Robotics Kids Need Our Support to Beat the Water Challenge

Picture the excitement of a high school basketball tournament, complete with cheering fans, pump-it-up music, an announcer, mascots, concessions.... with Robots instead of basketball players. This is the excitement of our robotics competition days for the Boosting Engineering, Science, and Technology (B.E.S.T) robotics program. Thank you, B.E.S.T. Robotics, for offering this program to kids across the country!!

For the 5th year in a row, AcademyACL students in 5th through 8th grade have signed onto the Robotics team, and are competing in the six-week B.E.S.T. competition. This is a major school "sport" for our kids. If they earn enough points in the first competition with the Front Range B.E.S.T. competitors, they can head to regional competition in Denver.

In one memorable competition, the robot BROKE in round two. Our students on the build team, in the "pit" had to figure out how to get it working again before the next round. One of our students had been in charge of the computer programming for the robot, and he could NOT figure out what was going on, and was showing major frustration and stress. He took a break, talked it through, went back to work on it and other teams sent kids to help, too, as one of the goals of the competition- collaboration. The pit crew along with him figured it out, and he was able to drive that robot onto the field and compete in the next round. The look on his face at the end was PRICELESS, and he learned one of the most important parts of engineering- things break. Students have to breathe, think through, reach out to others for ideas, and keep problem-solving until they find answers.

Success is sweet.

Previous Awards: 2nd Place B.E.S.T. 2016. Most Creative Exhibit, 2016. Regional Founder's Award, 2016. 1st Place B.E.S.T. 2017. Team Spirit 2017. Regional Marketing 1st Place, 2017. Regional TShirt 2017.

They have made it to two regional competitions in a row, and are hoping for year three. Last year, they were able to tour the Metro State engineering department and learn more about equipment and technology, ahead of the competition times.

The students in this competition get to explore the full range of skills that is needed for an engineering team to be successful-- design, schematics, compliance to the design, cost analysis, communication, research, documentation, marketing, and more. Funds raised enable them to explore and address all of these areas, and learn amazing skills in the process.

The robot-building itself is free to schools, through funds raised by the B.E.S.T. national and local organizations. However, the field for the robot to compete is not provided, and this year it involves a robot suspended in the air: a competition performed on a contraption and not the floor! Yikes- GAME ON.

The monies raised through this campaign will help three areas:

1) Help our students to build the practice field-- a contraption-- in order to test their robot. This year's robot has to hang over an "ocean", i.e. the floor on a swinging bar, and reach out to collect ocean "trash" without falling off the bar- the most challenging physics goal they've encountered yet. The cost of materials for the practice field is approximately $1500, if everything is bought new (contact the team if you might have some parts like washers, 2x4s, paint, etc. on hand to donate).

2) Provide lodging and food for our students and their coaches as they will need to stay overnight in Denver to attend all of their robotics competition events if they make it to regionals.

3) Provide team supplies, posters, and materials for the booth creation, "marketing", tools, and other projects that students have to complete as part of the competition's challenges.

Any monies raised beyond what is needed for these goals will be used for materials and equipment to support the robotics and STEAM education program across the kindergarten through eighth grade levels at our school.

Visit and "like" our robotics page, www.facebook.com/AcademyACLRobotics for team updates

and to see "live" broadcasts of competitions and events.