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Lego Robotics at Holy Rosary
Holy Rosary First Lego League (FLL)!
FLL introduces younger students to real-world engineering challenges by building LEGO-based robots to complete tasks on a thematic playing surface. The goal is to inspire students to take an interest in science and technology, and begin considering these fields as a career.
FLL teams will:
- Build and program a small robot to accomplish various challenges
- Investigate a research topic and present findings at a tournament. The research topic is tied to the FLL Theme, which for 2013 is Nature’s Fury. Teams will explore the topic of how robotics can help us deal with natural disasters.
- Build a team around FLL Core Values
- We are a team.
- We do the work to find solutions with guidance from our coaches and mentors.
- We know our coaches and mentors don’t have all the answers; we learn together.
- We honor the spirit of friendly competition.
- What we discover is more important than what we win
- We share our experiences with others.
- We display Gracious Professionalism(TM) and Cooperation(TM) in everything we do.
- We have fun.
The FLL “season” is September - December. Everything comes together at a Regional Tournament. The teams are judged on 1) a technical review of their robot, 2) their research, and 3) how well their team learned the Core Values. Each team will attempt the challenge tasks three times on the competition tables. The Regional Tournament provides an exciting opportunity for teams to learn from each other and share their excitement rather than a “winner takes all” competition. Teams that earn a judged award or attain a top score during the robot challenge are invited to the Washington State Championships. Last year 240 teams competed in the state of Washington.
Each team has 3-10 students, a coach, and multiple mentors. Coaches and mentors are there facilitate instruction and optimize the learning experience of the team by allowing independent thought. Coaches and mentors are there to guide students through their work and facilitate problem solving - not to do the work for them! The cost per child is $100. This fee can be paid online.
Teams should expect to meet once a week during the season, for approximately 2 hours. Think of this like a sport for the mind, with twice weekly practices, and a big tournament in December!
Click here to register.
Junior First Lego League (Junior FLL)
Junior FLL is an exciting opportunity for the youngest budding scientists. Its goal is to inspire, excite, and introduce kids to the wonders of science, technology, and engineering.
- Junior FLL teaches the benefits of teamwork
- Sparks initial interest in science and technology
- Introduces basic design skills through a hands-on approach with the familiarity and fun of LEGO building
- Provides a culture of sharing and learning from others.
- Students will have the opportunity to investigate a science and technology related theme. A Junior FLL team will:
- Receive a challenge based on the FLL theme for the year
- Research and build their project with Legos
- Create a Show-Me-Board display
- Have their project reviewed at an exposition
- Junior FLL Core Values are:
- Teach the benefit of teamwork
- Spark initial interest in science and technology
- Introduce basic design skills through a hands-on approach with the familiarity and fun of LEGO building
- Provide a culture of sharing and learning from others.
- Junior FLL teams are for students ages 6-9 (9 is a firm limit). Teams are typically 3-6 students, led by a coach and mentor(s). Teams meet once a week, for 1-1.5 hours. The cost can vary; typically about $30 per team, but more or less depending on Lego options and add-on’s selected. The cost per child for the 2014 season is $30.
The “season” is different for Junior FLL. Registration and teams start forming in August, with several regional half-day competitions in the spring.
Click here to register.
Once you are registered, you will receive more information from your coach regarding cost, timeframe, and some resources you and your child can look at to get ready for fall.
FLL Coaches and Mentors (in alphabetical order)
The Holy Rosary Lego Robotics Team has a great lineup of coaches and mentors, including several who are members of the parish but do not have children at Holy Rosary School, but are excited to share their passion for technology, creativity, and Legos with the next generation. One is even a graduate of HRS!
Patrick Amrine, FLL Mentor
Patrick Amrine started building with LEGO blocks over 20 years ago. As a high school student, he participated in the FIRST Robotics competition. Since then he has been a mentor for his high school team in preparation for both state and national competitions. He now works as a Flight Test Engineer at Boeing, and most recently he has worked on the 787 and 747-8 programs. He is excited to help build a successful foundation for future FIRST LEGO League teams at Holy Rosary.
Carl Baber, Junior FLL Coach and Coordinator
Carl has 2 daughters that attend Holy Rosary, one in preschool and one going into 2nd grade next year. His experience with Legos goes back to his childhood days, and many happy hours of playing with that fun toy. He is a Cougar, and brings enthusiasm and great organizational skills to the team. He will be a Junior FLL Coach, and overall coordinator for the Junior FLL program and HRS. He has experimented with Lego Robotics, and is looking forward to learning more, teaching our children, and having fun.
Brian Christenson, FLL Coach
My name is Brian Christenson and I look forward to being one of the early pioneers in bringing my passion around computers, electronics, team building and project management to a successful launch of FLL at Holy Rosary. My wife Holly and I have been active Holy Rosary parishioners for the last 12 years and we are the proud parents of Jack (1B) and Maddie (3B.) This last year I have also had a great opportunity in being a Tiger Cub Scout Den leader with 18 great scouts comprised of boys mainly from 1A and 1B.
My earliest memories of working with electronics was when I was about 6 years old helping my grandfather in his home business restoring old tube radios for antique cars in Central California. My job was to de-solder re-usable components from the circuit boards. This sparked my passion for tinkering which then turned to home computers in the early 80’s where I taught myself programming on a few processor platforms. I turned my hobby to a profession with a degree in Computer Science in the early 90’s which included a series of courses in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. Today I lead technology for Starbucks Coffee in the Asia Pacific region.
Jack and I have been attending the Microsoft First robotics competitions in Seattle for the last 3 years. What excites me most about the program is that it teaches these young creative minds problem solving, team work and presentation skills. All of these skills are useful in their future endeavors and I look forward to being a part of that experience with Holy Rosary.
Chris Frei, FLL Mentor
Chris is a civil engineer working for WATERSHED Science & Engineering in the Pioneer Square area of downtown Seattle. Most of his day-to-day work deals with rivers and streams, so he is looking forward to getting back to his engineering roots and building with Legos. Chris has a B.S. and M.S. of Civil Engineering from Washington State University, and is excited to share his passion for problem solving, and to work with a team to learn about Lego Robotics.
Tavis Hansen, Junior FLL Coach
Tavis has a long history with Legos. His family is originally from Denmark, which is where Legos are originally from! More recently Tavis hails from Canada, where he reports that kids are just as Lego crazy as they are in the US. In his spare time, he likes to play hockey (he was a pro-hockey player for many years). He has one son, Jack, at Holy Rosary.
Brian Knox, FLL Mentor
Brian is a mechanical engineer for Blue Origin, an aerospace company working to dramatically increase access to space for all people. Way before Brian had his head in the sky designing real rockets, he started out with the Lego variety. He remembers building (and crashing) nearly every Lego kit he had, but his all time favorite was the Lego Space Shuttle model. Brian has a B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the Ohio State University, where he spent a sizeable amount of time studying legged robotics that culminated in building a biped jumping robot named KURMET (pronounced like the frog). Brian hasn’t worked with Lego Robotics before, but he is excited to share his knowledge and passion for engineering with the Holy Rosary team.
Brian McGaughey, FLL Mentor
Brian has two sons that have every shelf in their room full of Lego models. His boys’ passion for Legos, along with his own hands on experience building and designing everything from cabinetry and house remodeling to all types of general carpentry should serve him well as a mentor. He has a strong analytical mind for problem solving and arriving at logical solutions. He’s excited to use his skills as a mentor for the 9 to 14 year old Lego Robotics team.
Russell Nishimoto, Junior FLL Coach
Coming soon!
David Redenbaugh, FLL Mentor
David is excited to help kids learn and express their creativity. He is a parishioner at Holy Rosary and an alum of Holy Rosary School. He built and programmed a robot with Lego Mindstorms while working on his computer engineering degree at Notre Dame. David currently works at a company called Smilebox creating interactive multimedia software to allow anyone to capture and share moments in their lives with their friends and family.
MaryPat Smucker, FLL Coach
Marypat Smucker, a Holy Rosary parent, will serve as a coach for one FLL team and as the coordinator for the FLL teams. Marypat’s two sons are Lego enthusiasts who look forward to being on the teams. Marypat is looking forward to helping guide our FLL program through its first year. She has a Lego Mindstorm at home that has already seen some elementary action, and is waiting to see some real programming action!
Paul Zarkowski, FLL Coach
Paul has a long interest in building things. When he first met his wife, he told her he built radios for a living. Which was true - somewhat. Paul has a BSEE and an MSEE from the University of Washington. He did build radios - the kind that send signals over the horizon by reflecting radiowaves off incoming meteorites. He would like to pass his enthusiasm for science and technology on to the next generation. He has never worked with Lego Robotics, but is excited to learn and be part of the team.
Doug Petrusa, FLL Coach
Bio coming soon!
Umang Desai, FLL Mentor
Bio coming soon!
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