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Robotics for Fun

     Mommy, I had the time of my life!” exclaims my 7-year-old son after his first Robotics for Fun class. Not only did he get to build a robotic car and program its movements on a computer, but also he ate Rice Krispies™ Treats and read Lego magazines during the break. For a young boy, life really doesn’t get much better.
    Robotics for Fun is the brainchild of Jutiki Gunter who first taught the class one summer for the Chabot Space and Science Center. When he realized the kids came early, didn’t want to stop for snacks, nor leave at the end of the day, Gunter thought that a year-round robotics class might work. He was right.
     In 2004, Gunter, who has a bachelor’s degree
in architecture from Cornell and a master’s degree in architecture from Harvard, opened Robotics for Fun, along with Tim Lobdell, a NASA engineer, who has since passed away. Gunter originally started with 12- and 13-year-olds and now holds classes for kids as young as 6. Gunter defines robotics as “a mechanical system that’s designed and built to do something specific,” like opening a door, setting off an alarm or kicking a ball. Though we often think of robots as humanoid, Gunter says that’s far from the case.
     And kids seem to love the class. Gunter starts the younger ones with Legos because, “it makes it [robotics] accessible.” Older kids work on more complicated systems such as Vex, which Gunter got from NASA. In addition to building, all the kids learn programming skills such as Java.
     “I was surprised at how excited they were in that summer camp,” says Gunter. “And I’ve been surprised by the interest they’ve maintained over the last five years.” Indeed, some of Gunter’s original students are still with him, and now going off to college to major in science or engineering. And lest you think that only boys participate, Gunter says, “In the last four months, we’ve have a lot more girls. They’re finding it accessible and interesting and they’re just coming in – and their parents are supporting them.”