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Created byDeAnne Coleman
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Scribble-Bot’s Pre-Writing Obstacle Course Challenge

KindergartenEnglish10 days
★★★★★
5.0 (1 rating)
In this engaging Kindergarten project, students design a "Sound and Stroke" obstacle course to help a "Scribble-Bot" navigate through a Phonics Forest. Students develop essential pre-writing skills by practicing the tripod grip and drawing various strokes like zig-zags and loops while reinforcing print directionality from left to right. The experience integrates phonemic awareness and positional vocabulary as students place "Sound Stone" obstacles and narrate their robot’s journey using terms like top, bottom, left, and right. The project culminates in the Scribble-Bot Grand Prix, where students demonstrate their fine motor control and literacy foundations through a guided tour of their completed course.
Pre-writing StrokesTripod GripPhonemic AwarenessPositional VocabularyDirectionalityFine Motor SkillsScribble-Bot
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Inquiry Framework

Question Framework

Driving Question

The overarching question that guides the entire project.How can we design a "Sound and Stroke" obstacle course to guide our Scribble-Bots from start to finish using our writing strokes and position words?

Essential Questions

Supporting questions that break down major concepts.
  • How can we use our hands and tools to make the best paths for our Scribble-Bots?
  • What kinds of lines and shapes (strokes) can we draw to help our robot move?
  • How do words like 'top,' 'bottom,' 'left,' and 'right' help us explain the robot's journey?
  • Why is it important to move our hands and eyes from left to right when we draw and 'read' the robot's path?
  • How can we listen for beginning sounds to name the obstacles in our robot's way?

Standards & Learning Goals

Learning Goals

By the end of this project, students will be able to:
  • Students will demonstrate the ability to hold a writing utensil using a functional tripod grip to improve fine motor control during the creation of their obstacle course.
  • Students will execute a variety of pre-writing strokes (e.g., horizontal, vertical, diagonal, and curved lines) to design a navigable path for their Scribble-Bots.
  • Students will correctly use and explain positional vocabulary including left, right, top, and bottom to narrate or label the robot's journey.
  • Students will apply print awareness by tracking their drawn paths from left to right and top to bottom, mirroring the directionality of reading and writing.
  • Students will identify and orally produce the beginning sounds of objects or "obstacles" placed along their course to integrate phonemic awareness into their design.

Teacher-Provided ELA Standards

K.ELA.PHYS.1
Primary
Hold writing utensils using the tripod grip.Reason: This is a core physical skill required for the project and a specific focus of the Scribble-Bot path creation.
K.ELA.W.1
Primary
Draw a number of writing strokes that are prerequisites of writing letters.Reason: The entire obstacle course is constructed using these strokes, serving as the foundational 'road' for the robots.

Common Core State Standards (ELA)

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.K.1.E
Primary
Use frequently occurring prepositions (e.g., to, from, in, out, on, off, for, of, by, with) and position words.Reason: Students must use words like top, bottom, left, and right to describe the layout and movement of their Scribble-Bot.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.1.A
Secondary
Follow words from left to right, top to bottom, and page by page.Reason: The project emphasizes tracking the robot's path in the same directionality used for reading, reinforcing print concepts.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.2.D
Supporting
Isolate and pronounce the initial, medial vowel, and final sounds (phonemes) in three-phoneme (consonant-vowel-consonant, or CVC) words.Reason: Students will listen for and identify beginning sounds of objects/obstacles within the 'Sound and Stroke' course.

Teacher-Provided Physical Education Standards

K.PHY.ED.1
Supporting
Demonstrate spatial and body awareness.Reason: Designing the course requires students to understand how objects relate to one another in a physical space.

Entry Events

Events that will be used to introduce the project to students

The Mysterious 'Bot-Box' Delivery

A mysterious, vibrating box arrives with a letter from 'Scribble-Bot,' who is lost and can only move along specific shapes like zig-zags and loops to find his way back to 'Phonics Forest.' Students discover the bot can only travel if they 'unlock' the path by correctly drawing strokes using their 'Magic Three Fingers' (tripod grip).
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Rubric & Reflection

Portfolio Rubric

Grading criteria for assessing the overall project portfolio

Scribble-Bot's Path to Literacy Rubric

Category 1

Physical & Fine Motor Development

Focuses on the physical development and technical skills required for writing and tool manipulation.
Criterion 1

Tripod Grip Mastery

Evaluates the student's ability to use a functional tripod grip when holding markers or crayons to create the robot's path.

Exemplary
4 Points

Consistently maintains a functional tripod grip (thumb, index, and middle finger) with ease and control throughout the entire activity without reminders.

Proficient
3 Points

Demonstrates a functional tripod grip for most of the activity, occasionally needing a quick reminder to adjust finger placement.

Developing
2 Points

Shows an emerging tripod grip but often reverts to a fisted or less efficient grip; requires frequent verbal or physical prompts.

Beginning
1 Points

Uses a fisted or palmar grip and has significant difficulty manipulating the writing tool to create intentional strokes.

Criterion 2

Stroke Variety and Control

Evaluates the variety and control of pre-writing strokes (straight, curved, zig-zag) used to build the Scribble-Bot's path.

Exemplary
4 Points

Draws a wide variety of purposeful strokes (horizontal, vertical, diagonal, zig-zag, loops) with high precision and steady control.

Proficient
3 Points

Draws several different types of prerequisite strokes clearly and with enough control to guide the robot along the path.

Developing
2 Points

Draws basic lines (horizontal or vertical) but struggles with more complex strokes like zig-zags or curves; lines may be shaky.

Beginning
1 Points

Produces random scribbles or single marks that do not yet resemble the specific pre-writing strokes requested.

Category 2

Spatial Awareness & Literacy Concepts

Focuses on the student's ability to navigate space and use language to describe relationships between objects.
Criterion 1

Positional Language Usage

Measures the student's ability to use positional vocabulary (left, right, top, bottom) to describe the robot's journey.

Exemplary
4 Points

Independently and correctly uses all four position words (left, right, top, bottom) to narrate the robot's journey with advanced detail.

Proficient
3 Points

Correctly uses at least three position words to describe where the robot is moving or where obstacles are located.

Developing
2 Points

Uses 1-2 position words correctly but often confuses directions (e.g., calling left 'right') or needs significant prompting.

Beginning
1 Points

Demonstrates limited understanding of positional words; cannot yet identify top/bottom or left/right on the course.

Criterion 2

Path Tracking & Directionality

Evaluates the student's understanding of directionality (left to right, top to bottom) as they 'read' or track the robot's path.

Exemplary
4 Points

Flawlessly tracks the entire course from left to right and top to bottom, explaining how this movement is like reading a book.

Proficient
3 Points

Consistently tracks the path from left to right and top to bottom with minimal guidance.

Developing
2 Points

Attempts to track from left to right but frequently loses place or changes direction mid-path.

Beginning
1 Points

Moves eyes and hands randomly across the course without a clear left-to-right or top-to-bottom pattern.

Category 3

Phonological Awareness Integration

Integration of phonemic awareness by naming and identifying sounds of items within the obstacle course.
Criterion 1

Initial Sound Identification

Measures the student's ability to identify the beginning sounds of the 'obstacles' placed along the Scribble-Bot's course.

Exemplary
4 Points

Correctly identifies the beginning sound for all obstacles and can suggest other words that start with the same sound.

Proficient
3 Points

Correctly identifies the beginning sounds of most obstacles (e.g., 'B' for 'Ball' in the path).

Developing
2 Points

Identifies some beginning sounds correctly but requires several hints or repetitions of the word to hear the sound.

Beginning
1 Points

Struggles to isolate the initial sound of objects; may repeat the whole word instead of the phoneme.

Reflection Prompts

End-of-project reflection questions to get students to think about their learning
Question 1

How easy was it to use your 'Magic Three Fingers' (tripod grip) to draw the paths for your Scribble-Bot?

Scale
Required
Question 2

Which way did your Scribble-Bot travel to follow the rules of the Phonics Forest?

Multiple choice
Required
Options
Left to Right (and Top to Bottom)
Right to Left
Bottom to Top
Question 3

What was your favorite stroke to draw (zigzags, loops, or straight lines), and why was it good for your robot?

Text
Required
Question 4

Which position words did you use the most when explaining your robot's journey?

Multiple choice
Optional
Options
Top and Bottom
Left and Right
I used all of them!
Question 5

Pick one obstacle you made (like a 'Bridge' or 'Rock'). Tell us the name of the obstacle and the first sound you hear in that word.

Text
Required