My kids only meet once per week for a couple of hours because they have so
many other things we are working around. Because of that they do research
between meetings during the project phase and then put it together when
they come to meetings.
So for last year they each researched and picked a natural disaster and
community, then they came back together and talked about them, did some
research together and decided between them which one to concentrate on.
Then they each researched the natural disaster they picked at home and the
problems that might result from that, came back together to discuss and
pick the one to concentrate on. And so on. They are using the same method
for this year but still working through it.
During the first part of the season they concentrate on project and once
they feel they have a good handle on it, move to robot.
The first year (Senior Solutions) they did them concurrently but being all
boys that was their favorite part. Judging feedback from their tournament
indicated they were too robot focused. We kept the feedback sheets and they
reviewed them prior to the start of last year and changed their strategy
which worked very well.

On Tue, Sep 16, 2014 at 10:49 AM, Fredrik Nyman <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:

> I have been thinking about assigning project homework to my 4th and 5th
> graders that they would do with their parents' help. Nothing big, maybe 15
> minutes of Internet research.
>
> Has anyone tried that approach?  Thoughts?
>
> (My kids' parents are exceptionally supportive).
>
>
> On Tuesday, September 16, 2014, Gowri Kumar <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>> There are  five teams from our school and each team gets to practice the
>> mission once a week for two hours. Then they would meet at library or
>> someone's place once a week and do the research and other team activities.
>>
>> Sent from my iPad
>>
>> On Sep 16, 2014, at 9:41 AM, "Poole, Aeronia" <[log in to unmask]>
>> wrote:
>>
>>  I am curious if anyone has a school-based team and how you divide the
>> practice time to cover research, building, programming, and team-building.
>> We have 1 hour, 15 minutes 1X/week, but just added a 2nd day.  Feeling a
>> bit stressed about what to focus on before regional tournaments.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Mrs. Poole
>>
>> MS Tech Lab
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> *From:* First Lego League in Virginia and DC [
>> mailto:[log in to unmask]] *On Behalf Of *Scott Rakestraw
>> *Sent:* Monday, September 15, 2014 4:15 PM
>> *To:* [log in to unmask]
>> *Subject:* Re: [VADCFLL-L] Robot Design for Rookies
>>
>>
>>
>> Frank,
>>
>>
>>
>> Every coach struggles with this, you are not alone.  There is a balance,
>> my first year I was completely hands-off and evolved my approach with
>> experience.  After my first year and after having some experience in Boy
>> Scouts, I adopted the Edge Method from Boy Scouts, which is a method of
>> learning by doing and a Robotics Badge Learning system.
>>
>>
>>
>> Explain how it is done – tell them
>>
>> Demonstrate the steps – show them
>>
>> Guide – learn as they practice – watch them do it
>>
>> Enable – help them to succeed on their own
>>
>>
>>
>> We apply the EDGE method with summer workshops and challenges that
>> explain, demonstrate and guide.  By the time missions are released, they
>> are on the enable step and have a strong foundation.   Once we have the
>> missions, the team completes a robot design worksheet which defines the
>> robot they will build.
>>
>>
>>
>> We also use a Robotics Badge Learning System as part of the process, a
>> concept borrowed from Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts.  I use the badges to
>> recognize team contribution and more importantly, to encourage team members
>> to learn and try new things.   I think we have about 30 badges. For
>> example, you can earn a line following or wall squaring badge. Because they
>> want to earn badges, they take the time to learn about a concept.  When
>> they are doing run strategy, they figure out how to apply a badge concept
>> like wall or line squaring.  The badges are not just robot focused, they
>> also cover project and core values.  My team this year is a Division II of
>> all 7th grade girls that has won awards at States the last two years,
>> they still want to earn badges.
>>
>>
>>
>> If you are interested in the Robotics Badge Learning System, challenges
>> or worksheets, they are available on my robotics blog,
>> www.fllstartingpoint.com, under resources.
>>
>>
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Scott Rakestraw
>>
>> www.fllstartingpoint.com
>>
>>
>>
>> Capital Teens
>>
>> Capital Girls
>>
>> Capital Girls Too
>>
>> Code Crackers (4 Years)
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> *From:* First Lego League in Virginia and DC [
>> mailto:[log in to unmask]] *On Behalf Of *Frank Levine
>> *Sent:* Monday, September 15, 2014 12:00 AM
>> *To:* [log in to unmask]
>> *Subject:* [VADCFLL-L] Robot Design for Rookies
>>
>>
>>
>> Hi all,
>>
>>   I was wondering where the line is between 'kids do the work' vs
>> 'starter robot' is?  I have seen several suggestions (both here and on the
>> interwebs) that this/that robot is a great robot for rookies, etc.  While
>> my team has been trying to make a decent robot from scratch, I have taken
>> many of the suggestions that I have seen from the internet and made what I
>> think is a decent driving base.  Is it appropriate to hand that base over
>> to the rookies and let them go from there?  Will the judges frown on a
>> coach doing some of the initial legwork to get a base started?  What's the
>> difference between that and finding a starting base on-line?  Ideally I
>> would love to see them make it from scratch, but today's building session
>> has me thinking that this may be a bit of a stretch.
>>
>>
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Frank Levine
>>
>> "The Construction Mavericks"
>>  ------------------------------
>>
>> To UNSUBSCRIBE or CHANGE your settings, please visit
>> https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-l.html and select "Join or
>> leave the list".
>> VADCFLL administrative announcements are sent via
>> VADCFLL-ANNOUNCEMENTS-L. Visit
>> https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-announcements-l.html to
>> subscribe.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> *From:* First Lego League in Virginia and DC [
>> mailto:[log in to unmask]] *On Behalf Of *Frank Levine
>> *Sent:* Monday, September 15, 2014 12:00 AM
>> *To:* [log in to unmask]
>> *Subject:* [VADCFLL-L] Robot Design for Rookies
>>
>>
>>
>> Hi all,
>>
>>   I was wondering where the line is between 'kids do the work' vs
>> 'starter robot' is?  I have seen several suggestions (both here and on the
>> interwebs) that this/that robot is a great robot for rookies, etc.  While
>> my team has been trying to make a decent robot from scratch, I have taken
>> many of the suggestions that I have seen from the internet and made what I
>> think is a decent driving base.  Is it appropriate to hand that base over
>> to the rookies and let them go from there?  Will the judges frown on a
>> coach doing some of the initial legwork to get a base started?  What's the
>> difference between that and finding a starting base on-line?  Ideally I
>> would love to see them make it from scratch, but today's building session
>> has me thinking that this may be a bit of a stretch.
>>
>>
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Frank Levine
>>
>> "The Construction Mavericks"
>>   ------------------------------
>>
>> To UNSUBSCRIBE or CHANGE your settings, please visit
>> https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-l.html and select "Join or
>> leave the list".
>> VADCFLL administrative announcements are sent via
>> VADCFLL-ANNOUNCEMENTS-L. Visit
>> https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-announcements-l.html to
>> subscribe.
>>  ------------------------------
>>
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>> subscribe.
>>
>> ------------------------------
>> To UNSUBSCRIBE or CHANGE your settings, please visit
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>> subscribe.
>
> ------------------------------
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