This is an issue that had been a pain for our team for the last two
seasons. I am losing most of 8th graders due to the pressure they are
experiencing because of the conflict with TJ exam. Also the time between
the release of the game challenge and the regional competitions is too
small and we always had to rush and do many busy weekends solving the
missions. This puts lot of pressure on the kids as well as coaches.

I noticed many states do have their state championships in the first
quarter and the World even it is all the way in April. It will be really
nice if the regional tournaments take place in January and the Championship
in Feb. Just a thought - I am sure the VADC-FLL must have strong reasons
for their schedule, but I can only hope that they would consider extending
the season a bit.

Thanks,
Purna

On Mon, Dec 5, 2011 at 3:56 PM, Donna L. Cornwell <[log in to unmask]
> wrote:

>
> I think I have coached my last FLL season as my daughter is an 8th grader
> and has her eyes on FTC.( anyone know of a neighborhood FTC team in the
> Herndon/Reston/Chantilly area?)
>
> Over my 7 years as a coach and/or mentor, I have found the season to be
> too short.  The differences between being a rookie team and a returning
> team are huge.  This is hard on school based teams that form in September
> and have to compete in November.  Below is a link to Maryland's schedule
> where they have regionals in Dec/Jan and the state tournament at the end of
> January.  (The events that don't say "FLL" are FRC, the high school
> competition.)
>
> http://www.mdfirst.org/calendar-of-events.html
>
> This schedule would allow kids to do a lot more in a season.   There would
> still be schedule conflicts in January,  but it would be easier for the
> kids to juggle their activities with a longer prep season.
>
> Donna Cornwell
> [log in to unmask]
>
>
>
>
> On 12/5/2011 3:27 PM, Paul K. VanDamme wrote:
>
> So I never comment on these boards...but I can't resist this topic....this
> is a horrible weekend because of all the countless conflicts that exist
> with folks trying to squeeze in final performances, tournaments, etc
> between the holidays.
>
> This year half our team was missing because they were performing in the
> nutcracker, something they rehearse for all summer and fall. It showed that
> we only had three girls, but what are you going to do -- for active kids
> that do more than just lego robotics....there are always choices.
>
> I for one would be in favor of moving it out of December (which is just
> ridiculously busy), but I suspect other months will have similar conflicts
> for people.
>
> Carolyn
> Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
> ------------------------------
>
>
>  ------------------------------
> 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.
>



-- 
Venkata P. Alla
www.PurnaBlog.com
AIM: purnarupa
Gtalk: PurnaAlla
Facebook: PurnaAlla
Twitter: PurnaAlla
LinkedIN: PurnaAlla

-- 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.