On August 27th, 2011 several members of MMRA hosted a workshop for not only the 10 new Flint teams, but other rookie/veteran teams. The workshop was held at Mott Community College with the help of Dr. Bill and Carol Welch. The workshop was led by both judges and FLL coaches. Every topic within FLL was covered, including programming, building, project, teamwork, core values, spirit along with a question and answer session. These 10 teams were given the ins and outs on how to run a successful team.

After all the teams received the delivery of the computers, NXT, tables etc, it was time for the teams to get to work! Several members of MMRA made themselves available to these teams for support. Support was given by email, phone and physical visits. Several of our members made weekly trips to help these 10 teams. Together we worked on programming, research and core values, the heart and soul of FLL.

The 10 teams were able to compete in 2 tournaments; Lego Fever I, which is a warm up tournament and Lego Fever II, which is the district event. The excitement, smiles and laughter that shone from within these 10 teams was an amazing sight to behold. These teams led cheers through the gym and hallways. The teams competed like they were seasoned veterans at the tournaments. Six awards were handed out amongst the ten teams.

This was a great opportunity not only to spread the concept of FIRST but to give back to a community that we care about and live in. The 10 teams have all agreed that while this was a difficult challenge, they can’t wait until next year to begin. In the meantime these teams will be hosting mini competitions amongst themselves to keep sharpening their newfound skills. Don’t be surprised when 1 of these awesome teams wins the State Championship!