December 21, 2017, by jicke

Building STEM skills at Lego tournament

Children from schools across the East Midlands spent the day at the Engineering, Science, Learning Centre competing in the regional heat of the global First Lego League tournament – and a great day was had by all!

Teams were tasked with researching a problem around the theme of water and had to design and create a solution and share it as widely as possible. They then presented it to the judges on the day – installing vacuum toilets, like those on aeroplanes and a social media campaign highlighting water wastage from leaving a tap running whilst brushing your teeth were just two of the creative ideas presented on the day.

Robot Games

A highlight of the day was the ‘Robot Games’ where teams used Lego Mindstorms robots they had designed and programmed to battle against the clock to complete the missions they chose. They then scored points for the element of each mission their robots successfully carried out.

Dr Sam Tang, Public Awareness Scientist for the Faculty of Science at the University of Nottingham organised the Nottingham tournament, she says: “The teams should all be very proud of themselves as they all worked well together, showed respect for each other and towards the other teams, and were a credit to themselves, their coaches, and their schools. This is what the Core Values of FIRST LEGO League is about, demonstrating gracious professionalism and determination whilst maintaining a sense of fun and enjoyment.”

Winners on the day were Selston High School who took the Lego trophy after impressing with their (details of project). They will go on to participate at the UK and Ireland Final at the University of the West of England, Bristol, in February.

Sam continues: “Selston High were absolutely deserving of being crowned champions at the tournament. They left a positive and lasting impression on everyone they engaged with, be it the Referee of the Robot Games or the student helpers who made sure the event ran smoothly; their focused performance during the Games, conduct throughout the day, and excellent teamwork meant they satisfied all the criteria of the LEGO Challenge.”

This global event is organised by The Institution of Engineering and Technology and allows children to apply science, technology, engineering, and maths concepts (STEM), alongside imagination, to solve a problem. Along their discovery journey, they develop critical thinking and team-building skills.

The day was only possible thanks to a team of volunteers:

Jessie Groves, Melissa Richardson and Catherine Peake – Project and Core Values judges

Steve Heath (from Rolls Royce), Matthew Mcadam and Claire Stringer – Robot Design and Core Values judges

Yuen Ping Ko, Wan Teng, Emily Lau, Lewis Fretwell-Smith, Ben Scrafield and Heather Damian – general helpers.

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