Teams are off to a great start! They have worked very hard researching ideas to utilize in their designs. We have a great deal to accomplish before our first tournament, but these teams are making me proud already!
Students have worked incredibly hard on building, programming, and strategizing with their robots for this years competition which paid of for 8440B this past weekend at the Mankato Tournament. This team ranked 4th in the tournament during pool play but were eliminated during bracket finals.
The excitement was explosive as they learned that they had earned the Excellence Award which is the highest ranked award that you can earn at a tournament. This award also earned them a place at the Minnesota State Tournament in St.Cloud on February 3rd and 4th. as This year our 6th grade VEX team members are very excited about our upcoming year. Students are excited to show their knowledge and skills in robotics. Students are taking this season as a personal challenge to be as successful as possible. All team members participated in last years boot camp which was run by last years teams. They are utilizing the knowledge they have learned and researching new information to apply to this season. I look forward to the new challenges of the season and watching these teams grow through the season.
Students will be loading the bus early tomorrow morning to start their adventure of competing at the World Championship in Louisville Kentucky. Students have worked hard to modify their robot in order to be prepared for a tough competition. We will be competing against the best teams in the World. It is truly an honor to compete with such great teams. I know that the team will have an amazing time learning and competing.
Students have been working on many aspects over the last few weeks. We have been modifying robots, updating engineering notebooks and fundraising using every avenue imaginable in order to attend our upcoming competitions. It has been a long road for these teams. They have come so far this season. We are counting down the days until departure and trying to utilize every opportunity to continue to work to raise funds in order to ensure that their are no costs for students to participate.
Students are very excited about their modifications planned for each of the team robots. I have seen a great deal of collaboration between all three teams over the past two weeks. They are using each other for support and ideas to improve their designs. Students have learned so much this season and they are ensuring that they are all working together to take each bot to the next level. I am impressed with their enthusiasm for their new designs and how they are helping each team accomplish their tasks. Some teams have days where they are not even getting out their own robots because they are so busy working with another team.
Students are discovering what it will take in order to accomplish their goals to compete at our upcoming US Open and World Championship Tournaments. These upcoming events have new components that will continue to challenge these teams. Each team has been busy planning modifications to their robots to improve consistency in scoring capabilities while pondering extensions to the current functions and capabilities of their robots.
Students have also been very involved in helping brainstorm funding ideas in order to help cover expenses of the upcoming tournaments in order to ensure all their teammates can participate. This past weekend IJ Holton teams traveled to the VEX Robotics State Tournament. All three teams showcased their skills and abilities as they competed against many high school teams for several awards. Students competed in skills challenge competitions and participated in elimination rounds in order to earn their way into bracket play. Students also interviewed with judges showcasing their engineering notebooks as they took judges on a journey through their design process throughout the season.
The weekend ended with team 8440A ranking 27 out of 70, team 8440B ranked 39 out of 70. Team 8440C received the Energy Award for their energetic enthusiasm. I am also very excited to announce that due to their team performance 8440C moved into bracket play where their performance moved them into final rounds. Their performance in finals earned them 2nd place at the tournament which earned them a World Championship invitation in Louisville Kentucky in April. We will have our work cut out for us in the upcoming weeks as 8440B prepares to head to the US Open in Council Bluffs Iowa April 7-9th and 8440C head to the World Championship in Louisville Kentucky April 20-23. Not only do teams need to prepare for our events but we will be working hard to seek community support to financially support these teams travel and compete at these events. The IJ Holton VEX Robotics program is run solely on team sponsorship and donation from parents and local businesses and grant funding received from Austin Public Education Foundation which together only covers normal season expenses to local tournaments and some additional parts and pieces which means we will have our work cut out for us in the next few months. |
|