Try a robot made of household items for younger kids. Coffee cans, straws, old fabric, soft drink lids, crayons, aluminum foil, buttons and pipe cleaners all make useful robot parts. You will need quite a few pieces to make a good-sized robot. Use PVC pipes, paper towel holders or wooden dowels to make your robot free standing. Mount various pieces for head, feet, torso, arms and hands onto a wooden board or piece of poster board for a different type of robot display.
There are many electronic robots kits available for the older student. These kits come complete with all the parts to construct a robot and the electronic components to make the robot perform small tasks. Robot kits come in different skill levels, with the most complex designs intended for upper elementary school students. These kits often require some soldering, so it's important to pay attention to the intended user ages on the box.
Lego Mindstorm Robots offer a true robot building experience. These robots include all the parts to build the final product according to the student's design. Unlike other robot kits, Lego robots can be designed according to certain parameters. This means you can challenge students to design a robot based on what they want the robot to do, rather than how they want the robot to look. These robot kits are a popular choice for robotics clubs and competitions in upper elementary school and middle school.
Ready made robots are a great way to introduce robotics to the youngest students. Toy robots and robots made to do simple chores can be used to illustrate how different robots function and how they can be programmed to do simple tasks. Get creative with robots for Kindergarten and first grade classrooms by having a competition between ready made robots to see which can do simple tasks the fastest, or have a challenge between a remote control robot and a voice activated robot for efficiency in handling a job.