We have a Queen’s College school team in the ‘FIRST® LEGO® League’ delivering fun, exciting hands-on learning through real-world problem-solving experiences designing engineering robotic technologies to build a better future together. This year’s challenge for our school team has been all about exploring energy to work to reimagine the future of sustainable energy through innovative design utilising technology and engineering for a better energy future that minimises the impact on our global climate
On Wednesday 25 January, eleven students from Years 7-10 spent the day at Hewlett Packard in Bristol competing in the Lego First League. FIRST® inspires young people to be science and technology leaders and innovators by engaging them in exciting programs that build science, engineering, and technology skills, inspire innovation, and foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication, and leadership.
Months of designing, building, programming and tinkering with an autonomous robot came to a crescendo of music, lights and action. Alongside the robot game, the team were judged on their innovation project presentation, their gracious professionalism and their robot design.
The Queen’s team – Team EmVee – was one of 23 from across the region (some teams travelling as far as, east Calne and west Cardiff.) The team worked really hard and following a couple of great heats flipping a hybrid car, switching on the TV and powering a dinosaur toy factory Queen’s made it through to the robot game final. They were pipped to first place by an amazing home-schooled team from Wiltshire. Second place in the robot game was unfortunately not enough to secure a place in the national final, however, Mr Higgs and Mr Williams are super proud of how well the team did and to come away with a trophy in our first year of entering is amazing.
The team will keep meeting for the remainder of the term and work on their coding and robot design to ensure that they can return next year better and stronger.
The robotics co-curricular club was run by Mr Williams, Science and Mr Higgs, DT. To access the higher points the team need to discuss their project ideas with industry experts and learn from their feedback. If you would be interested in getting involved, this could be a half-hour Zoom call or popping in to the club for up to an hour, please contact beh@queenscollege.org.uk.
