Learning Resources LER2935 Botley The Coding Robot Activity Set, Multicoloured
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100% Screen-FreeBotley the Coding Robot comes complete with a remote control, making this activity set completely screen-free – no phone or tablet required! This comprehensive kit is the ideal introduction to coding for children aged 5+. | Advanced FeaturesThis perfect introduction to coding and programming includes advanced features so children will continue to enjoy using Botley as they grow and learn. Botley the Coding Robot can be programmed with 80 steps. | Endless Fun!Botley can perform a variety of actions including forwards, backwards, left and right. The object detection feature will introduce smart logic as young learners build their STEM skills with this next generation tool. | Black Line FollowingBotley the Coding Robot features a special sensor underneath for following black lines. Young learners draw a bold black line or use the included cards, flip the switch to black-line follow mode and watch Botley follow it to their chosen destination! Botley the Coding Robot requires 3 AAA batteries (not included). The remote control requires 2 AAA (not included). |
What’s in the box?
This 77-piece comprehensive kit includes Botley the Coding Robot, remote control, detachable robot arms, 40 coding cards, six double-sided cards, 27 building pieces and an activity guide full of challenges!
Stem Learning
We offer a wide range of STEM Learning resources that help build children’s skills in science, technology, engineering and maths! Through play, learners build skills such as problem solving, critical thinking, communication and investigation.
| Dimensions: | 22.86 x 22.86 x 15.75 cm; 1 Kilograms |
| Model: | LER2935 |
| Material: | Plastic |
| Colour: | Multicoloured |
| Pack Quantity: | 77 |
| Batteries Required: | Yes |
| Batteries Included: | No |
| Age: | 5 – 9 years |
| Assembly: | Yes |
| Colour: | Multicoloured |
| Material: | Plastic |
| Quantity: | 77 |
Bought for my godson who is age 5 for Christmas, I thought it might be something he would use more as he got older but I have been surprised, he started playing with it straight away and it has been very useful during lockdown for learning to code
The instructions are clearly laid out with the challenges ranging from the very basic, suitable for a three year old. To very challenging! – even the adults here, found the exact coding required to perform a task, pretty challenging!
A Complaint:
I read someone comment that their Botley didn’t rotate a full 90 (turning about 80 instead), when commanded to ‘turn right’. I can only imagine they had a faulty bot, as it does turn a complete right angle when requested. Allowing you to code without having to worry about improper turns.
The Remote:
Don’t be fooled by the simplistic, colourful and chunky designed remote. It’s an attractive format to get the young interested into early coding, but this robot offers so much more whilst keeping the experience ‘fun’ and positive for the younger audience, all the while, learning essential STEAM skills which this bot will grow on as the experience of the individual grows with time.
The Extras:
It comes with a large selection of apparatus, to push, roll, carry, swerve, avoid, navigate, follow and adhere to.
It also has some hidden ‘Easter egg’ codes to make your bot perform some funny little tricks.
Our youngest (age 4) treats him more like a pet, she commands him to come to him (obviously using coding), rewards the bot with a treat (from the bot’s own “toys”; she blesses him when he sneezes (which he does when he’s inactive for a few minutes), she chuckles with delight when the bot is coded by her to spin round and round (a coded series of left and right turns) as he feels ‘dizzy’ and responds with “woah, woah, woooah” sounds.
A thought provoking and challenging kit that the whole family can participate in as after dinner entertainment that, with the aid of the instuctions, can direct you on a selection of age-specific levels of tasks, in order to find the ultimate coder.
** Note: Carry case purchased separately on Amazon.
* 5 x AAA required.
* Remote doesn’t have an ‘off’ switch, which is rather annoying as it keeps transmitting a signal with lights and sounds when accidentally pressed in storage.
Fantastic for getting my 8 year old more enthused about coding. Lots of variety in the projects provided with Botley, and huge scope for making up your own problems to solve! Excellent for collaborative play / problem solving too.
My daughter absolutely adores Botley. All of the commands are easy to input and she can create commands for him. Although it says 5+, my 2 year old has figured out the basic controls and the adults help her learn the more complicated commands.
This is a great present for a child. We bought for our 5 year old for Christmas and he has used it just about every day since. The no screen aspect is great and it is easy to use.
My little one enjoy playing this. However it is better to add a switch auto delete old command.
Good when you want to start coding (with kids). Easy use and fun.
I bought this for my daughter’s 7th birthday and it’s been a huge hit with both her and her 8.5 year old sister. Simple and fun, but with the ability to work out more complicated programmes.
I bought it when it was on sale on Amazon, which made it even better!
There is this little boy I am making an effort every year for his bday.
Then there is his dad & mom, and a younger brother. Dad works in computers.
I don’t know how much time would be spent with it, tbh; but I got it for the boys to spend (fun) time playing together.
Botley has become a loved member of our household, lol Seriously though, this robot is super cute and of course very intelligent. My children 5 and 7 love him! I don’t have anything negative to say about Botley. My children are learning while having loads of fun!
Fabulous robot to help little ones learn to code. Lots of great accessories, user friendly, interactive, fun and engaging. Highly recommended.
My 6 year old grandson just loves this floor robot. It has loads of play value and even more learning value still to come.
Once out of the box you will end up with quite a large number of interesting looking parts, a chunky and well-constructed robot and a remote control. As the toy is aimed for those 5 years old and up and requires some understanding of concepts as well as the ability to read/follow instructions it is likely that as a parent you will be heavily involved in helping your child get to grips with how Botley works. Also if you have younger children you may want to ensure they are well distracted before getting going with this as it does attract little minds and this can prove awkward if they get in the way of someone else trying to programme things. For us we found it was far better to try and start off with some individual sessions to help our son get his head around the concepts involved.
Botley works by getting children to use basic coding techniques to get him to move round little mazes, past obstacles and to reach targets as well as avoid obstacles etc. You can work with the items provided with Botley or spend some time working round obstacles in the home to get used to the controls. We have found that sometimes instructions for toys like this can be a little complex but these were clear and easy to follow and once our son had grasped the basics he was keen to try and work on his own. This ended with errors on numerous occasions but he soon grasped the idea of having to try again — something which he has been frustrated with in other toys, not liking the fact he has made an error. You have some simple functions but there are more complex operations as well meaning that there is quite a bit of longevity to the toy and means boredom does not set in quickly. We still have quite a bit to explore with this.
It is really great to see the growth in toys which encourage STEM learning. As technology develops it will become more important that children are familiar with these concepts from an early age in order to be able to assimilate more complex knowledge later on. Our six year old is really enjoying getting to grips with Botley, he still has a lot to get out of the toy and likes trying to work things out on his own. Hopefully as she grows bigger his little sister will also have the same curiosity and Botley will help her to grasp these techniques as well.
The robot and remote need five AAA batteries between them which don’t come in the box (bit stingy) but luckily I had a few in the house so my daughter could play with it as soon as she opened it. The good news is that the robot does seem to power off automatically if left on but not used.
As well as the robot and controller, you also get a mask with some clip on arms (for programming the robot to move objects), objects to move, obstacles (cones) to avoid, reversible boards with a black line track to follow (and coloured squares on the other side for basic movement programming), some flags, and a plastic circle to deposit the objects in.
The manual is easy to follow and helps you discover Botly’s basic and more advanced functions. It also gives intricate detail into how to find the “hidden easter eggs”…so they’re not actually “hidden” or “easter eggs” at all.
The robot is sold quite heavily on the whole coding aspect (which seems to be a hot topic a the moment for children, I really don’t know why) and I would say it offers a very basic introduction to the sort of things you would expect to see in coding (mostly if…then…else situations) but don’t expect your child to come away with a great understanding of coding. As with many of these Learning Resource toys, it’s more of a play reinforcing learning situation.
Botly has enough functions and bundled gear to keep a child entertained for quite a while and both of my daughters keep coming back to him to see what else they can get him to do. It’s certainly quite different from most toys and while it is a bit expensive, I do think it’s worth the money.
I tested the robot with my five and seven year old grandsons, as I was especially interested to find out if this is an ‘age appropriate’ item – the manufacturer’s claim is that it’s suitable for ages 5 to 9. The five year old struggled to see beyond the robot’s function as a remote control vehicle, but the seven year old, who has had an introduction to coding concepts at school, was soon deep into the manual and activity guide, and showing off more advanced features.
Botley and his remote control are both built very well – like normal toys for this age group they can withstand knocks, drops and bumps and they feel like solid Fisher Price toys of old. The extras in the box are well thought out and very important for making Botley come to life – for example, by programming him to pick up a small ball and drop it somewhere else, as well as driving along the track provided.
There are a few ‘Easter eggs’ (hidden features) and my grandsons enjoyed finding these.
The manual is arguably the most important part of the package, especially the coding challenges which increase in difficulty.
Overall this is an excellent little machine for children getting in to coding. My only reservation is that 5 may be a little too young to access the more advanced features. However the build quality means that Botley should be around for a couple of years and certainly by age 7, children will really relish the challenge of commanding their robot and experimenting with it. Note: the first set of batteries have survived a month of heavy use.
Botley is a total winner as it introduces children to a basic understanding of what coding is, which essentially is setting up a discrete series of commands which must be followed in order to reach a specific outcome.
This activity set includes 77 pieces: Botley robot, remote programmer, detachable robot arms, 40 coding cards, six boards, eight sticks, 12 cubes, two cones, two flags, two balls, a goal and a sheet of stickers. We recommend going to the Learning Resources website and watch the Botley demo video. This will help you to understand how to use the coding cards.
We used 4 cards as a sequence and added onto it each time when coding was successful. When the desired outcome was not attained, we removed or added a step using cards as visual aids to help us keep track. After playing with it for a few hours already, we created a maze where Botley first had to collect a ball and then go through the maze pattern to ultimately position the ball at the end of the maze.
Our 6-year-old thoroughly enjoys coding Botley and now he wants to create an android of his own (similar to PAL from the Amazon show, Annedroids). This product takes time to get to grips with before it can be fully appreciated but on the whole we’re very pleased with this offering from learning resources, which provides hours of engagement, entertainment and is educational too.
The only downside is the need for plenty of space to let Botley roam (preferably a hard and flat surface; also works on carpet but thick pile would be a problem). Looking forward to getting more complex coding!