On your marks, get set, flow!

It’s 20 years since the First Lego League (FLL) was founded, turning one of the most successful children’s toys ever into a scientific tool for learning.

This year’s Hydro-Dynamics theme has involved our Year 6 Robotics Club developing a project to address a modern-day challenge: saving water.

Each household on average uses 900 litres of water per day so they have set a target for Infant and Junior School families of saving 150 litres each per week.

As part of FLL, they then built their own Lego Mindstorms robot, incorporating motors and sensors, and programmed it to complete a set of missions as outlined in the league rules.

They were one of 18 junior school teams who converged on Hewlett Packard’s Bristol base, performing as ‘Girls in Red’, where they showed precisely what they had learned.

The robot games are laid out on table-height mats with all structures made out of Lego parts and the teams compete in hectic, two-minute rounds to win points for successfully completed missions.                                           

Mrs Joyce said: “The girls designed, built and programmed their own robot to carry out the required manoeuvres for missions such as pipe laying, flushing toilets, or building a fountain.

“This competition enables so much learning: programming, problem-solving, teamwork, and perseverance.

“When things go right there’s a huge sense of achievement – but it’s not about winning and losing – in the First Lego League it’s about friendly competition and sharing knowledge.”