Our Kids Take Home Awards!
Saturday, February 27, 2010 - Two teams from the Club took home awards from the 2010 "Smart Moves" Western MO/KS Regional. 76 teams and over 700 kids participated in this annual event, held Saturday, February 27th in Lee's Summit, MO.
Our Rockin' Robo Rabbits won First Place for Teamwork. This award recognizes the team that best demonstrates extraordinary enthusiasm and spirit, exceptional partnership and the utmost respect and support for their teammates and fellow teams. The award demonstrates the team's confidence, energy, strong problem-solving skills and great group dynamics.
Our Shadow Knights won Second Place for Creative Presentation. This award is presented in to the team that conducted quality research, suggested innovative solutions to this year's challenge and presented with creative and interest. This year's challenge focused on improving the efficiency and safety of transportation.
"We've been coaching First Lego League robotics teams for five years. Watching these kids grow and thrive in FLL leaves no doubt, no matter what we hear in the news or surveys show, that American kidsare totally psyched about science and math when we inspire them with exciting, hands-on challenges." David Sherrick, Chief Technology Officer, Synthesis Solutions and lead coach for the Rockin' Robo Rabbits
The FLL Challenge has two components: a research project and robotics missions. This year's research project required FLLteams to identify and solve a local transportation problem. This year, our three FLLteams proposed creative solutions including:
- Air-powered cars from our Shadow Knights
- Energy efficient mopeds from our Dragon 'Bots
- Ride-sharing software and bike rental programs that reduce traffic congestion, urban sprawl and air pollution, proposed by our Rockin' Robo Rabbits
Teams are also required to build and program Lego Mindstorm robots to complete ten to fifteen missions in 2.5 minutes or less. To do this, they must plan efficient routes and sequences, climb steep ramps and endure successful crash tests. The teams are judged in five areas: project presentation, robot performance, robot design, programming and teamwork.
Kids in this program do extraordinary things. In the past six months, the kids on our teams:
- Dived deeply into transportation. They:
- Flew airplanes with Young Eagles
- Toured the Federal Air Traffic Control Center
- Visited with represented from MARC, the KC Area Transit Authority, MOBicycle Federation, YRCWorldwide and the KCWater Department's Natural Gas Vehicle project
- Surveyed 180+ households on their transportation habits
- Built pedal cars
- Created a ride-sharing software program, called RideShare A Go Go, to help people find rides with those they know and trust through their Facebook and Twitter accounts
- Promoted the ride-sharing program and complementary bike-rental program to MARC and the Missouri State Legislature
- Wrote a picture book for young children on how products like milk move through the transportation system
- Built ten robots and fielded three successful teams in the Western MO/KS Regional
Watching our kids do amazing things like these makes it easy to see how they will change the world." Rebecca Kidwell, President, LEARN Science & Math Club
More than 14,000 teams and 130,000 kids from 50+ countries participate in FLL worldwide.