The Spectris Foundation was invited to participate in a First LEGO League finals event in Cardiff hosted by our charity partner, Engineer Education Scheme Wales (EESW). First Lego League is one of the programs that EESW run to inspire children to engage with STEM through a variety of hands-on learning experiences.
The students (aged 9-16 years old) engage in building and programming LEGO robots to undertake specific tasks, promoting critical thinking, creativity and problem-solving skills.
This year’s challenge ‘Submerged’ involved the robots having to undergo tasks related to different layers of the ocean so the students could create solutions to promote healthy ocean ecosystems.
Sarah Smith partnered with a representative from the IET (Institution of Engineering and Technology) to be one of the judging teams for the LEGO models designed by teams from secondary schools.
Sarah said, “It was brilliant to see how keen the students were to present their designs and how deeply they had thought about how to make their models work. Some teams experienced huge challenges along the way and had to rethink their plans. However, their perseverance, teamwork and ‘out of the box’ thinking, along with support from their teachers and mentors, enabled them to design effective innovative solutions.”
We are delighted to have been able to participate in this EESW event which has enabled children and young people to develop engineering design skills as well as increase their knowledge on protecting marine life.