Mentors would spend 2-4 hours a week helping teach the students to build and program with LEGO pieces and NXT software.  If no LEGO experience, assist with team building skills and research/presentations.  Programming and engineering skills are NOT NECESSARY.  Fall semesters only (competition season:  September – December).

If UIUC students want to take the class to be a better mentor (taught by a fellow CHP student!!), they can.  Details of credit for being in class and mentoring or for just mentoring below:

1-3 credit hours, based on how often you mentor (2-4 hours/week = 1 credit), plus whether or not you take the section with 1 hour/week of class time.  Class covers the programming/building a LEGO robot, strategies of mentoring, working with grade/middle school age students, problem solving, and continuous learning.

ENG 298 LRM: LEGO Robotics Mentoring, CRN: 60877.  Class is on Wednesdays at 3:00 p.m. (adding more class times is possible) with variable location, email Becca Nothof at nothof2@illinois.edu to get involved!

Thanks to Chancellor’s Scholar Becca Nothof for this information item.