Robotics Studio · With Krea
How to design a robot
This course shows your kid how to design a robot, starting with the job it does and ending with a labeled blueprint on paper. Krea hosts 5 short films on picking a job, choosing a body, drawing the blueprint, and giving the robot a personality. The films take about 5 minutes and the drawing about 45 minutes; no robot kit is needed.
- Ages
- 6 to 13
- Time
- 5 films, about 5 minutes, then about 45 minutes of drawing
- Host
- Krea
- You need
- Paper, pencil
- Status
- Coming soon. Kids vote in the app for the courses they want first.
The intro film
Krea's 45-second intro film is coming soon. Here's what Krea says in it.
Transcript
Hi, I'm Krea. Let's dream up a robot.
Every robot starts with a question. What's its job?
Does it fold socks? Feed the fish? Find lost toys under the couch?
The job tells you the body. Rolling? Walking? Crawling like a bug? A long arm that grabs?
Then you draw a blueprint. That's an inventor's drawing, with labels.
Here are the wheels. Here are the eyes. Here's the grabber.
And you give your robot a name and a funny habit. Maybe it hums when it's happy.
Get your pencil. Every inventor starts on paper.
The 5 lessons
Lesson 1. What's its job?
A robot starts with one job it does really well.
- Think of a chore or a problem at home
- Pick one job for your robot
- Write the job at the top of your paper
Where: Paper
Lesson 2. Pick a body
The job tells you which body to pick.
- Look at the robot types: House, Pet, Bug, Humanoid, Arm
- Pick the one that fits the job, or invent your own
- Say why it fits, in one line
Where: Robotics Studio · Design
Lesson 3. Draw the blueprint
A blueprint shows every part, with a label.
- Draw your robot big, from the front
- Label how it moves, how it sees, and how it grabs
- Draw arrows from each label to its part
Where: Paper
Lesson 4. Give it a personality
A name and one habit make a robot feel alive.
- Give your robot a name
- Pick one funny habit, like humming or spinning
- Add it to your blueprint as a note
Where: Paper
Lesson 5. Snap your blueprint
Your paper blueprint becomes the plan for your robot.
- Lay your blueprint flat in good light
- Snap a photo of it
- Check the parts and the robot type match your drawing
Where: Robotics Studio · Design
What your kid makes
Your kid ends with a labeled robot blueprint on paper: a job, a body type, every part named, and a personality. The blueprint goes into Robotics Studio's Design room, and it's the starting point for the next course, Build a robot that walks.
Free guides to practise with
Questions parents ask
Does my kid need a robot kit?
No. The design happens on paper. When your kid builds the robot in Robotics Studio, it moves in a realistic 3D simulator in the browser, so there is nothing to buy.
What age is this for?
Kids 6 to 13. Younger kids draw the robot and say the labels while a grown-up writes. Older kids often add side views and more detailed parts.
What if my kid can't draw well?
A blueprint is boxes, circles, and labels. The ideas matter more than the lines: what the robot does and how each part helps it do it.