What is FIRST LEGO League
FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL®) introduces younger students to real-world engineering challenges by building LEGO-based robots to complete tasks on a thematic playing surface. FLL teams, guided by their imaginations and adult coaches, discover exciting career possibilities and, through the process, learn to make positive contributions to society. Elementary and middle-school students get to:
Find out how to join FLL
FLL Team Composition
FLL teams are made up of 2-10 young people between the ages of 9 and 14. Teams can be organized at schools, at clubs or troops, or in neighborhoods. The main requirement is that an adult take the responsibility for registering a team and scheduling the meetings. Most teams meet 3-6 hours per week, after school or on weekends, in September, October and November. An effective team size is usually 5-7 students.
Coach / Mentor
Each team will require to have at least one adult coach / mentor. There is no engineering or scientific expertise needed to manage a team, just the willingness to dedicated time to guide a group of students through the experience. To effectively manage a team, it is best to have:
The Season
The FLL season starts in May with team registration. Team registration continues until the end of September or until capacity is reached. FLL Robot Sets and team registration kits, which include the Coaches Handbook and program CDs, are shipped after the team registers and completes payment. Starting in late July or early August, the field setup kits, which include the field mat, the mission models, and a link to the online building instructions, will be shipped to registered teams that paid for them.
In late August or early September, the FLL Challenge including the Research Project, Robot Game and Core Values will be released online. Teams begin by designing, building and programming their robots and completing the research project during September, October and November. Teams register for tournaments in early October and, if available, attend practice tournaments in late October or early November and Qualifying Tournaments in November or early December. Tournaments are usually scheduled on Saturdays and Sundays. The top 20-30% of teams will advance to the Regional Championship Tournaments in mid-December.
Estimated Team Costs
All costs include tax and shipping:
Before the Challenge is Released
When the Field Setup Kit is received
Additional Information
For additional information, contact Tony Ayad, Operational Partner, Los Angeles Region FLL.
FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL®) introduces younger students to real-world engineering challenges by building LEGO-based robots to complete tasks on a thematic playing surface. FLL teams, guided by their imaginations and adult coaches, discover exciting career possibilities and, through the process, learn to make positive contributions to society. Elementary and middle-school students get to:
- Design, build and program robots using LEGO MINDSTORMS® or EV3® technology
- Apply real-world math and science concepts
- Research challenges facing today’s scientists
- Learn critical thinking, team-building and presentation skills
- Participate in tournaments and celebrations
Find out how to join FLL
FLL Team Composition
FLL teams are made up of 2-10 young people between the ages of 9 and 14. Teams can be organized at schools, at clubs or troops, or in neighborhoods. The main requirement is that an adult take the responsibility for registering a team and scheduling the meetings. Most teams meet 3-6 hours per week, after school or on weekends, in September, October and November. An effective team size is usually 5-7 students.
Coach / Mentor
Each team will require to have at least one adult coach / mentor. There is no engineering or scientific expertise needed to manage a team, just the willingness to dedicated time to guide a group of students through the experience. To effectively manage a team, it is best to have:
- A coach with skill managing many young people (e.g., a teacher)
- A second coach/mentor (could be a high school student)
- A team member who is a very good leader
The Season
The FLL season starts in May with team registration. Team registration continues until the end of September or until capacity is reached. FLL Robot Sets and team registration kits, which include the Coaches Handbook and program CDs, are shipped after the team registers and completes payment. Starting in late July or early August, the field setup kits, which include the field mat, the mission models, and a link to the online building instructions, will be shipped to registered teams that paid for them.
In late August or early September, the FLL Challenge including the Research Project, Robot Game and Core Values will be released online. Teams begin by designing, building and programming their robots and completing the research project during September, October and November. Teams register for tournaments in early October and, if available, attend practice tournaments in late October or early November and Qualifying Tournaments in November or early December. Tournaments are usually scheduled on Saturdays and Sundays. The top 20-30% of teams will advance to the Regional Championship Tournaments in mid-December.
Estimated Team Costs
All costs include tax and shipping:
- Team Registration: $299 (now includes the challenge set)
- EV3 Robot Kit: $500 (First year only; used in subsequent years)
- Field Table: $50
- Tournament Registration: $100
- Props, Supplies: $100
Before the Challenge is Released
- Register your team and purchase the Field Setup Kit and a FLL Robot Set (if you do not already have one).
- Build or acquire a field table.
- Review the Coaches' Handbook.
- Attend a Training Class or Summer Camp or listen to the first few Coach Calls. See Team Resources.
- If none of the students has worked with LEGO® MINDSTORMS® before, have some students work through the tutorials to build a simple robot and demonstrate the use of each sensor. Those students can teach the others.
- If you have time, additional Robot Building Examples and a Programming Tutorial are available on Team Resources.
- Check your robot's rechargeable battery. These batteries are sometimes dead on arrival, and they often loose their ability to hold a charge after a couple years.
When the Field Setup Kit is received
- Download the online Field Setup Kit Building Instructions by following the link printed on the paper in the box.
- Sort the bags of LEGO parts by number. The Building Instructions indicate how many bags you should have with each number. If you are missing any bags, call LEGO Education at 800-422-5346. Bags with no number have parts that are needed for several models.
- Open a set of bags of LEGO parts with the same number from your Field Setup Kit and spread the parts out on a light colored towel or similar textured surface to keep the small round parts from rolling onto the floor and under furniture.
- If there are beams or axles of the same color with several different lengths, It helps to sort them by length before you start building. Be careful to choose the ones with the right length by counting the holes on the beams.
- Build the mission models for this set of bags by following the Building Instructions.
- Repeat for each set of numbered bags.
- Follow the online Field Setup instructions for proper placement of the mission models on the field mat with Dual Lock.
- Review the Challenge Robot Game Missions, Rules and Q&A. The Q&A is usually updated once each week.
- View the mission videos, if available.
- Figure out how many points you can get without activating your robot.
- Brainstorm easy ways that your robot could earn additional points.
- Start working on the easy missions first.
- Review the Challenge Project.
- Brainstorm possible problems to research for your project.
- Assign students to research potential problems--what is known, who are the experts in the field--and possible solutions.
- Brainstorm possible experts that your team could interview about your project.
- Choose a team name T-shirts to wear to competitions.
- Discuss roles and responsibilities.
- Discuss the Core Values.
- Record the activities, decisions and progress of your team each day. This record will be helpful when you are preparing for tournaments.
Additional Information
For additional information, contact Tony Ayad, Operational Partner, Los Angeles Region FLL.
