FIRST LEGO League

Background
FIRST, For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, is an organization dedicated to science and technology education. The program, designed for middle and high school students, uses robotics competitions to teach team building, problem solving, creativity, and leadership skills. Each team designs and builds a robot and competes in regional and national events.

The Robotics competition pairs designers and engineers from industry with a high school team to show students the real-world application of design-and-build principles. Teams experience the same challenges and obstacles that affect engineers in industry such as choice of materials, construction or design flaws, and tight deadlines.

In the LEGO League competition, teams of children age 9 to 14 use the popular LEGO building blocks and a robotics software program to solve a challenge. Awards in regional and national events are given not just for completing the challenge, but also for teamwork, spirit, research on the given topic, creativity, and persistence.

Powerspan's LEGO League Team
During the 2001-2002 school year, Powerspan sponsored a FIRST LEGO League team at the Kingswood Regional Middle School in Wolfeboro, N.H. Under the direction of team leader Daphne Berntsen, the ten students designed and built a robotic vehicle (see picture) and competed in a regional tournament in Rochester, N.H. in December 2001.

Powerspan's 2001 FIRST LEGO League Team
Kingswood Regional Middle School, Wolfeboro, NH