FIRST LEGO League Oregon Champs: Announcement 2 - What to Prepare

Greetings FIRST LEGO League Oregon Championship Teams,

In this post you will find:

1. Update on the team assignments (4 MORE teams needed to volunteer to move to Sunday)
2. Core Values Posters
3. Robot Design Executive Summary
4. Notes from Head Referee Tom Mosher
5. Payments - Due January 4

1) Update on the team assignments (4 MORE teams needed to volunteer to move to Sunday)

Team assignments will be posted on www.ortop.org (on the google spreadsheet) by 5pm on Friday. At this time, I still need 4 teams who requested Saturday to switch to Sunday. If I do not have any more volunteers teams will start to be contacted by email to be notified they are to have a switched day, even if that means their whole team will not be able to attend. Our tournaments must balance at 60 teams per event, with absolutely no wiggle room.

If your team requested Sunday, you can be very confident they will be competing on Sunday. Unless your team registered for Saturday by 5:05 pm on Tuesday, I can't guarantee anything at this time.

2) Core Values Posters

Core Values Posters are required for all teams at the Intel Oregon FIRST LEGO League Championship Tournament. Your team should create a poster that reflects the guidelines laid out on pages 4-5 of the ANIMAL ALLIES Challenge Guide. These posters will be taken into the Core Values judging room and the team should be prepared to talk about them for no longer than 1 minute after the Core Values' Challenge Activity. 

3) Robot Design Executive Summary

Intel Oregon FIRST LEGO League Championship Tournament Robot Design Judges will expect your 10-minute interview to begin with a concise 1-minute Robot Design Executive Summary. For advice in crafting your 1-minute presentation please see page 25 of the ANIMAL ALLIES Challenge Guide. Your presentation should naturally segue into the question and answer section of your team interview.

4) Notes from Head Referee Tom Mosher

Mission Notes:

1. Per R11, the Shark and Tank (M01) can only be loosely combined. For example, after the match if the ref gently shakes the Tank, the Shark should rattle around. R11 also applies to M10 with regard to the Bee model.
2. Teams who perform the Animal Conservation mission (M03) are expected to exhibit Gracious Professionalism and to not use a non-cooperative strategy. If a team uses a strategy that intentionally prevents the other team in the match from completing this mission, the referees may submit a Core Values Observation.
3. On the Panda slider model (M07), the location of the palm tree shown in the Challenge Guide (page 23) is incorrect. The palm tree will be positioned as shown in the kit Build Instructions (Bag 3, see page 1 and 31) - the palm tree will be placed and angled away from the red axle.

Variability:

The Refrigerator (from M04) is a good example of a model that can exhibit a lot of variability. For example, operating the Refrigerator by pushing on the plunger on the North side of the model may or may not result in the door re-closing as quickly as you expect. The behavior of the door is influenced by a lot of factors, including how far and how quickly the plunger is pushed and released. Robots that use a robust method will be rewarded with more consistent results.The refrigerator door is a very simple mechanism - so a model malfunction ruling is extremely unlikely.

Additionally, teams should expect similar mats to those they encountered at the Qualifying Tournaments. These mats are being stored in a rolled configuration to prevent ripping in storage and transit. The mats will be laid flat on Friday evening after the basketball game at Liberty High School, nothing will be added to the mats to help them flatten other than gravity and smoothing by hand; as per the setup directions in the 2016/2017 Robot Game Field Setup Guide.

Storage area at the competition tables:

Teams may either bring a small table or cart with them to the competition tables for their off-Field storage, or teams may use a 3rd team member to act as a table. The 3rd team member can only hold a container for the team - they cannot act as an additional Technicians. For safety reasons, nothing may be placed on the floor in the competition area.

Smartphones and Bluetooth:

Coaches and mentors are advised against smartphone and tablet use in the Pits, Practice Tables, and the Competition area. The use of smartphones by adults must be limited to such apps as running a stopwatch, taking pictures, or emergency communication. Specifically, the use of any bluetooth-enabled Mindstorms programming application is prohibited under the "no touch" rule, unless the team members are doing the work. Violating the no-touch rule may result in team disqualification.

"We do the work" and the no-touch rule:

The ORTOP "Core Values Observation Policy" includes the following statements (with some paraphrasing):

- We do the work with guidance from our coaches "We" here means the team members, not any adults or teen mentors.

- The team adults are to serve as mentors, not implementers

- Giving team verbal directives on programming and building, or during table competition, is a violation of the "no touch" rule.

- A single flagrant violation of the "no touch" rule - including programming the robot or giving direct instructions to the team during table competition - is basis for award demotion - including disqualification.

These guidelines apply not only at the tournament - they apply during all your team activities during the entire FIRST LEGO League season. 

5) Payments - Due January 4

Payments for the Championship were updated on the website yesterday. If your team does not have a green YES, you need to complete your team's tournament payment before January 4, 2017. Submit your payment by credit card, check, or purchase order from this website. 

Best Wishes,

Loridee

The 2nd Weekend Tournaments Are Coming!

Greetings FIRST LEGO League Oregon,

In this post you will find:

1. Winter Is Coming - the ORTOP Cancellation Policy
2. Some Statistics and Advice from 1st Weekend Events
3. Winterhawks Tickets - Celebrate the season!
4. Call for coaching/team stories

1)  Winter Is Coming - the ORTOP Cancellation Policy

NO EVENTS ARE CANCELLED at this time.  ORTOP and the tournament directors are currently watching the weather very closely. Not only by watching the snowflakes out my window, but also by using weather websites; particularly NOAA and ODOT. We believe them when they tell us that Friday will bring warmer weather that will change our snow to rain and make the roads safer.  If that turns out to not be the case, here is what we will do:

ORTOP Inclement Weather and Event Cancellation PolicyThe safety of the team members and our volunteers is the most important consideration. The FIRST LEGO League Operational Partners for Oregon use that consideration to guide all decisions when deciding to cancel or delay an event.Oregon's FIRST LEGO League Affiliate Partners will cancel or delay an event using information from the US Weather Bureau to help us forecast if it would be safe for a majority of the teams/volunteers to travel to and from the event. If the site host closes their facility because of weather, health, and emergency related reasons, the event will be canceled.Coaches and parents must always assess their own travel route for safety and make their own decision to travel. Keep it in perspective. The safety of the kids is the most important consideration. Official information site for tournament cancellations or delays .In addition, ORTOP and Qualifying Tournament Directors will email to both the primary and emergency contact email addresses with notification or updates.The third method of contact is by phone using the emergency phone number provided by the coach.If any of this information has changed since October, please update your Qualifying Tournament Director.Please note: If an event is canceled it is impossible to reschedule it. Site hosts have booked their facilities months in advance. There is no time to reschedule prior to the Championship. State Championship slots left open by an event cancellation will be assigned by lottery from teams affected by the cancellation. 

2)  Some Statistics and Advice from 1st Weekend Events

The first weekend of events went well. Awards have been posted on the Oregon tournament page. 

We witnessed at some tournaments that the refrigerator model and the animal conservation model were stiffer than teams anticipated. This means that a well-used refrigerator from practice may close faster than a new refrigerator on a competition table. Your team should prepare for this!  With the conservation model the problem came with table bumping. If an excited team bumps into or pushes on a table it can make the gears bind. Please be mindful of the table so that this model functions correctly.

We also saw scores that varied greatly from last year. We learned that Animal Allies is a low-score game. 30 points is a good score for a team. That doesn't mean high scores are impossible. Last weekend G.E.A.R.S. set a high score of 235 points.

Other things we saw: 

• Teams did not read the new Interruption rules (D09 CORRECTION - R14 IS THE RULE, D09 IS THE DEFINITION), items being transported by the robot when the robot is interrupted will become the possession of the referee and removed from play and scoring.
• Teams forget that you can not reset the field nor touch ANYTHING outside of base except to interrupt your robot. If the field is not set how you think it should be, talk to your referee. Do not return objects your robot has moved in a previous launch, they must stay where they stop.
• Don't forget to put the wheels on the pet - and please leave the wheels (and all other table elements) at the table when your match is over! One event lost 3 sets of wheels and we do not have extras.
• Don't forget to load the Animal Conservation model, even if both teams are not going to attempt this model it gets a big item out of base to give your robot more space.

If your coach has not done so already, make sure they read the checklists and the It's Tournament Week! blog post.

3)  Winterhawks Tickets - Celebrate the season!

Celebrate all your team has accomplished with their families at a Winterhawks game!  We are thrilled to have these tickets donated for Oregon's FIRST teams to use. Join the fun as the Winterhawks take on TriCity!  Where your team shirts or tournament buttons so teams can find each other!

Request your ticket vouchers here

We also are happy to be able to include our volunteers in this activity! If you volunteer with ORTOP, please join us at the game.

4)  Call for coaching/team stories

While many of you are preparing for the end of the season. At ORTOP I'm thinking ahead to next season. That especially includes more resources for coaches. As you reflect on your team's season, please send me stories and advice that got you through. What surprised you? What really worked with your team? What inspired you to get through the challenges? What challenges nearly made you want to stop? I will use your emails along with a soon to be sent coach survey (please look for that to complete in the next few weeks) to add materials to the coach training workshops, prepare materials for future blogs, and to help all coaches who ask for help. New coaches, I especially need your insights! We only start once and it is new coaches who contact me most often. 

Good luck to all the teams competing this weekend!

Best Wishes,

Loridee

What to Expect at Your Qualifying Touranment

Greetings FIRST LEGO League Oregon,

This weekend and next we will have ALL of the Intel Oregon FIRST LEGO League Qualifying Tournaments. For a list of events please see our events page.
Today we will talk about:

1. What to expect at an Oregon Qualifying Tournament
2. Volunteers still needed at some events
3. Presentations at OMSI
4. Celebrate the Season wth the Winterhawks
5. FIRST 2017 STEM Equity Community Innovation Grant
6. Correction in the Coach Checklist *5 bonus coach points

1) What to expect at an Oregon Qualifying Tournament

The tournament will look different for the three different groups who are in attendance, spectators, volunteers, and teams.

Spectators

Spectators will enter the school and be guided by signs to the arena. This is the primary public area of the event. Here the family, friends, and invited guests of the teams will watch all of the teams compete in the robot table competition. The spectators will see each team compete in the robot game three times throughout the day. Their view will be of an 8' x 8' box which has two back to back ANIMAL ALLIES Challenge tables. Every few minutes 2 teams will approach the tables, one on each side. The teams will have 2.5 minutes to manipulate the models on the table to score points. The 2 teams may work together on one model that exchanges animals. The referees will talk with the teams. There may be a game announcer or emcee that explains the action, there may not. Spectators may also have access to a few other areas of the event, although this is not always the case.

Spectators make the table game fun for the teams. They are encouraged to cheer and celebrate all of the teams. Some teams are not able to bring their supporters as they have to travel or have parents who work on the day of the event.

Volunteers

Volunteers will be greeted upon arrival and directed to their assignment. If they did not complete their FIRST Volunteer registration including the background check (ran out of time) they will need to fill out a Walk-on Volunteer form.  Morning volunteers who arrive early may have time for a coffee and treat. Volunteers will spend most of the day "behind the scenes" in their role at the event. Judges will see every team and interact with them in their judging specialty. Referees will support teams and record all their robot accomplished during the match. Scorekeepers will record the referee sheets to give teams their score for each robot game round. Practice table volunteers will make sure all teams get the time they need on the practice tables to improve their robot throughout the day. Runners will get teams from place to place. Judge door queuers will help keep the entire tournament running on schedule and get to greet all of the teams as they arrive for judging. Regardless of their role, all volunteers will play a critical role in making the event truly remarkable for the teams.

 Teams

 Teams will be exposed to every aspect of the tournament. Teams will be greeted by Team Check-in volunteers who will make sure their team name and all of their information is correct. They will give the team their packet of information for the day which includes that team's specific schedule. Teams will set up their pit and go to the Opening Ceremony. After the ceremony the team will follow their specific schedule to attend a judging session and their first robot round. In the judging session the team will meet 2-3 judges and share all the hard work they've completed this season. In the arena teams will have their robot inspected and join another team at the competition table. In between activities, the team will work on improving their robot, meet other teams in the pit area, and practice for their judging sessions. The team will attend 3 different judging panels, one in each aspect of FIRST LEGO League; robot design, project presentation, and core values. The team will also enter the arena 3 times during the day. Once in the morning, once mid-way through the event, and one final afternoon run. After all of the judging and robot rounds have finished the teams will pack up their pit area, and return to the arena or designated space for the Closing Ceremony. During the closing ceremony the day will be recapped for the teams, volunteers, and spectators, awards and advancement will be distributed and the hard work and accomplishments of all of the teams will be celebrated. 

2) Volunteers still needed at some events 

Many events are still looking for volunteers across the state! All volunteers are registering using the FIRST volunteer system. If you are over 14-years-old and would like to help at a tournament please register today!  If you need help getting through the FIRST registration process, or can't find the event you are looking for please call ORTOP (503-486-7622) or email Loridee for help. Coaches may volunteer at events where their team is not participating. Parents and Coaches should list their team number on their profile to avoid conflict of interest at events. Parents may volunteer at any event!

3) Presentations at OMSI

OMSI is opening their lab to FIRST LEGO League Oregon teams again this weekend. Two time slots are still available if your team would like to use this opportunity to share their project solution with more people before their tournament. This is also a great opportunity to see the solutions created by other teams and to support other teams in our community by coming to watch!

4) Celebrate the Season with the Winterhawks

For many teams the competitive season will be ending in the next 2 weeks. That makes this next opportunity extra exciting! All Oregon FIRST teams have an opportunity to see the Winterhawks on December 28th! Tickets do need to be reserved in advance. Your team will receive vouchers that need to be exchanged at the Winterhawk ticket office in Portland to attend the game. This would make a wonderful end-of-season team activity for FIRST LEGO League teams.  If your team would like to attend the game please fill out this form. Join Oregon's other FIRST teams as we watch the Winterhawks take on the Tri-City Americans. Team shirts are encouraged. 

5) FIRST 2017 STEM Equity Community Innovation Grant

FIRST is looking for communities that are eager to expand FIRST for all students. Collaborations that would like to work to include more underserved students and/or minority students should send their letters of intent by January 20. Please see the press release for all of the details.  All organizations are encouraged to apply, non-profits and school districts especially.

6) Correction in the Coach Checklist *5 bonus coach points

Because many years the same things are needed for events I do make use of the email archive to make sure I don't forget to tell teams something very important. Yesterday's coaches' checklist still contained one reference to TRASH TREK, last year's FIRST LEGO League theme. It has been corrected on the blog to avoid confusion, but if you saw this "typo" consider yourself a skilled reader! You may have 5 bonus coach points added to your checklist total.  Don't know what coach point is, make sure you read yesterday's blog. Please be assured that all projects will involve ANIMALS as outlined in the ANIMAL ALLIES Challenge and Updates.