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On Thursday, November 21, Country Day School’s third-grade students immersed themselves in a day of robotics, coding, and creativity during Wild Robot Day! The event was the brainchild of third-grade teachers Maggie Burke and Raine Rivera, who noticed how strongly their students resonated with "The Wild Robot" by Peter Brown. Wanting to nurture this enthusiasm and continue their learning journey, the teachers collaborated with educational technology collaborator Kate Weber to design a creative and immersive experience that combined storytelling, technology, and hands-on activities.

Across both third-grade classes, students had been captivated by the book. “This book really transformed some of our students as readers,” said Ms. Burke. “When we finished reading it aloud together, I was emotional and tearing up, and the students were pointing out how powerful words can be. It was incredible to see how deeply they connected with the story.” Inspired by this enthusiasm, the teachers and Weber worked together to create a day that celebrated both the students’ love of the book and their excitement for robotics and coding.

The day began with a coding camp led by Weber, held in the cafeteria where students rotated through six unique stations. Each station connected directly to themes from "The Wild Robot" and challenged students to apply their knowledge in creative and technical ways:

• Build: Using Finch Robots, students gathered sticks and worked to construct a dam on a bullseye, just as Roz helped the beavers build a dam on the island.
• Assimilate: Students used the Marty Robot app on iPads to connect to Marty Robots, program them, and test their skills on various block courses, mimicking how Roz had to assimilate to life on the island.
• Nurture: Drawing inspiration from Roz’s role as a caretaker to a gosling, students transformed Finch Robots into rubber duck-shoveling machines using tape and cups, then guided the ducks to their home.
• Communicate: To simulate Roz learning to communicate with the island’s animals, students programmed Finch Robots to “write” words on paper, exploring the power of nonverbal communication.
• Camouflage: Students crafted costumes for their Finch Robots to help them blend into provided backgrounds, echoing Roz’s efforts to camouflage herself on the island.
• Fire-Make: Using Sphero Robots, students mimicked fire by changing the robots to fiery colors and experimenting with driving methods in the Sphero Play app, recreating how Roz brought fire to the island.

The thoughtful and engaging stations allowed students to immerse themselves in the book’s themes while developing coding, engineering, and problem-solving skills.

The afternoon featured a cozy movie screening of The Wild Robot, an incentive the students “earned” through classroom achievements, such as winning a bingo game or collecting “Burke Bucks.” Students brought blankets and pillows, transforming their classroom into a theater-like setting. Teachers also encouraged reflection by assigning a writing prompt to compare the book and the movie, further deepening the students’ connection to the story.

Teachers Burke and Rivera shared that this book and day-long experience had a powerful impact on their classes, not only by fostering creativity and teamwork but also by demonstrating the importance of storytelling and technology in education. Through their thoughtful planning, Wild Robot Day became more than an event; it was a celebration of student curiosity, engagement, and growth.