An overview of what my team accomplished during their first season participating in the VEXIQ competition

1. VEX Robotics
2018: Season 1

2. This was our first
year competing in
VEX Robotics

3. And what a
season it
was!

4. First we had help from
Northrup Grumman.
They gave us $5,000
to purchase the robots
we used for our
activities

5. Glasgow Middle students in the STEM (science,
technology, engineering, and math) Impressionists
program are learning about VEX robotics with
support from a grant from Northrop Grumman. The
grant covers the purchase of equipment that will be
used for future training and competitions. Students
got first-hand experience using and building VEX
robotics at a training camp over the summer, and
are scheduled to learn how to organize and run a
VEX robotics scrimmage next weekend,
September 16. The scrimmage, jointly sponsored
by Glasgow and Poe Middle Schools, will enable
the students to sponsor a VEX seminar at
Glasgow’s 2017 Hour of Code hack-a-thon and to
design and deliver a VEX seminar at George
Mason University’s Focus STEM camp next
summer. Students are receiving hands-on training
to build, operate, and create strategy for next
year’s VEX-IQ robotics competition, and are honing
their skills during the school’s STEM Impressionists
after-school program. Contact Angela DeHart
at adjeterjones@fcps.edu.
Glasgow MS Builds VEX Robotics
with Support from Northrop Grumman

6. Thank you
Northrup Grumman
&
Ms. DeHart

7. Then we had a VEX
camp where we got to
learn how to build,
program, and learn the
VEXIQ competition game
for the season.

8. Mrs. Matthews was our
VEX trainer.

9. FCCLA & Ms. DeHart fed
us delicious lunches and
Mr. Cannon coordinated
all of the bus, breakfast,
and room logistics!

10. Thank you
Northrup Grumman,
Ms. Matthews,
FCCLA & Ms. DeHart,
and
Mr. Cannon!

11. Mrs. Matthews & Ms.
DeHart are two of a
kind. They want their
students to have access
and experience with
STEM and do what they
can to develop their
programs to the “next
level.”

12. So they conspired to
build an opportunity for
High School students to
run the VEX
tournaments!

13. So Ms. Matthews & Ms.
DeHart hosted a VEX
judges camp for
students that were
interested in being VEX
competition volunteers.

14. They learned the rules of
the competition and were
then able to volunteer
their time. Many of these
student came to the
summer VEX camp and/or
were former members of a
VEX team so they have
experience!

15. Back at school the after-
school program started
and
97 students showed up
to check out VEX
robotics!!

16. Students that had
attended the summer
camp sessions taught
newcomers what VEX
was all about!

17. Ms. DeHart set up a Google
Classroom for us
to keep track of
everything that was
going on and then
the robots, the VEX table and
the VEXIQ challenge equipment
arrived!!

18. Then those interested
competing in the VEXIQ
competition created a
team and started to get
ready for the December
VEX scrimmage!

19. We ended up with 5
teams all together. Each
team used Ms. DeHart’s
STEM FIT and after-
school time to build their
robot and practice their
game strategy.

20. Students met new
friends, tried out both
programming and driving
the robot skills then
decided what skill(s)
they would focus on for
their team!

21. We got ready for the
December scrimmage!

22. We got ready for the
December scrimmage!

23. And we learned a lot! Some
team members did not show
up while other team members
skills shinned – in the end we
all learned how to compete
and work as a team a bit
better than before the
scrimmage. We realized that
showing up was really
important to the team!

24. We did well at the
December scrimmage!

25. We did well at the
December scrimmage!
108 points!

26. Now we started to
prepare for our local
regional tournament.

27. We had a team meeting and
realized that we wanted to
build a new robot – to
engineer our way into more
points – We also learned
that if we researched a
STEM project and created a
design notebook we would
have more chances to
qualify for state.

28. In the end our 5 teams
became 3 teams. Of
those 3 teams 2 had an
engineering notebook
and one team had a
STEM project.

29. We went to regionals
hoping that at least 1 of
our teams would qualify
for state and we would
ALL get to go!

30. And that is what
happened!
Our hard work paid off!
The team with the
design notebook and the
STEM project won the
Excellence award – we
qualified for the VA State
VEX Competition!!!!!

32. We had a team meeting
and strategized how we
were going to utilize our
time. With states only 2
weeks away we needed
to work together!

33. While our idea for a robot
hadn’t worked out for
regionals we knew that
we couldn’t win at state
without a redesign – so we
buckled down and created
a new robot design.

34. In the meantime our
STEM project got
reworked and our design
notebook got updated.

35. All 17 students were
now all part of the our
winning team and we
were focused on giving
ourselves the best
chance we could to
qualify for Worlds!

36. Our new robot was built!

37. Our STEM project was
reinvented!

38. Our Design book was
updated!

39. Our Programming code
was updated!

40. Because of our dogged
focus, persistence, and
belief in ourselves we
were as ready for the VA
State VEXIQ Competition
as we could be!

41. Seventeen students,
eight sets of parents,
one teacher, and several
members of the STEM
Impressionists set off to
go to Doswell, VA the
home of the VA State
fair and next door to
Kinds Dominion.

42. We were ready to
compete and volunteer!

43. Ms. DeHart’s crew of
travelers went to the
competition site before
going to the hotel. Good
thing! Besides getting t-
shirts (FUN!)....

44. ...and taking pictures
(FUN!)...

45. ... we got to see exactly
where our “pit” was.

46. We got to take a look
around, see the
tournament tables....

47. ...the spectator
bleachers...

48. ....and think about how
we would want to set up
our “pit.”

49. We got to take a look
around, see the practice
tables, the spectator
bleachers, and think
about how we would
want to set up our “pit.”
Learning:
1. If it is your first time attending an
competition event you can learn a lot
by just going and observing without
having the pressure of competing. You
get to talk to people who have been
there before, see the ways other people
have done X, Y, and Z so that when it is
your time you “know” how you want to
handle things

50. We all got there at
different times but made
it we did!
Everything was going
well until we realized
that we forgot our STEM
project at school!!!!!!!

51. Ms. DeHart and Ms. Hill,
to the rescue!
Ms. DeHart called Ms.
Hill and Ms. Hill dropped
everything to go to
school – where
basketball was taking
place so the school was
open – to get and deliver
our STEM project to the
members of the team
that would not be driving
to Doswell until the
morning!

52. Thank you
Ms. Hill
&
Ms. DeHart

53. Ms. DeHart helped us
formulate a “Plan B” just
in case Ms. Hill was
unable to secure our
project – but luckily Ms.
Hill was able – and
willing – to help us. She
got the project and
delivered it to our
teammates!

54. Whew!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Learning:
1. You are responsible for making sure that your
project get to the competition. Don’t just
assume someone else is going to cover your
responsibility – ensure it gets done yourself!
2. We are in this together! Just because that is a
different section of our team doesn’t mean you
shouldn’t look out for them. We were all
responsible for making sure that the STEM
project got to Doswell, not just the members of
the STEM team
3. Have a Plan B – you never know when you
might need it!
4. Friends are EVERYTHING! Without Ms. Hill we
would have had to recreate the STEM project
overnight! We had the raw parts (the text) but
would have had to purchase the 3D board,
construction paper, etc. It would have been an
all-night endeavor!

55. Whew!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Learning:
5. Make a packing check list so that nothing is
forgotten. Make the list a week or more in
advance because anything you forget is
automatically in “Plan B” mode!
6. Keep everyone up-to-date with what is going on
in the team so that everyone knows the status
of everything and we can work together to
support one another better. Communicate!

56. Ms. DeHart helped us
formulate a “Plan B” just
in case Ms. Hill was
unable to secure our
project – but luckily Ms.
Hill was able – and
willing – to help us. She
got the project and
delivered it to our
teammates!

57. Because we had visited
the site of the
competition the night
before we were secure
about how long it would
take us to get there and
what to do once we
arrived. That made our
breakfast calmer and
gave us a sense of
confidence.
We check out of the
hotel and went to the
competition!

58. We were able to go
directly to our “pit” and
set up according to our
plan.

59. Almost immediately we
saw a “pit” configuration
that would allow us to
have our entire table set
up – so we changed our
minds, got our stuff out
of the car, and copied
our neighbors “pit”
configuration.

60. Thank you
Team Awesome!

61. We registered our team
and chose the hour of
our interview for our
STEM project and...
..we turned in our Design
notebook for review by
the judges.

62. We practiced our STEM
project presentation...

63. ...and our driving skills.

64. We got our competition
schedule – and tried to
finish coding our “get 35
points” program

65. We were excited and
ready to earn our way to
Worlds!

66. Oh NO!
Our robot had a weight
issue. It leaned to one
side so we weighted the
other side with batteries
– an illegal solution!

67. Now we have to figure
out how to re-engineer
our robot or be
disqualified from the
robot driving
competition!
Engineering!

68. Done!
Our robot has passed
inspection – but it is
lopsided and not driving
as well as it did before...
...and we just have to
deal with it!
Learning:
1. Have a mentor or another team with more
experience “inspect” your robot before a big gig.
Where you are new it is hard to tell if your
interpretation of the rules and the judges is the
same
2. Learn to pack tools that allow you to change your
robot’s major components. We had the parts to
deal with the weight issue another way – but
there were back at school

69. We danced,....

70. ...had fun,...

71. ...we took our entire
team picture...

72. ...and we volunteered!

73. We got to practice on
the “official” tournament
table!

74. We figured out how the
“Skills” table worked (just
stand in line and drive when it is
your turn!)!

75. Now to support each
other!
We figured out where
the food is!

76. It’s time to watch the
driving competition!

77. It’s time to run skills!

78. It’s time to run our
coding program!
Oh, you’re not ready? It
closes in 30 minutes –
just go with what you
have.
Sometime
you have
to take a
risk! We
already
have a
zero – just
go for it!

79. It’s time to run our
coding program!
Oh, you’re not ready? It
closes in 30 minutes –
just go with what you
have.
Sometime
you have to
take a risk!
We already
have a zero
– just go for
it!

80. 1 point!
See – we no longer
have zero!
Go again!

81. 3 points!
Take 1 more
shot!

82. Results: STEM
We didn’t get a
second interview
for our STEM
project

83. Learning:
1. We thought that their leaning in was because
they were interested –
A. We later learned that they couldn’t hear us.
Speak up! Check in with the judges to see if
they can hear
2. We didn’t realize how important a prototype was
– we didn’t have one
A. The team that won had a project very similar
to ours – but they had a prototype. What
difference would it have made if we had
one? Maybe we would have won the STEM
award and gone on to Worlds!
Results: STEM
We didn’t get a
second interview
for our STEM
project

84. Learning:
3. We thought that we should include everyone on
the STEM in the presentation –
A. We were advised to ensure that we should
only put up our best speakers to represent
the team
4. We asked for feedback because we wanted to
get better for next year
A. We were spot on! We can put the feedback
we received to work for us next season!
Results: STEM

85. Results: Design
We didn’t get
interviewed for
our Design
Notebook
Learning:
1. We didn’t get any feedback so it is hard to say
how we could improve. We plan on asking our
sister school to help us. They won the design
award and if we look at their book we can learn
how to make our own better.
A. We also had teams in our county make
Worlds – we plan on reaching out to them
also.
B. Learning from others with more experience
is key to our success!

86. Results: Skills
Our top score was
48. That made our
ranking 18 out of
19 teams
Learning:
1. Practice, practice, practice
A. Don’t take skills for granted. You have to
practice to become good at driving the robot.
Just throwing the robot down and seeing
how well you can do without first taking the
time to practice is not a recipe for success.
Practice does indeed make better!

87. Results:
Programming
Our top score was 6!
Learning:
1. We know and we observed the power coding has
on the score. The programming score is added to
the competitive driving score. We planned out
our options for programming, we had a team in
place but we were not able to work as effectively
as we now realize is needed.
A. Share successful codes with the rest of the
team. Once a section of the code is vetted
every member of the team should have
access to it immediately

88. Results:
Programming
Learning:
B. Follow through on completing code that is
almost done prior to starting a whole new
line of thought. We were 98% done with the
code that would have gotten us the 35 points
we wanted, but instead of flushing that code
out it was suggested to start on a new idea.
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That left us with the just one option - taking
the risk and running the unfinished code we
knew we had. It got us 6 points – and we
almost got lucky and got all 35 – but in the
end it did not work out and we did not
achieve our goal.
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We need to be purposeful in our decision-
making because those 35 points would have
ensured that our drivers, that were dealing
with a lopsided robot, got the help they
needed to put us in the semi-finals

89. Results: Driving
We ended up 15th out
of 19 teams
Learning:
1. We had a good plan but did not have the time to
pull it off. Our goal was to have two identical
robots so that programming could work on 1 and
drivers, skill and competition, could work with
the other one – we only got 1 robot built and the
build, which was supposed to be finished on
Wednesday wasn’t done until Friday. The drivers
and programmers did not have time to
practice/have access to the robot to work
A. The programmers stayed late to work on the
program – they made descent progress and
could have – if given a bit more time –
finished the “35 point” and “dump the tray”
programs. Sometimes you have to accept the
fact they you are not working in ideal
conditions and just work with what you have
– even if that is “unfair.”

90. Results: Driving
Learning:
B. You have to support your internal customers.
When engineering did not get the robot done
on time they needed to talk to the drivers and
programmers and see what they could do to
help.
a. When they build the extra class – one for
each side of the robot, they were on the
right track. We had a back up claw if
anything happened.
b. When there were there to assist with the
robot not passing inspection crisis they
were on their right tract but there were
things that they could have supported the
team
 They could have gone around at state and spoken to
different teams asking how they solved problems that
we had not yet come up with a satisfactory engineering
solution to. Expanding out knowledge of engineering
would have helped us at Worlds, if we didn’t win – with
next year’s team
 They could have gone around talking to other, more
seasoned team learning what we didn’t know we didn’t
know
 They could have tried to help the programmers program
a robot they built and know better than anyone else

91. Results: Our Season
I am incredibility proud of our first year in VEX. We did a wonderful
job of growing, learning how to engineer better, applying
programming, overcoming challenges, and becoming a team that
works together more effectively!
There will always be something else to learn but this team did a fabulous
job in their first year!
In fact they are so enthusiastic some of the team members are going to go
to Worlds just to see and learn for next year!
They earned their “Energy Award” from state because they showed the
kind of grit that gets men back from the dark side of the moon when no
one really knows exactly what that challenge entails.
Team 42983C did their best! They made mistakes but didn’t let that stop
them, they came close to the winners circle, but didn’t quite make it and
yet kept on trying to bring the best of what we had to offer.
STEM Impressionists
It is with pride that I saw 2 of your come to the VEX State
tournament and volunteer. Our school provided 17 team members
and 2 volunteers to the event – we did a wonderful job!
Not only was your volunteer activities of service to the event you
are using the skills learned at the Summer VEX training you
attended and building your STEM resume! Well DONE!

92. Results: Our Season
Team 42983C
was awarded
the “Energy”
Award!

93. Results: Our Season
I am proud to have been
the coach of team 42983C!
We didn’t make it to Worlds on
our first try but..
We are Winners!
Congratulations
on a very successful
1st season!
I am looking forward to seeing what you
do with Season 2! – Coach DeHart