FLORAL PARK-BELLEROSE SCHOOL DISTRICT STUDENTS TAKE
1st PLACE
IN ROBOT PROGRAMMING
AT THE LONG ISLAND CHAMPIONSHIPS!
On March 4th, the Floral Park BRICK HEADS FIRST Lego League (FLL) Team won first place in robot performance at the Long Island FLL Championship Tournament at Longwood High School in Middle Island, New York.
The BRICK HEADS achieved their first place score of 183 points by programming an autonomous robot to perform a series of tasks on a robot game field. The competition included the 43 top FLL teams from throughout Nassau and Suffolk County. The team also received second place awards for Robot Programming and Gracious Professionalism at the January 29, 2012 Long Island Qualifying Tournament.
This is the first year for the rookie FLL team which includes fifth and sixth graders from Floral Park-Bellerose and John Lewis Childs Elementary Schools, and is sponsored by the Floral Park-Bellerose School District. The team is coached by Cindy Casson, James Craig and Jean Powers.
In addition to Robot Programming, the team had to research a project related to this year’s FLL theme, “Food Factor.” The team selected fish contamination for their project and identified the problem of maintaining proper fish temperature. After interviewing experts and conducting research, the team developed the concept of a “Fresh Fish Strip” that would record temperature, time and geographic data from the time the fish is caught until it is purchased by the consumer. The team had to develop a five minute presentation and defend their research as part of the competition.
FLL is sponsored by FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) and was founded in 1989 by inventor Dean Kamen to inspire young people’s interest and participation in science and technology. Based in Manchester, NH, FIRST is a non-profit charity supported by sponsors and volunteers. The Long Island FLL Qualifiers and Championships are supported by the School-Business Partnership of Long Island, Inc. For more information on these programs, visit www.usfirst.org or www.sbpli-lifirst.org.
