› Interactive runbook
A 2-hour build-your-own-AI popup for middle schoolers.
2 hours · No computers · Teams of 3–4
› Core hypothesis
Kids who build something physical and name it self-identify as builders. That identity moment converts to a program signup. This popup is a conversion event disguised as a workshop.
The real success metric is the sentence a kid says to their parent on the drive home: “I built a robot today.”
Two hours, three stations, one launch.
Don't frame it as a class. “By the end of today, you'll have launched something.” Each kid states their name + one problem they hate. Write it on the whiteboard.
Teams pick one Who card + one Why card + one What card → one-sentence brief with stakes attached. Complete the Bot Brain Sheet: script 3 dialogue exchanges, write 3 If/Then rules. This is their decision tree.
Teams swap Brain Sheets. Chaos Deck: pick 3 cards that break the other bot's logic. Write failures on red sticky notes and return them. ML edge-case testing.
Get the Brain Sheet back with red stickies and fix 2 problems. Then the parts bench: pick up to 3 How cards (real sensors) and 2 Output cards, plus one board card. Every choice costs pins and power — that's the constraint.
Build a physical bot: it must show input, process, output — with the sensors they picked marked on it. Name it. Write a pitch sentence.
Teams present to each other — not to facilitators. Hold the bot, say the sentence, point to features. Photo taken. Founder Cards distributed.
“Who wants to keep going?” — pause — “We run a 3-month program. Here's what you'd build next.” One sentence. Hand the program half-sheet directly to parents.
› Deliverables
Six playability-verified draws — Who, What, Why, sensors, outputs, and board already aligned. Load one to walk the runbook, or view the PDFs in your browser.
Classic easy opener — response verb, clock sensor, buzzer output.
For a kid who forgets their homework every single day, our bot reminds so nobody has to be reminded about it more than once.
Buttons instead of mood-reading — good for teaching human-input sensors.
For a kid who gets overwhelmed by too many choices, our bot gives options to choose from so they waste less time deciding and more time doing.
Perception verb with a real-world signal — tracks something over time.
For a young athlete tracking their own training stats, our bot tracks something over time so they can prove to someone else that they're improving.
Tells you when something is wrong — moisture or motion on the bench.
For a pet owner who worries about their animal all day, our bot tells when something is wrong so something they care about doesn't get damaged or lost.
Hard tier — keypad for translation, screen for output.
For a student learning English for the first time, our bot translates complicated things into simple words so they can do something themselves that they used to need help with.
Rates what you show it — perception + demoable screen.
For a gamer who wants to improve but doesn't know how, our bot rates things shown to it so they can prove to someone else that they're improving.