I had the pleasure in January of spending the day in
Hillsboro at the Intel Lego Robotics Championships for the State of Oregon. I
was there to watch my son’s team (Team Sigma) compete in the finals after
winning runner up at their regional competition the month before.
Lego Robotics is a terrific program for junior high school
students, which marries robot design, programming and competition, to team work
on a major, innovative, and creative project using engineering skills, and
focused on the real world. This year, the project theme focused on the health
of the elderly, with the goal of proposing real solutions for elder health and
safety.
My son’s team visited a local nursing home, got to know some
of the residents and staff, and found about one very serious problems for the
elderly: walker falls. People dependent on walkers to get around can sometimes
lose control of the walker and still suffer a fall, sometimes with devastating
and life altering hip or other injuries. Ryan and his friends, all on their
own, looked over various walker models, learned about the most common fall
mechanisms, and engineered a solution. They then went a few steps farther,
drawing a CAD diagram (using fee software they found online), buying the
necessary parts for a prototype, and building
it!
I was privileged to be in the room with their coach in
Hillsboro when they demonstrated their prototype and project design boards to a
panel of engineering judges at the competition (see the photo below).
Listening to them present I thought I was watching a group of young engineers,
not my own 13-year old son and his friends. The judges were rapt and pushed
them with tough questions. Without any ability for help from coach or parent,
they confidently answered everything, using expertise (and some vocabulary)
that I do not even possess. I was stunned. For the first time as a parent, I
most clearly understood some of the things my son can do that I can’t, and
never will be able to.
Ryan’s team also won rave reviews from teamwork judges, and
robotics judges, as well as had some great runs on the robot competition
tables.
Karen and I sat on our hands with anxiety, along with the
parents of over 80 other teams, as the statewide awards were announced. No
matter how impressed I had been, I started to give up hope after Team Sigma
failed to earn first place or runner up in any of the category awards
(teamwork, design, programming, etc.). As the overall 3rd place in
Oregon award went by, I started to rehearse in my head a condolences and
encouragement talk to have with my son. Again, it shows how little I know! In
second place in Oregon – Team Sigma! I will never forget the looks on the faces
of this terrific team.
Well done!
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| Team Sigma Accepts 2nd Place in Oregon Trophy at Intel Lego Robotics |
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| Team Sigma Demonstrating Project to Judges |
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