Pepper, Robotics and STEM 

STEM is more than a set of school subjects. It is a critical way to understand, explore, and engage with the world. STEM fosters a lifelong sense of curiosity and love of learning. Ultimately, it equips students with the skills to tackle the challenges of higher education and change the world they live in. With the rapid pace of technology, education in computer science and robotics will prepare students for the future through lessons of problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and resilience.

Built in Partnership

Working with Boston Public Schools and San Francisco Unified School District, a six-week standalone modular computer science program was created. Designed by teachers for teachers, the curriculum is project-based and aligned to STEM best practices. Developed as a supplement to the Exploring Computer Science (ECS) curriculum it is an introductory course requiring no prior computer science knowledge. The ready to implement curriculum can integrate into ECS courses, stand on its own, or fit into existing STEM activities.

Curriculum

The curriculum targets 9th and 10th grade students as an introduction to robotics with no background in computer science required. Working through these topics:

  • What is a robot? Present and future.
  • Evaluating robot designs and algorithms to control robot behavior.
  • Intro to graphical user interface and simple programming environments.
  • Intro to robot movement and turning.
  • Intro to robot sensing.
  • Building programs on Pepper.

As students gain understanding they create project pieces that will be combined into a final project presentation. This process mirrors the iterative design principles that SoftBank Robotics uses to build our robots.

Funding Opportunity

Sponsorship packages include Pepper and supporting training to enable teachers to introduce computer science and robotics to a group of students or more individualized Pepper interactions. 

PEP_Pack07_001 (2)Head of the Class
$50,000

  • 2 Pepper Robots.
  • Access to curriculum designed by teachers for teachers.
  • One-on-one online training for program teachers.
  • 2 year robot warranty and free shipping.
  PEP_Pack07_001 (2)

Workshop Works
$100,000

  • 4 Pepper Robots.
  • Access to curriculum designed by teachers for teachers.
  • One-on-one online training for program teachers.
  • Onsite training for teachers.
  • 2 year robot warranty and free shipping.

Hands on Experience

$200,000

  • 10 Pepper Robots.
  • Access to curriculum designed by teachers for teachers.
  • One-on-one online training for program teachers.
  • Onsite training for teachers.
  • 2 year robot warranty and free shipping.
  • SoftBank Partnership Recognition Program.

Support

We are here to help. We provide:

  • Introduction to Robotics guidance for the schools to help integrate Pepper into classrooms.
  • Two year swap warranty for Pepper with repair teams located in Boston.
  • Technical and general applications available with documentation and walkthroughs.

Social Change through Robotics

SoftBank is committed to working with educators and corporate partners to deliver social change through robotics. Our programs including RoboCup, Women in Robotics and ASK NAO (Autism Solution for Kids) and seek to educate and encourage people to embrace a future with robots. We strive to assist and support organizations, teachers and businesses with grassroots initiatives that take robots out of labs and into the real world.

For more on how to introduce STEM education with Pepper...