Teacher guide · Think Lab · Medium · about 35 min
🤖 Loop Dance Studio
Pupils practise problem solving through "Loop Dance Studio": Use repeated commands to choreograph a robot.
Lesson guide
1. Hook · 5 min
Show the 🤖 mission title and read the opening: "Repeat “clap, jump” 3 times. How many claps?". Take three quick guesses.
2. Model · 5 min
Think aloud through the first step together. Use Cog the Owl's line as your prompt: "Good thinking. Show me the why."
3. Do · 10 min
Pairs work through the 5 steps on screen or on the printed sheet. Circulate and ask "why?"
4. Discuss · 10 min
Use two or three of the discussion questions. Ask pairs to share different answers, not just correct ones.
5. Reflect · 5 min
Exit ticket: one sentence on how they used problem solving today.
Discussion questions
- What was the hardest choice in "Loop Dance Studio", and why?
- Repeat “clap, jump” 3 times. How many claps — explain your reasoning to a partner.
- Why use a loop — explain your reasoning to a partner.
- What helps stop a forever loop — explain your reasoning to a partner.
- Where could you use problem solving outside school this week?
- If you did this again, what would you change?
Adapting it
Support: Read prompts aloud, pair with a confident partner, and accept spoken or drawn answers for writing steps.
Stretch: Ask pupils to create their own extra step for a partner and explain the correct answer.
Curriculum links
- National Curriculum: Computing: algorithms, debugging and online safety
- National Curriculum: Maths: reasoning mathematically and problem solving
- National Curriculum: Computing: logical reasoning and algorithms
- PSHE: Living in the wider world: making decisions and evaluating choices
Pupil sheet
🤖 Loop Dance Studio
Name: ____________________ Date: __________
1. Repeat “clap, jump” 3 times. How many claps?
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 6
2. Why use a loop?
☐ To guarantee no mistakes
☐ To remove every command
☐ To repeat instructions without writing them each time
3. What helps stop a forever loop?
☐ A longer name
☐ A suitable stop condition
☐ Changing text colour
4. Connect the clues to their meanings.
Sequence → ________________
Loop → ________________
Condition → ________________
5. Write a robot dance using a loop. Work out the total number of moves after all repeats.