NEWS » SCHOOL

Robotics Team to Start at Middle School

By TPR News Desk, 05/26/2010

By Bruce Rempe

Does your kid love to put things together? Is a new legos kit the best gift ever? Does your child love the words, “some assembly required?”

If so, then the new Robotics team is the place for them.

This fall we will kick-off a new before-school program for kids that love to build and solve problems.

Several months ago, I ran across a PBS special called “Gearing Up.” This was a documentary about the US FIRSTorganization and it’s FRC program (FIRST Robotics Challenge). The documentary covered 4 teams as they received the challenge, and then endeavored to build a robot to achieve the challenge. Each team had an identical set of parts and no instructions. It is up the kids to creatively design a robot that achieves the challenges and scores better than the other robots.

Of the four teams covered, there was a 4-person all-girl team that included two Muslim exchange students. Another team was a boys detention-center high school. So, this team was made-up of kids that had been largely dismissed by society.

I was impressed with the way that the FIRST organization stages these contests as “athletic competitions”, with referees and cheering crowds. They are basically “celebrating” the achievement of kids in the areas of engineering, problemsolving, math, computers, and team-work – and doing so in a manner that taps into the natural competitive spirit, and allows the kids to learn these valuable skills without ever knowing that they’re learning.

As I investigated the program more fully, I learned that the US FIRST Organization (www.USFIRST.org) was founded by Dean Kaemen (the creator of the Segway), and has programs for all ages. For the elementary and middle-school kids the playing fields are much smaller, and the annual challenge is solved using robots built from Lego’s Mindstorms Kits (www.mindstorms.com). These amazing kits are extended and advanced Lego building systems that include sensors for touch, motion, and color, as well as servo-motors, a computer controller, and gears, wheels, tracks, and tires. At this level, the program is called FLL - or FIRST Lego League. There is at least one team in Waterloo.

I am planning to start an FLL team at the Middle School level for the 2010-2011 year. This will be a before school program. The FIRST organization limits FLL teams to 10 members. If you believe your child would rise to this challenge, please visit our website at www.SteelOfTheKnights.org, and fill-out the form, and well keep you up-to-date on the progress.

The Union School System endorses the concepts of this program, and will help-out by providing meeting-space, and serving as the fiscal agent. However, the school system has no funding resources for this program (especially in these stressed economic times), and the program will need to be completely self-supported and operated by volunteers.

We will need roughly $2,000 in order to acquire the resources and kits necessary to start the program and to operate for the first year. Subsequent year’s operational costs will be considerably less. I have already applied for a couple of local grants, and will be looking to the community and local businesses to provide the resources and sponsorships necessary to make this program a reality. Participation fees might ultimately be necessary.

If you would like to provide support for this organization, you can simply send your tax-deductible contribution to the Union Community Schools. Be sure to label your contribution for the “Steel of the Knights” program. Or, if you’re interested in more specific sponsorship opportunities, check the sponsorship box on the website form.

Additionally, we will need parents and volunteers to help make this program possible. So, please consider becoming a Robotics Team coach. No particular skills are necessary. The kids readily embrace and understand the technology, so all you need is a great love of children and the learning process. An option for this interest is also available on the website form.

The “Gearing Up” PBS documentary that started this is available for viewing from our website. Or, the DVD is available for short-term check-out from the La Porte City Hawkins Memorial Library. It is an excellent resource to learn more about the US FIRST programs and objectives. You’ll find yourself cheering for the teams. Keep in mind that this documentary covers teams participating in the highest-level FRC high-school program. It features large robots on large competitive fields. There is another program (FTC) that sits between the FLL and FRC programs.

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