“Introduces younger students to real-world engineering challenges by building LEGO-based robots to complete tasks on a thematic playing surface. FLL teams, guided by their imaginations and adult coaches, discover exciting career possibilities and, through the process, learn to make positive contributions to society.”
FLL in Franklin
Franklin Public Schools is expanding its FIRST involvement throughout all school levels and grades. The key is student interest along with lots of help from parents throughout the district.
Who?
All Franklin area (neighboring communities are welcome!) elementary and middle school parents & students with an interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (or just having fun with Legos and robots).
What?
– FIRST LEGO League Discover – PreK- Grade 1: For children ages 4-6, this playful introductory STEM program ignites their natural curiosity and builds their habits of learning with hands-on activities in the classroom and at home using LEGO® Duplo bricks.
– FIRST LEGO League Explore – Grades 2-4: In Explore, teams of students ages 6-10 focus on the fundamentals of engineering as they explore real-world problems, learn to design and code and create unique solutions made with LEGO bricks and powered by LEGO Education robot.
– FIRST LEGO League Challenge – Grades 4-8: Friendly competition is at the heart of Challenge, as teams of students ages 9-16* engage in research, problem-solving, coding and engineering – building and programming a LEGO robot that navigates the missions of a robot game. As part of Challenge, teams also participate in a research project to identify and solve a relevant real-world problem.
We also talked about “what’s next” after 8th grade. In the 2021-22 season, Franklin Saber Robotics, the high school FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) team, earned the opportunity to travel to Houston, TX and compete in the FIRST World Championship tournament. There were 35,000 STEM-minded kids, families, and mentors from around the world in attendance at this competition, representing 450 high school FRC teams, 160 middle-high school FTC teams, 106 FLL Challenge teams, and 52 FLL Explore teams. The level of energy, innovation, and inspiration shown by the participating kids was truly awe inspiring. THIS is why we do what we do for our kids!
Why?
FIRST LEGO League introduces science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) to children ages 4-16* through fun, exciting hands-on learning. FIRST LEGO League participants gain real-world problem-solving experiences through a guided, global robotics program, helping today’s students and teachers build a better future together. In FIRST LEGO League, students engage in hands-on STEM experiences, building confidence, growing their knowledge and developing habits of learning. FIRST LEGO League’s three divisions inspire youth to experiment and grow their critical thinking, coding and design skills through hands-on STEM learning and robotics. Check out this Franklin FIRST Robotics website, or the FIRST Global Website at https://www.firstinspires.org/ for more details, and some great videos showing what you can expect.