Quoted from http://blogs.msdn.com/b/alfredth/archive/2011/04/27/problem-solving-for-all-times.aspx?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ComputerScienceTeacher+%28Computer+Science+Teacher+-+Thoughts+and+Information+from+Alfred+Thompson%29&utm_content=Google+Reader:
One is that understanding the problem is the first step towards solving it.
Alfred talks about how CS helps him do DYI projects, but I get to go a step further.
I have been participating in Robotics with my students since February. Now I have no formal training in robotics, but the team I am sponsoring has been successful.
Why? Computer Science gives us the tools to solve any problem. It also helps that they ask me after they are unsuccessful and I’ve seen them try all the wrong ways. If I didn’t see, I ask them to show me what they have tried. That leaves only the right way to do things.
The first thing I have been doing is breaking down the problem in small steps for the students — I am hoping NOT to have to do that next year, and that they will be able to do it themselves.
For example, our first problem was taking a bunch of small parts and turning them into a chassis we could drive. Few students were interested until they saw something that ran and did things. That also brought in a bunch more minds to solve the problem.
In fact, each stage of solving problems brought more people in help us solve the problem.
Having the proper tools helps also — I need to get them a long handled Phillips Head Screw Driver so they can get the horn off the servo. Since it isn’t an immediate need, I haven’t done that.