FIRST LEGO LEAGUE - MORE THAN A COMPETITION

DR CHARLOTTE FORWOOD AND ISHANA SURIYAPPERUMA

Setting the Scene

Picture the scene: a custom designed EV3 robot navigating LEGO constructions on a large game board, attempting to complete challenges within a given time frame. Tension is high. Will the robot perform as it did in training? Will the structures stay in place or create additional barriers to completing the tasks? How might the judges react to the proposed solutions in the innovation project? Team members look on intently as over the course of two and a half minutes, months of problem solving, programming and perseverance come to fruition, and later proudly share their ideas, learning journey and reflections with a panel of international judges. However, First LEGO League is so much more than a competition.

First LEGO League is an annual event consisting of three different divisions, depending on the age of the students (4 – 16). In 2020, 600,000+ students competed from more than 100 countries around the world. First and foremost, the aim of the event is to build an interest in STEM through collaborative, real-world, hands-on challenges.

Six core values lie at the heart of First LEGO League: discovery, innovation, impact, inclusion, teamwork, and fun. Alongside demonstration of these core values, teams complete a robot design and robot game programming challenge as well as an innovation project using the engineering design process. Participation requires good organisational skills, a willingness to try new things and to deal with failure. (This is a regular occurrence with the programming.) Each year a new challenge theme is released in August. The 2020 theme was Replay with a focus on encouraging people to be more active and playful. The robot game board reflected this theme and the innovation project’ s aim was to generate a solution to the issue of decreased activity levels.

Students at Camberwell Girls Grammar School have participated in First Lego League for the past three years. It aligns with our ...BY DESIGN Learning Architecture Design Principles of Making Sense of the World and Adding Value, informed by the OECD Future of Education and Skills 2030 Project. Despite the challenges of a long lockdown in Melbourne, we entered two teams in 2020, with students taking the initiative and utilising Zoom technology, Miro boards, shared OneNote

notebooks and collaborative Word documents to communicate with each other and collaborate on their learning journal.

A Student’s Perspective

Good time management skills are essential as well as teamwork and collaboration. We participated in student-organised weekly Zoom meetings as well as touch points with our coach and made sure we were in constant communication with each other. We used shared documents to collate information and thoughts. We considered everyone ’ s ideas as we worked towards the final solution. This required good communication skills including the ability to listen carefully and compromise. Being involved in First LEGO League for several years has allowed us to learn from other teams and past experiences to gain a broader understanding of what makes a great innovation project and what essential aspects need to be considered. In our first year, our project was quite simple. Last year, we used ‘ what if’ thinking a lot more and this really helped us to come up with alternatives, more rigorous research, and a creative solution – a website. We were rewarded with second place for our Innovation Project at the National Championships South and a LEGO cup of course!

As a Year 7 and 8 team, we had classes at different times, so we had to organise meetings that accounted for this. Having different year levels working together meant that we gathered a wider range of viewpoints than if we were all the same age.

You do not need to have any experience of robotics to get started in First LEGO League. When I started in Year 7, I had no understanding of robotics or coding, but I was intrigued to discover more and learn what is possible. I recommend having a go even if you feel that you do not know a lot about robotics. There are so many ways you can be involved. You can be a researcher, designer, or programmer; or you can lead the team and keep everyone organised. At the beginning I had no knowledge of coding, so I deep dived into research and design, which helped me develop those skills. By observing and working alongside the robot designers and programmers in my team, I now have a better understanding of coding and its uses. This was important as in the presentation every team member was expected to talk about every aspect of the challenge.

Intellectual Playfulness

The playful element of First LEGO League cannot be underestimated. While there is good awareness of the importance of play for young children, there is a body of research which highlights the importance of play for adolescents too (Conklin, 2015). Adolescent brains are still developing so play helps with executive functioning skills such as decision making and memory (Hayes, 2020), as well as the development of creative thinking, social interaction skills and independence. First LEGO League provides students with the opportunity to engage in both cognitive and social play, creative expression and demonstrate competence.

Girls in STEM and Getting Started

First LEGO League is one-way girls can be exposed to and involved in the broad applications of STEM. Swinburne University is a sponsor of the Australian competition and in our first year of involvement, provided a mentor for our teams. Their Innovation Precinct sponsors the RoboCats team (for 14 – 18year-old girls) as part of their commitment to building STEM skillsets and mindsets in girls. BAE Systems was also key to our onboarding, providing us with EV3 robots, and the CGGS Parents and Friends Association supported our involvement through the provision of LEGO extension kits. So, our advice is to give it a go; novices are most definitely welcome and well supported.

The rules were recently changed to ensure that teams with minimal resources are not disadvantaged. You never know, you might just even end up with a LEGO trophy or two as a bonus!

Dr Charlotte Forwood

Charlotte Forwood is the Director of Learning Design and Development at Camberwell Girls Grammar School. As a dually qualified teacher and speech pathologist, she has a particular interest in oral language and explicit literacy instruction. Her doctoral thesis explored the differences in understanding of Secondary Science vocabulary. Charlotte is the author of several publications including STEM Investigations, an award-winning resource which uses the design thinking process for problem solving. She enjoys working with diverse teams to harness collective creativity. She has a lifelong love of LEGO, enjoys tinkering with tech and thoroughly enjoys the opportunity to coach First LEGO League teams.

References

- Camberwell Girls Grammar School. (November, 2020). …BY DESIGN Learning Architecture Digital Book https://www.flipsnack.com/6677BE5569B /cggs-by-design/full-view.html - Conklin, H. G. (March, 2015). Play isn ’t just for preschoolers. Time. Retrieved 8 April, 2021, from https://time.com/3726098/learning-through-playteenagers-education/ - Fine, S.A. (2014). A Slow Revolution: Towards a Theory of Intellectual Playfulness in High School Classrooms. Harvard Educational Review. Vol. 84(1). Retrieved 8 April, 2021, from https://www.hepg.org/her-home/issues/harvardeducational-review-volume-84-number1/herarticle/a-slow-revolution%E2%80%9D - First Lego League Australia https://firstaustralia.org/programs/first-legoleague/ - Hayes, H. (January, 2020.) The importance of play for adolescents. Retrieved 12 May, 2021, from https://www.heatherhayes.com/the-importanceof-play-for-adolescents/ - OECD Future of Education and Skills 2030 Position Paper. Retrieved 12 May, 2021, from https://www.oecd.org/education/2030-project/ contact/E2030 _ Position _ Paper _ (05.04.2018).pdf

Ishana Suriyapperuma

Ishana is currently in Year 9 at Camberwell Girls Grammar School. She deeply enjoys Mathematics and Science as well as Physical Education. She coaches and plays in a club basketball team which she loves attending. She also loves spending time with family and friends and exploring all the new ideas she encounters. She has been involved in First LEGO League for the past two years and is looking forward to being involved again in 2021.