1. Objective of the lesson
Program your Sphero to rotate and revolve
All of you will:
Program your Sphero to rotate
Most of you will:
Program your Sphero to revolve
Some of you will:
Create a program for your Sphero to simulate a planet moving around a fixed object

2. Planet Sphero
Learn about orbital motion with Sphero and program your robot to replicate planetary rotation and revolution Sphero can move just like Earth and the other planets in our solar system.

3. Planet Sphero

4. Planet Sphero
Now it's time for your team to plan and program your own Planet Sphero.  What will you design?
Start by experimenting with rotation. Rotation is when a sphere spins on its axis -- an imaginary line going from the north pole to the south pole. Play around with the duration variable and write down your observations. What happened when the duration was longer? What happened when the duration was shorter?

5. Planet Sphero

6. Planet Sphero
The movement of an object around a point or another object is called "revolution". When a planet revolves around a star, the revolution is called the planet's "orbit". Can you modify the program above to make Sphero move in a continuous circle or revolution around an imaginary point?

7. Planet Sphero

8. Planet Sphero

9. Planet Sphero
What happens if you change the speed or spin duration variables in your program?  Test it out and write down your observations. What happened when the speed was faster? What happened when the speed was slower? What happened when the spin duration was longer? What happened when the spin duration was shorter?

10. Planet Sphero
Challenge time!  Customize your planet any way you like. Remember that in our own solar system, each planet's orbit is unique in size and speed. Also, each orbit is an ellipse, meaning they are ovals, not perfect circles. You can customize your planet and its orbit any way you want. Think about what you want your planet to do and write down and/or sketch your ideas.  

11. Planet Sphero

12. Planet Sphero
Modify your program to include the customizations you want and then test it out.  What worked?  What didn't work?  How can you improve your program?