Indi

💡 How It Works

Screen-Free Coding (Main Feature)

• Students use color tiles/cards placed on the floor or a mat.
  
  

• The robot has a color sensor that reads each tile and performs an action.
  
  

• Example commands:
  
  

  • Green → speed up
    
    

  • Pink → turn
    
    

  • Purple → spin or dance

Students create paths, mazes, or challenges, and indi follows the sequence of colors as a “program.”

Hands-On Design

• Learners build their own mazes and routes.
  
  

• They test and adjust their designs, just like real engineers.

Optional App (Extension)

• The Sphero Edu Jr app allows block-based coding for more advanced learning.

• This helps students transition from physical coding to digital programming.

🎯 Wisconsin ITL Standards

• ID1.a.e (Identify and Solve Problems): Students use the indi to solve authentic "real-world" problems, such as "How can indi get from the start to the finish line while avoiding obstacles?".
• ID1.c.e (Develop, Test, and Refine): Placing color tiles is a form of prototyping. Students "construct and revise a simple prototype" (the tile sequence) based on the immediate feedback provided by the robot's movement.
• ID1.d.e (Demonstrate Resilience): If the indi turns the wrong way, students are encouraged to "attempt multiple solutions" and "reflect on setbacks" to improve their next attempt, building foundational resilience.

• IA1.a.e (Investigate Emerging Technologies): Students "identify examples of emerging technologies" (the robot) and "describe their general purpose" as a machine that follows specific color-coded instructions.
• IA1.b.e (Customize Learning Environment): When students transition to the Sphero Edu Jr app, they begin to "make choices based on their learning preferences" by customizing what each color tile tells the robot to do.
• IA3.b.e (Create Artifacts): Students can use the robot and its path to create a "simple artifact," such as a physical map that tells a story or demonstrates a concept they have learned in class.

• DC2.b.e (Impact of AI and Automation): Students "identify everyday examples" of automated machines and describe how the indi "assists people in simple ways" by performing tasks automatically through programmed color triggers.

• GC1.b.e (Contribute Constructively): Students "participate in a variety of roles within a team"—such as the "Tile Placer," the "Robot Handler," and the "Debugger"—to work toward a shared objective.
• GC2.b.e (Investigate Solutions): Groups "work together to understand issues" (like a gap in the track) and "recommend solutions" through peer feedback and collaborative trial and error.

• EC.1.a.e (Purpose of Communication): Students "state the main message" to be shared—for example, "I want indi to celebrate at the end"—and then select the correct color tile (purple) to convey that digital message.

🎓 Educational Benefits

Computational Thinking

• Teaches sequencing, patterns, and cause-and-effect
  
  

• Builds early coding foundations without overwhelming students

Problem-Solving

• Students design paths, test outcomes, and fix mistakes
  
  

• Encourages debugging and persistence

Creativity & Play-Based Learning

• Open-ended: students create mazes, stories, and challenges
  
  

• Promotes imagination and exploration

Collaboration

• Students work together to design and test solutions
  
  

• Encourages communication and teamwork

Cross-Curricular Learning

• Math: directions, sequencing, patterns
  
  

• Literacy: storytelling with paths
  
  

• Science: cause and effect, motion

Resources: 

Indi Cross Curricular Computational Thinking Activities