Page 3 Students First Delmae Robo Dawgs go into orbit The FIRST LEGOLeague teams (up to 10 members, ages 9-13) began at Delmae in the 2006-2007 school year. Students on this team research a real-world problem such as food safety, recycling, energy, etc., and are challenged to develop a solution. They also must design, build, and program a robot using the program, LEGO MINDSTORMS®, then compete on a table-top playing field. It all adds up to tons of fun while they learn to apply science, technology, engineering, and math concepts (STEM), plus a big dose of imagination, to solve a problem. Along their journey, they develop critical thinking and teambuilding skills, basic STEM applications, and even presentation skills, as they must present their solutions with a dash of creativity to judges. They also practice the Program’s Core Values, which emphasize discovery, teamwork and good sportsmanship. The Delmae Robo Dawgs are once again hard at work preparing for the 2018 First Lego League season. Delmae has had a Lego Robotics Team for fourteen years. The team has competed in regional competitions and qualified for state competitions for eleven of the fourteen years. This season, the students are competing in a challenge called “Into Orbit”. They have to learn how to code using the Lego Mindstorms software to program their robot and complete a series of missions. They compete against another team and have 2 ½ minutes to complete as many missions as possible. The goal is to complete those missions and gain as many points as possible. If they do well, they have a chance at winning that portion of the competition. They also have to complete a research project each year. This year’s project assignment for the “Into Orbit” season is to identify a physical or social problem faced by humans during long duration space exploration within our Sun’s solar system and propose a solution. In order to complete this portion, the team has worked to narrow down their interests and begin to focus in on one area to research. Now, the Delmae Robo Dawgs are gathering research and evidence to share with the judges at their competition. This part of the competition is the core of First Lego League. It encourages students to look at real world problems and come up with solutions to better society. The team is also challenged to share their research and ideas with as many people as possible. This year, our team will be working with representatives from NASA and local medical experts as they share their ideas and create their solution. They will also be sharing their ideas with their school community and the larger Florence community as well. This year, we shared our ideas and research with Florence community members as part of the Pecan Festival’s STEM Zone. The final piece of the puzzle is something that First Lego League calls Core Values. Core Values is all about teamwork and how the students handle adversity and demonstrate problem-solving skills. The students have to complete activities that the judges assign and are scored based upon how they work together and the strategies they use to complete those activities. “The Delmae Rob Dawgs team is about so much more than Legos and robots,” said Delmae Principal Roy Ann Jolley. “It’s about teaching students how to think critically about problems and solutions while at the same time having a lot of fun. As has been said in so many space movies, “Houston, we have a problem!” But luckily for us, the Delmae Robo Dawgs are creating solutions!”
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