Providing students with voice and choice in the classroom is undeniably important, and the choice boards present in many of our STEM Labs are an excellent tool for doing so. Giving students choice in how they learn content ensures that learning is meaningful and personally relevant for each student, and increases student engagement.

Additionally, voice and choice helps students in learning how to learn, as they are able to test and define for themselves how they learn best, rather than being required to approach a goal in the same way, and with a similar outcome, as everyone else. When you give students a say in how they learn, it also communicates to them that you know each of them well, and honor and value their individuality, which in turn leads to more engagement, and therefore more learning.

However, providing learning choices that address a wide variety of students’ needs, strengths and interests can be time consuming and challenging in the face of already packed teacher schedules. And, for teachers new to teaching educational robotics, creating high-value activities related to robotics content can feel intimidating. To that end, we have provided choice boards in many of our STEM Labs. These choice boards help teachers to provide voice and choice in student learning.

In VEX 123 and VEX GO STEM Labs, for example, choice boards are provided in the Unit Overview of each Lab.

These choice boards can be used throughout the STEM Labs to engage early finishers, provide assessment opportunities, and/or extend student learning. Choice board activities can be used as artifacts for discussion during the Share part of STEM Labs as well. 

In the VEX GO Choice Board from the Day and Night STEM Lab shown above, a variety of activities are suggested. Each activity gives students a different access point for furthering their learning, or reengaging with the Lab content in order to review and solidify understanding. 

For example, the “Pole Position” activity is a great challenge for a student who wants to understand more about how the rotation of the earth influences sunrise and sunset, and provides an additional scientific modeling opportunity, therefore building on what students have already learned in the STEM Lab. 

The “Myths about Day and Night” activity may appeal to students who are interested in storytelling, and how the phenomenon of day and night has been explained by cultures throughout the ages, while the “Diorama” activity may appeal to students who want to flex their artistry as they create additional elements of the solar system around their Day and Night Builds. 

The 123 and GO Choice boards can be displayed in your classroom on a bulletin board, or projected for students as needed. And, teachers and students alike can use the choice board as a springboard for other ideas. If a student is inspired to create their own activity after they have looked over the choice board, a great way to let them express their voice and choice is to work with them to help make their activity idea a reality! 

Another place in our curriculum where choice boards can be found, is in the VEX IQ (2nd gen) and EXP STEM Labs. In these Labs, the choice board is found in the Conclusion Lesson of each Lab, in the Career Connections section. The image below shows the Career Connections section of the Robot Soccer Conclusion Lesson.

The choice boards in these STEM Labs are designed to give students a choice in how they engage with the career-related material in the Lab. In each IQ (2nd gen) and EXP Lab, two careers that are reflective of the content in the Lab are chosen and highlighted. 

For example, in the EXP Robot Soccer STEM Lab, the chosen careers are Industrial Designer and Sports Engineer. Students select the career that is most interesting to them and then select a choice board activity that will allow a rich exploration of the career in a way that appeals to the individual student. 

For example, in the Choice Board from Robot Soccer, above, the “(Social) Media Mogul” activity allows students to pretend to be an influencer from their chosen career, and then to write posts about a day in that person’s life. In order to do so, a deep dive into the kinds of work an Industrial Designer or Sports Engineer does is required, as well as the creativity and communication skills needed to create the example posts. 

Or, a student who prefers a more overtly social activity might choose the “Quiz Game Answers” activity, and create a quiz-based game show about their chosen career to engage their friends. Again, students can be encouraged to create their own additional choice board activities to showcase their learning. Teachers can choose to have students present choice board activities in a whole class setting, or to display student work on the walls. Allowing students to share their chosen artifacts deepens students’ sense of being a valued individual in a larger community as well.

Choice boards are an easy way to incorporate voice and choice into your students’ educational robotics learning, allowing them to feel like active participants in their own learning, rather than passive absorbers of knowledge. If you use or adapt choice boards from any of our STEM Labs, be sure to tell us about it in the VEX Community. Or, if you want to have an in-depth discussion about choice boards and other ways we incorporate student agency into our curriculum, schedule a 1-on-1 Session with a VEX Expert!