Armed with their customized robots and innovative solutions for the world water crisis, 285 children gathered at the Trinkle Center Feb. 17 to prove they were no longer waiting to grow up and change the world.
It may seem like a game. Thirty-seven robots were placed on tables to attempt to complete 24 miscellaneous tasks like lifting objects, retrieving items and navigating a field mat in the span of two and a half minutes. But the FIRST LEGO League Challenge pits elementary and middle school students against some of the toughest issues facing our world today.
After months of strategizing, hard work and in-depth research, 36 teams from 16 counties and one from the Cayman Islands gathered around four large tables to see who was inventive enough to progress to the state FIRST LEGO League championship. While their robots’ success is a part of their overall score, the teams’ responses to the global water crossroads will ultimately determine who moves on to state and internationals.
Each year, FIRST LEGO League has teams research real world problems like food safety, energy, recycling and more. The young students then develop a solution to the issue, pulling from their knowledge of science, engineering and math to create a new way to tackle the current issue.
FIRST, which stands for “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology,” is the world’s leading child-serving nonprofit advancing science, technology, engineering, and math. FIRST works on building relationships between children and STEM professionals to help encourage the young innovators to change the world.
Over the past three years, FIRST LEGO has had more than 255,000 participants in 88 countries. Desh Bagley, the affiliate partner for FIRST LEGO League, said the competitions hook students in with the LEGO robots, but encourages them to scientifically combat real issues and realize they are essential to the future of our world.
“I have been very surprised by how the kids think outside the box about the water problem,” Bagley said. “For example, one team found that we have microfibers from our clothing in our water. Another is researching water infiltration for our pets. We drink out of water bottles and filters but our pets don’t. I thought that was kind of interesting.”
The contest draws a diverse group of both boys and girls and tests teamwork and furthers friendly competition. Bagley said the event consistently shows the camaraderie held by all of the teams involved. While they are competing, the opponent is the clock and not each other.
“Unlike other sports, they’re not going head-to-head,” Bagley said. “Everybody is sharing knowledge, which is exactly what we have to do on a larger scale to solve world problems. We have to share knowledge, communicate with each other and use each other to come up with innovative solutions to what plagues us.”
This is the third year the competition has been in place and Hillsborough Community College is the regional partner. HCC allows the groups to use the space for competitions and the interest is only continuing to grow. Currently there are 97 teams in the region and Bagley said Suncoast gives them grants to help start programs in local schools.
The students have been working on their robots since September and Bagley said many of the groups do so much more than simply design a “droid.” Seeing firsthand how the skills can revolutionize society is a key part of the educational program. Many of the children in attendance recently took a field trip to a local water facility to see how technology purifies our drinking water.
While the children donned their matching t-shirts or lab coats, huddled around tournament tables and competed for their LEGO trophies one thing was abundantly clear: The problems facing the world are immense, but our youth are more than ready to take up the challenge.