Last Saturday the LigerBots hosted the First Lego League (FLL) Eastern MA State Championship at Newton North High School. Forty-eight teams of elementary and middle school students came together to compete and also to present their real-world solutions to water based problems connected to the theme of this year’s FLL game, called “Hydro Dynamics.”  

Local businesses and organizations with hands on activities to share gathered in the main hall of Newton North to interact with the young engineers as a part of a maker fair. Exhibitors included Destination Imagination, Empow Studios, the Newton Free Library, iRobot, Nuvu, New England R2 Builders, Orimagi.io, Mass Bay Community College, the New Art Center, Johnson String Instrument, and Students for a Greener World. The LigerBots ran two maker fair tables, one with a 3D printer and another with “brushbot” artbotics. And of course, we let everyone drive our robot! 

In honor of opening weekend of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, we got a visit from a stormtrooper and an imperial officer who roamed the halls and posed for photos.

About 1000 people, including members of the general public that came to watch and tour the maker fair, participated in this STEM-filled day.

The FLL event ended on a good note after awards were given out in categories such as robot reliability, best teamwork, and best programming. Seven of the participating teams were from Newton. The Day Dragons, a team of four seventh graders from Day Middle School and two fifth graders from Pierce Elementary School, won the Champions’ Award, given to the team with the best robotics performance, presentation of research results, and display of core FLL values. A dance party on the competition floor was a fun end to our day.