The Huntington High School robotics program will play host to three FIRST LEGO League regional tournaments next weekend in Louis D. Giani Gymnasium.
Teams from around the world comprised of students in grades 4-8 have eight weeks to build, test and program an autonomous robot using a LEGO Mindstorms computer platform to solve a set of missions in the robot game on a table top playing field.
This year’s Into Orbit challenge requires teams to choose and solve a real-world problem faced by humans during long-duration space exploration within our sun’s solar system. Teams will present their solution at a qualifying tournament.
Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School boasts an exceptional FIRST LEGO League program. Team members are set to be the future stars of Huntington High School’s FIRST Robotics Team 5016, which has made a routine practice of qualifying for the world championships.
Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School FIRST LEGO League team members are ready to show Long Island just how talented they are. They are well prepped and ready to go.
The STEM School’s fifth grade team consists of Avery Joshua-Tor, Daniel Sorto Torres, Mia Einemann, Chelsea Gordon, Ashley Alexis, Wynne Franciscovich, Boris Caceres, Acxel Ramirez Hernandez and Christian Luca.
The STEM School’s sixth grade team consists of Anshi Paul, Robert Giordano, Ashley Garcis, Valentina Maldonado Martinez, Bradley Contreras, Geoffrey Hoffmann, Isaac Joseph, Maggie O’Toole and Michael Mendikyan.
Three Long Island qualifying tournaments were held last weekend in Mineola and three more are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday in the Huntington High School gym. Qualifying tournament No. 4 is set for Saturday from 7 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. with tournament No. 5 scheduled to run on Saturday from 1-6:30 p.m. Tournament No. 6 is set for Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
“The FIRST LEGO League students on Long Island have already been working diligently to identify real-life problems we face when travelling in space,” said Stephanie Stern, FIRST LEGO League co-director. “It’s amazing how passionate they are about finding a solution. It’s going to be really exciting to see what they devise when they present at the qualifiers.”
Teams vying in the regionals are seeking to advance to the Long Island finals, which will be held at Longwood High School on Sunday, March 3. Long Island’s FIRST LEGO League championships are sponsored by the School-Business Partnerships of LI, which also coordinates the FIRST robotics regional competition at Hofstra University that the Huntington High School team will once again enter in March. The top finishers will advance to the world championships in the spring.
The worldwide FIRST LEGO League program is comprised of 320,000 participants spread across 40,000 teams in 98 countries.
A concession stand stocked with food and refreshments will be open throughout both days of next weekend’s competition. Blue Devil robotics team members will be volunteering at the event, helping the competition to run smoothly and also mentoring the teams comprised of Huntington UFSD students.
“Team 5016 and the Huntington Union Free School District are so excited to host this event and promote the passions of our future generation of science enthusiasts,” Huntington senior Christiana DeLuca said.
Send a message to huntingtonrobotics@gmail.com for more information about next weekend’s FIRST LEGO League qualifier.
