TechnOdyssey, CharterRobotics, FIRST, Escondido Charter School District, Grades, 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12, Robotics Program, Girard Foundation Grant Funded

Welcome to:
TechnOdyssey
Made possible by a grant from:
Girard Foundation

FIRST robot

This program is made possible by a grant from the
Girard
F O U N D A T I O N

For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST)

Junior FIRST LEGO League (JFLL) – Grades 1-3
FIRST LEGO League (FLL) – Grades 4-6
FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) – Grades 7-8
FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) – Grades 9-12

Junior FIRST LEGO League (JFLL) – Grades 1-3

Students in grades 1-3 will participate in the Junior FIRST LEGO League (JFLL). The project for JFLL will mirror the project for the FIRST LEGO League (FLL), but on a scale that younger students can comprehend. Students will work in small groups (4-5 students) to create a presentation and a will build LEGO models to demonstrate some aspect of their project.

All work will be done in class under the supervision of the middle school science teacher, Mr. Ruff. Mr. Ruff will spend about one-half hour per week working with the students on their projects. For the first month of school, he will be preparing students to build models with LEGOs. During the competition season (mid-September – November), he will be working with students on their projects.

In November or December, we will hold a JFLL field day on campus. One group from each classroom will be selected to participate as the competition team for their class. They will compete in a tournament with other area schools.

During the second semester, the science teacher, Mr. Ruff, will be working with students to build an understanding of the scientific method and to gain an understanding of effective group participation in problem-solving activities.

FIRST LEGO League (FLL) – Grades 4-6

Students in grades 4-6 will participate in the FIRST LEGO League (FLL). The project for FLL will be announced in mid-September and will be a two-part challenge. The first part will require students to perform research on an assigned topic and prepare a presentation board and oral report to be delivered to the judges. The second part will require students to design, build, and program a LEGO robot to perform tasks on a 4’x8’ board in a game format related to the research they have performed.

The research and presentations will be created in class under the supervision of the middle school science teacher, Mr. Ruff. Students will work in small groups (4-5 students) to create a presentation. Mr. Ruff will spend about one hour per week working with the students on their projects. For the first month of school, he will be preparing students to do the research and will introduce them to the methods they will use to present their findings. During the competition season (mid-September – November), he will be working with students on their projects. One project from each class will be selected for presentation by three of the students who did the research.

The LEGO robots will be built after school by a small team (6-7 students per classroom) that has been selected to represent their class. The team will be selected based on interest and aptitude. Team advisors (school employees) will meet with the teams twice per week from mid-September to mid-November. Mentors with specific technical skills (engineering and programming) will be invited to assist.

In November or December (dates TBD) the teams will compete in an off-site tournament with other teams from the San Diego area. These tournaments are usually scheduled on Saturday. Both the project presentations and the robots are judged in the competition.

During the second semester, the science teacher, Mr. Ruff, will be working with students to develop their scientific inquiry skills and to show students the practical applications of science and math through hands-on activities.

FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) – Grades 7-8

Students in grades 7-8 will be eligible to participate in the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC). There is no classroom component to FTC. It is entirely an after-school club program aimed at designing, building, and programming small metal robots. There will be two teams with a combination 7th and 8th grade students and a mixture of boys and girls. The teams will be divided up in such a manner as to provide each team with an equal talent pool.

Students will meet twice a week after school to work on their robots with their advisors (school employees). Mentors with specific technical skills (engineering and programming) will be invited to assist. Students from the high school robotics team will receive service hours for assisting the FTC teams.

The new FTC game will be released in mid-September. Students will have two months to design, build, and program their robots. They will be expected to keep an engineering journal.

In November or December (dates TBD) the teams will compete in an off-site tournament with other teams from the Southern California region. These tournaments are usually scheduled on Saturday. Students will need to present their engineering journals to the judges to be eligible for awards.

FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) – Grades 9-12

Students in grades 9-12 will be eligible to participate in the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC). The program is open to boys and girls in both TCP and ILP. Student in the FIRST Robotics Competition will design, build, and program full-sized metal robots. In addition, there will be opportunities for students to get involved with marketing, public relations, graphics, web design, 3-D animation, finance, logistics, and quality control. The program will consist of an after-school club activity, and a zero-period robotics business course. Students can sign up for the class and the team during the first two weeks of school. (See Mr. Tarr for more details.)

The team will be run as an after-school club activity and will be open to all high school students with at least a 2.5 GPA. During the first semester, the team will meet two days per week, for two hours per day (days TBD). During the build season (January 3rd – February 17th) the team will meet three days per week, for four hours per day, plus Saturdays and holidays - all day. After the build season is over, the team will follow the first semester schedule.

The robotics business course is open to high school TCP and ILP students with at least a 3.2 GPA. The course will be structured as a business with students being “hired” to fill management positions. Students who want to be a part of the team leadership must be a part of this class as well as the after-school team. The course will have a projects-based curriculum, and will meet zero-period (7:15 am – 7:55 am) Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Students will receive 5 elective credits per semester.

The team will participate in regional competitions (in San Diego and Los Angeles) in March. The competitions last for three days (Thursday – Saturday). Awards are given, not only for the best-performing robots, but also for 3-D animation, business plan development, innovative engineering, team brand identity, and safety.

Students who participate in the FIRST Robotics Competition will gain skills and knowledge in the following areas:

• Strategic Planning
• Business Plan Development
• Engineering
• Fabrication
• Project Management
• Quality Control
• C+ Programming
• Graphics
• Website Design
• Marketing
• Public Relations
• Logistics
• Finance
• Safety

Robot Arm