;
3. Designs that are Chromebook-compatible app to program, communicate and play.

A collaboration of engineering faculty, students, and formal and informal science educators will design and create the kits, and a graduate student in education will develop the accompanying CAS-aligned curriculum. Professional development for classroom teachers will support introducing the new practices and materials in their classrooms. The project hinges on partnerships for engaging students, assessing kits and activities, and recruiting teachers including: the CMU/CU Boulder Engineering Partnership Program, the EUREKA! McConnell Science Museum and Grand Valley BOCES (all in Grand Junction), and CU Science Discovery.

In addition to helping teachers address new CAS requirements, the outreach activities using these kits will engage participants in socially purposeful activity as they gain experiences in integrating art, multimodal literacy, engineering design and fabrication, biological conservation, STEM concepts, and mentoring activities that raise awareness of careers in STEM-related fields.