2004 Coach's Workshop

Virginia Tech FLL Partnership

Sept. 11, 2004; 1-5pm

Christiansburg Middle School

Register now by emailing the following information to FLLpartnership@vt.edu: name, address, e-mail, school, school address, and number of coaches and students attending. You can also complete the signup sheet and return it to the address at the bottom. Registration is not mandatory, but it helps us get prepared. Remember to bring your kits!

General Information

This year's annual workshop for FIRST(TM) LEGO® League coaches (and student team members) in southwestern Virginia will be held on September 11, 2004 in the Christiansburg Middle School. After a brief overview, the two groups will separate; the kids will learn about the basic physics behind their LEGO® robots while the coaches will learn about fund-raising ideas, team-building skills, and the engineering design process. A short break with refreshments will be provided, after which the two groups will reconvene and learn to program their RCX bricks and then compete in a mini-challenge set up like the national LEGO® competition.

What you need to know and do before you come:

Please fill out a workshop signup sheet for each individual attending, and return it to the address provided at the bottom. This gives us a good estimate of how many coaches and students to expect, and gives us time to prepare accordingly. Although the FLL Partnership at Virginia Tech can lend several LEGO® Mindstorms kits for the workshop, there may not be enough to go around, so please bring your team's kit if you already have one.

Due to the time constraints of the workshop, if you do have a kit and are able to bring it, please assemble the Roverbot (pages 12-17 in the LEGO® Mindstorms Constructopedia 2.0) with the light sensor attachment (pp. 34-35). If you are unable to find these instructions, please contact us for help. This gives the kids more time to program and (let's face it) play with the robot. It takes approximately 30 minutes to build.

Important: If you do not have a kit, the FLL Partnership at Virginia Tech will provide one (given that there are enough to go around), and will have the Roverbot with the light sensor attachment constructed, and ready to go for the workshop.

The Mini-challenge

The FLL team at VT has designed a simple mini-challenge for the coaches and kids at the workshop, to be revealed in the last 2 hours before we adjourn. The challenge can be completed with the Roverbot (plus light sensor) with a minimum of external parts, and is aimed at developing team-building skills, R.I.S. (and/or RoboLab) programming experience, and (of course) fun. Because no one will know what the national challenge will be until September 15th, this gives everyone a good chance to practice working together; coaches and teammates alike.

If you go...

Please complete the signup sheet.
Bring your Mindstorms kit (if you have one) and build the Roverbot with the light sensor attachment in the Constructopedia

What's the damage?

The workshop is free, but you must provide your own transportation.

Contact

For more information, questions, or comments about FIRST(TM) LEGO® League at Virginia Tech, please email FLLpartnership@vt.edu

FIRST LEGO League