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QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"If something's broken, take it apart and try to fix it. And don't be afraid to fail because I failed a lot when I was a kid." - Joe Swadel, Sylvania
WHAT EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT
Engage!
Help your community start FIRST® teams with a Community Engagement Grant. To ensure greater access and reduce inequalities, FIRST® is providing funds to communities through the FIRST STEM Equity Community Innovation Grant. Want to provide greater access to quality STEM experiences? This grant is designed to help you make it
so: http://firstinspires.org/news/apply-for-a-stem-equity-community-innovation-grant
Time is running short
FIRST is excited to announce that we are accepting presentation proposals for the 13th annual FIRST Championship Conferences! We are looking for presentations on topics of interest to teams, Coaches, Mentors, Students, and prospective leaders in all four FIRST programs. Interested? Get the scoop here (http://www.firstinspires.org/community/first-championship) and apply before Friday, March
4th.
CONTEST CORNER
In the key of awesome
The 2016 FIRST Championship is looking for a FIRST team member to perform the U.S. national anthem live and in person at this year’s FIRST Championship Welcome Ceremony in St. Louis, Missouri. End the season on a true high note with all the details here: http://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/2016-first-championship-national-anthem-contest
STEM in the NEWS
Why would you want to make a robotic salamander? Because, as the ANIMAL
ALLIESSM, season will teach you, animal locomotion teaches us many great lessons about biomechanics. Taking inspiration from animals gives us some amazing results.
INNOVATION AMBASSADOR UPDATE
Last season’s Global Innovation Semi-Finalist team, NeXT Generation, has kept busy this year working alongside teams in three of our four FIRST programs. Catch up with them in our latest blog post.
CELEBRATION and SHOUT-OUTS
When you look back on your Robot Game experience, can you point to improvements you made and new skills you have learned?
Has your Project transformed from a mere idea to a real possibility?
Has the teamwork you have learned via the Core Values increased your appreciation for the skills your other teammates bring to the table?
That's what we mean when we say, "What we discover is more important than what we win." Spoiler alert: Discovering new things about yourself and learning new skills is totally winning. Every. Time.
Special shout-out
This week's giant high five goes out to Team 191, the JP2 Rockslides.
In the spirit of thorough research, this Rogers, Minn., team toured 6 different trash and recycling facilities to find out all that they could about how the processing works and what kind of problems each location encountered. When one recycler asked the team to please solve their problem with shredded paper, the JP@ Rockslides rose to the challenge. After coming up with the idea for a special, recyclable,
paper tape that said “SHREDDED PAPER” on it, the recycler was so interested they offered to test the teams’ prototype (40 bags), including curbside testing! The testing went well and the team learned some ways they could improve their solution. After making some improvements, the team continued to share their idea with others in the recycling industry, and there have been numerous positive responses. When another recycler wanted to recommend the idea to their
clients, but didn’t want to take on the administration of selling the tape themselves, the Rockslides took on the challenge and created a website where they sell the tape themselves, launching in early January. They have been donating proceeds to their 4-H STEM Club.
Way to go, Rockslides!
What is YOUR team up to? Be proud to make it loud and tell us all about what you've been doing with a tweet to @firstlegoleague. Or, shoot us an email at fllt...@firstinspires.org. Then watch this space. Next time, we may be shouting out to YOU!
SPONSOR SUPPORT
Thank you, as always, to our FIRST LEGO League Global Sponsors, who help us bring our program to students around the globe. They are 3M, NI, Rockwell Automation, and, of course, LEGO®. Show them some love.
STAY TUNED
This email blast was built, tested and retested at FIRST headquarters in Manchester, NH, USA. Be sure to read the messages from your regional FIRST LEGO League contacts for all you need to know about local events and happenings.
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