Every year, FIRST^® LEGO League releases a Challenge, which is based on a real-world scientific topic. Past Challenges have been based on topics such as nanotechnology, climate, quality of life for the handicapped population, and transportation. By designing our Challenges around such topics, participants are exposed to potential career paths within a chosen Challenge topic, in addition to solidifying the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) principles that naturally come from participating in the program. Team members also learn valuable life and employment skills which will benefit them no matter which career path they choose.

Each Challenge has three parts: the Robot Game, the Project, and the Core Values. Teams of up to ten children, with at least two adult coaches, participate in the Challenge by programming an autonomous robot to score points on a themed playing field (Robot Game), developing a solution to a problem they have identified (Project), all guided by the FIRST LEGO League Core Values. Teams may then attend an official tournament, hosted by our FIRST LEGO League Partners.

FIRST LEGO League is known around the globe not only for what we do (the Robot Game and Project), but also how we do it, with Core Values at the heart. The rubrics used for judging reflect these three equally important aspects of FIRST LEGO League. Although the audience mostly sees teams playing the Robot Game at tournaments, teams are also being judged on:

• Core Values
• Project
• Robot Design

The Core Values Poster and the Robot Design Executive Summary are additional tools that may be used to help facilitate discussion in the Core Values and Robot Design Judging sessions at official events. Additional Information About Judging

• Teams must participate in all elements of a FIRST LEGO League competition including the Robot Game and all three judged areas in order to be eligible for any Core Award.
• Judges use the rubrics to help them determine which teams will receive awards.
• With the exception of the Robot Performance Award, awards are determined by a deliberation process, which is formulated around discussions of team performance in each category.
• If a team does not exhibit Core Values at a tournament, they may be disqualified from winning any awards – including Robot Performance, no matter how well they scored.
• Adults are strictly prohibited from directing team members or interfering with the judging process or robot rounds in any way.
• No team is allowed to win two awards, unless one of the awards is for Robot Performance. Robot Performance is the only category based solely on score.
• While they may attend other events for fun, teams are only eligible to win awards at the first official event of each qualifying level attended during the season.

For complete judging rubrics visit the Challenge Website.

Website: http://www.firstlegoleague.org

Managing Organization: First Inc.

Contact:

fllteams@firstinspires.org
(603) 666-3906

Eligibility:

• A team must have a minimum of two (2) and a maximum of ten (10) children. A team with more than ten (10) children will not be eligible for awards at an official tournament.
• Children may be members of only one (1) FIRST LEGO League team per season.
• No team member may be outside the maximum allowed age in your region prior to January 1 of the year the Challenge is released.
  • Allowed ages in most countries: 9-16 years
  • Allowed ages in U.S., Canada, and Mexico: 9-14 years
  • For example, in the United States, a student who turns 15 in May of 2016 would be eligible to compete in the Challenge released in August of 2016, whereas a child who turned 15 in December 2015 would not.

Every year, FIRST^® LEGO League releases a Challenge, which is based on a real-world scientific topic. Past Challenges have been based on topics such as nanotechnology, climate, quality of life for the handicapped population, and transportation. By designing our Challenges around such topics, participants are exposed to potential career paths within a chosen Challenge topic, in addition to solidifying the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) principles that naturally come from participating in the program. Team members also learn valuable life and employment skills which will benefit them no matter which career path they choose.

Each Challenge has three parts: the Robot Game, the Project, and the Core Values. Teams of up to ten children, with at least two adult coaches, participate in the Challenge by programming an autonomous robot to score points on a themed playing field (Robot Game), developing a solution to a problem they have identified (Project), all guided by the FIRST LEGO League Core Values. Teams may then attend an official tournament, hosted by our FIRST LEGO League Partners.

FIRST LEGO League is known around the globe not only for what we do (the Robot Game and Project), but also how we do it, with Core Values at the heart. The rubrics used for judging reflect these three equally important aspects of FIRST LEGO League. Although the audience mostly sees teams playing the Robot Game at tournaments, teams are also being judged on:

• Core Values
• Project
• Robot Design

The Core Values Poster and the Robot Design Executive Summary are additional tools that may be used to help facilitate discussion in the Core Values and Robot Design Judging sessions at official events. Additional Information About Judging

• Teams must participate in all elements of a FIRST LEGO League competition including the Robot Game and all three judged areas in order to be eligible for any Core Award.
• Judges use the rubrics to help them determine which teams will receive awards.
• With the exception of the Robot Performance Award, awards are determined by a deliberation process, which is formulated around discussions of team performance in each category.
• If a team does not exhibit Core Values at a tournament, they may be disqualified from winning any awards – including Robot Performance, no matter how well they scored.
• Adults are strictly prohibited from directing team members or interfering with the judging process or robot rounds in any way.
• No team is allowed to win two awards, unless one of the awards is for Robot Performance. Robot Performance is the only category based solely on score.
• While they may attend other events for fun, teams are only eligible to win awards at the first official event of each qualifying level attended during the season.

For complete judging rubrics visit the Challenge Website.

Website: http://www.firstlegoleague.org

Managing Organization: First Inc.

Contact:

fllteams@firstinspires.org
(603) 666-3906

Eligibility:

• A team must have a minimum of two (2) and a maximum of ten (10) children. A team with more than ten (10) children will not be eligible for awards at an official tournament.
• Children may be members of only one (1) FIRST LEGO League team per season.
• No team member may be outside the maximum allowed age in your region prior to January 1 of the year the Challenge is released.
  • Allowed ages in most countries: 9-16 years
  • Allowed ages in U.S., Canada, and Mexico: 9-14 years
  • For example, in the United States, a student who turns 15 in May of 2016 would be eligible to compete in the Challenge released in August of 2016, whereas a child who turned 15 in December 2015 would not.