Trash Trek Team Blast #5 - Tournament Registration, Robots Rule and Reminders!

Sent 10/2/15

Hello coaches,

I hope your seasons are all going well so far!

In this email:

1. Tournament Registration is coming soon
2. Ontario Science Centre (Robots Rule)
3. Reminders (practice tournaments)

TOURNAMENT REGISTRATION

Team registration is almost closed and soon tournament registration will be available for you.  For those who are new to FLL in Ontario, the way tournament registration works is that you will be given a list of tournaments (which can already be viewedhere) and you will either be slotted as a "West Division" team or an "East Division" team.  Depending on which Division you are in you will select your top 3 choices of tournaments in preferred order and once Tournament Registration closes we will notify you which tournament you have been slotted into.  The software we use to slot you into your tournament takes into account when you register so please register as soon as I send you the link if you are concerned about getting your first choice.

Timeline: 

• Team registration closing in the next week
• Tournament Registration opening via an email from me around Thanksgiving weekend
• Deadline to register: Friday, October 23

ONTARIO SCIENCE CENTRE ROBOTS RULE

We have been invited to join the annual Robots Rule weekend at the OSC and as always, we are looking for interestedteams to volunteer to spend the day with us there showcasing your robot and project.  This runs the weekend of October 24-25 and you can choose either the Saturday or the Sunday to participate in.  

Details:

Setup between 9-10 a.m., tear down at 4 p.m.

Lunch is provided

You don't need to have a spectacular robot or project.  The audience will be people who have never seen FLL before and you'll be acting as ambassadors to tell them about the program and share what you're doing as a team.  You can use the day to work on programming missions as we will have an FLL table there with this year's theme on it.  

If interested, please email me back ASAP.

REMINDERS:

• Coach resources can be found here and here
• Read the Coaches Manual - it's GREAT
• There is a practice tournament in Mississauga that still has some space available - see this flyer for more details.

Continued best wishes to you all!

Dave

Trash Trek Team Blast #4: Kickoff, Training, & Practice Tournaments

Sent 09/10/15

Hello coaches,

We hope you've had a great summer and are excited to be back preparing for the new FLL season, Trash Trek!  Since the official game has been released I'm sure you're all as pumped as we are to get going on the challenge!

If you are looking for training or experience before your official event, this is the email for YOU!  In this email you'll find information about the following:

1. FLL Ontario Kickoff and Training
2. FLL Ontario Entrepreneur/team branding/project shaping workshop
3. FLL Headquarters' "Ask an Expert" Series
4. Practice Tournaments

1. FLL Ontario Kickoff and Training (registration required)

On September 26th, in Toronto and in Waterloo there will be a kickoff and training event taking place for teams to gather together and learn more. 

We need to know who is attending and in what numbers so please register for one of these two events using the appropriate links below.

ACTION ITEM:

Toronto Kickoff (Saturday, Sept. 26, Bayview Glen School)

Waterloo Kickoff (Saturday, Sept. 26, University of Waterloo)

2. FLL Ontario Entrepreneur/team building/project shaping workshop

Just a reminder to my previous email on this topic which you can see here.  Please read more about it here and/or register ASAP here if you're still considering attending as spots are almost gone!

3. FLL Headquarters' "Ask an Expert" Series

FLL HQ is hosting a series of webinars in which you can participate.  They have been going on already and continue to do so for quite some time.  If you're interested in any of the topics below, please sign up and join in on the call!  All previous sessions have been recorded and posted on this page: http://firstlegoleague.org/challenge/teamresources

4. Practice Tournaments

Many teams have been asking about registering for qualifying tournaments already but that registration will not be opening until early-mid October after Team Registration has closed; however, PRACTICE Tournaments are available in certain locations and I will promote those with you as they become known to me (by the way, YOU can host a practice tournament too!).

These are a GREAT way to improve your team and prepare them for the real competition.  I highly recommend participating in a practice event if there is one in your area.

The first one I've become aware of is taking place in Mississauga on Saturday, November 14th and anyone in Ontario is welcome to participate (this includes East teams).  Please see the attached flyer for more information.

Go Teams!

Dave

Dave Ellis
Director, FLL Ontario
FIRST Robotics Canada
www.firstroboticscanada.org

Team Blast #3: Training

1. FLL Ontario Kickoff and Training
2. FLL Ontario Entrepreneur/team branding/project shaping workshop
3. FLL Headquarters' "Ask an Expert" Series

1. FLL Ontario Kickoff and Training

Save the date - September 26th, in Toronto and in Waterloo there will be a kickoff and training event taking place for teams to gather together and learn more.  Other regions will also be offering events like this so stay tuned to hear when one close to you will take place.

In the meantime, we would like your input on what you would like to see in terms of workshops.  We are ALSO very interested in those of you who would like to be presenters.  Either way, please take 3-4 minutes to fill in this quick survey.

2. FLL Ontario Entrepreneur/team building/project shaping workshop

Just a reminder to my previous email on this topic which you can see here.  Please read more about it here and/or register ASAP here if you're still considering attending as spots are almost gone!

3. FLL Headquarters' "Ask an Expert" Series

FLL HQ is hosting a series of webinars in which you can participate.  They have been going on already and continue to do so for quite some time.  If you're interested in any of the topics below, please sign up and join in on the call!  All previous sessions have been recorded and posted on this page: http://firstlegoleague.org/challenge/teamresources

Ask An Expert Webinars
Teams will have the chance to hear from subject matter experts in both the Challenge theme and taking products to market. Webinars will be scheduled in a variety of time zones to accommodate teams globally, and will be recorded for those who cannot attend to review later.

• Ask an Expert: New Coach Orientation  
  Just getting started in FIRST LEGO League and not sure where to begin? Or are you considering starting your first team? Veteran coach Dan Hughes will walk you through what you need to know to get started. Watch the recorded presentation here. Watch the question-and-answer portion here.
• Ask an Expert: Programming and Team Management
  Lee Magpili designs the FIRST LEGO League models, is a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® Designer, EV3 programmer and an experienced FLL coach. Rookie coaches -- bring your questions on general team support and programming. 10 a.m. ET Wednesday, July 15. Register here.
• Ask an Expert: Captain Planet Foundation's Leesa Carter Jones
  Leesa Carter-Jones, Executive Director of the Captain Planet Foundation, helped shape this year's Challenge as part of the Challenge Advisory Team. Hear her perspective on why this Challenge topic is important and get some ideas to begin exploring your Project. 3 p.m. ET Wednesday, August 5. Register here.
• Ask an Expert: Poly Recovery's Mike Mooney
  TRASH TREK Challenge Advisory Team member Mike Mooney will talk to teams embarking on their Project about his perspective from with Poly Recovery  -- a pioneer in sustainable, locally based, full-service recycling that specializes in plastics. 3 p.m. ET Wednesday, Aug. 26.  Register here.
• Ask an Expert: Innovation and Protecting Your IdeasJoin U.S. Patent and Trademark staff Tanaga Boozer and Jerry Lorengo in a discussion of what makes an idea innovative -- and how to protect your Project idea. 1 p.m. ET Wednesday, September 9. Register here.
• Ask an Expert: Programming and Team Management
  Lee Magpili designs the FIRST LEGO League models, is a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® Designer, EV3 programmer and an experienced FLL coach. Rookie coaches -- bring your questions on general team support and programming. 10 a.m. ET Wednesday, September 16. Register here.
• Ask an Expert: The Team Perspective on Judging
  Gearing up for your first event? Join FLL Global Judge Advisor Skip Gridley and FLL Project Manager Jinnel Choiniere on a quick overview of what to expect from your event judging. 7 p.m. ET Wednesday, Oct. 7. Register here.

- See more at: http://firstlegoleague.org/challenge/teamresources#sthash.U4ity3da.dpuf

Trash Trek Email Blast #2: Mark Your Calendar!! Fantastic Opportunity for FLL teams in Ontario

Hello teams,

I wanted to reach out to you today with a great opportunity for teams in the fall for which you should DEFINITELY mark you calendar!

On Saturday, October 3, we plan on hosting a workshop for teams wanting to learn more about how to find and approach researchers in the field of study for this year, how to find and approach funding sources, how to generate and test initial ideas, and how to actually prototype your solution!  All of this will be discovered as the team works with the experts at the MaRS Discovery District.

Cost is $25/participant if you register before July 1st and there are only 40 seats available so do't delay!!

Please see this flyer for more details on how to register for this exciting event!!

Dave

FLL Trash Trek Team Blast #1: FLL's Trash Trek Season Registration is Open!

Hello all coaches from last year's FLL World Class Season!

We have just finished the World Festival in St. Louis and if you follow us on Facebook you would have seen that FLL in Ontario is VERY competitive with FLL across the world.  Check out the story which was posted on April 26th.

OK, now that World Festival is over we are gearing up for the 2015 season - TRASH TREK!!

I'm very excited about this season and think that it will tie in very nicely with all the Eco Schools programs out there!  It's going to be awesome!

If you had a team last year, the process for registering your team should only take a couple of minutes because your profile will carry over and your police check lasts for 3 years!  Yay!

Please head to https://my.usfirst.org/fll/tims/site.lasso, log in, and add/pay for your team for this season and you should be all set!

Don't forget to THEN head over to Spectrum by calling them at 1-800-668-0600 to order your Field Setup Kit (and robot if you want another one).

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Dave

FLL World Class Team Blast #6 - Tournament Prep

Hello teams,

In this email:

1. Tournament Preparation
2. Sharing from around the world
3. FLL Ontario Blog

Tournament Preparation

You will be attending your qualifying tournament in the next couple of weeks and I wanted to review some items to remember and prepare.

1. Consent and release forms - For those of you who are new to FLL, FIRST requires a Consent and Release form to be signed by all coaches and participants at the event.  In the past these have been done via a paper version.  This year, FLL HQ has offered a new online method of doing this to cut down on the paper required for signing and postage for sending all the copies to HQ.  Please follow the instructions here to complete this process for your team PRIOR to your event.  Using the Team Roster  http://screencast.com/t/bigyCOnpJ.  For those parents who wish not to sign online, they can follow the procedures in this form to complete a paper copy of the consent and release form.
2. Teams MUST participate in all three areas of FLL (Robot Design, Core Values, AND the Research Project) in order to be eligible for Core Awards and advancement to the Provincial Championships
3. For information on how the Champions' Award and Advancement to Provincials works please refer to this FAQ page.
4. A REMINDER that teams must have a MAXIMUM of 10 children at the event.  Any team with more than 10 members at the event will be ineligible for awards and/or advancement to the provincials.
5. Make sure you refer to the Rubrics when preparing your team!
6. The Coaches' Manual (if you haven't already downloaded it is a great resource for the season and for preparing for an event in terms of what to expect)
7. If you're a rookie team (or even if you're NOT!) you may be feeling a little overwhelmed and under-prepared right now - fear not, EVERYONE feels under-prepared and there will be many teams at all events that are rookies and may have no missions or only one mission accomplished.  Don't let that stop you from attending 
8. If you've not visited it yet, check out the FLL World Class Resources page

Sharing from around the world

INSPIRING IDEA

FLL teams 52 and 59, from Mesa Robles Robotworks (in the LA region) have created a Core Values project.  They believe this is a great project and represents the essence of FIRST's Core Values.   Read about their idea:

Together we have developed a Facebook page and a YouTube page where 1 minute to 2 minute videos on Core Values can be posted.  The Facebook page can be found  https://www.facebook.com/INSPIRECoreValues  The name of the project is INSPIRE Core Values and we are asking all FIRST teams to post a video.  Instructions have been posted in the About section of our Facebook page.   

EV3 LESSONS

This team from Pittsburgh, PA have created a website to share EV3 lessons.  Check it out!  http://www.ev3lessons.com/other.html

FLL Ontario Blog

If you feel you've missed an important email from me, know that you can always check out the FLL Ontario Blog which archives all the emails sent (note: with the exception of the tournament registration emails because those were sent ONLY to the Head Coach listed for the team to avoid duplicate registrations/confusion in the system).

FLL World Class Team Blast #5

Hello coaches,

I hope your preparations for your upcoming event continue to go well.  Please see below some updates/reminders.

In this post:

1. Tournament Registration completed
2. Tournament paperwork
3. Team Resources - MUST read the coaches' manual!
4. Field Setup Kits
5. Global Innovation Award

1. Tournament Registration Completed

Tournament Registration is closed and I've attached a file which lists all teams attending all events.  If you want to check your status please do so using this file.

2. Tournament Paperwork

Your Tournament Director will be following up with you soon regarding details for their event including payment.  

You should be prepared to have these documents ready for your event:

• FIRST Consent and Release forms (either done online through your TIMS account in which case you just need the roster form printed or printed copies from each child brought to the event) - for details on how to use your TeamRoster to do this online, please refer to this 4-minute video explaining it: Using the Team Roster  http://screencast.com/t/bigyCOnp
• RDES: please download this file and follow the instructions included within.  This framework will help your teamprepare for the Robot Design Judging component of the tournament.
  Basic Outline: The RDES should include the following elements: Robot Facts, Design Details, and a short Trial Run. 

3. Team Resources

You can find many resources for your team on our website here and on FIRST LEGO League Headquarter's site here.  These resources include a Coaches' Manual which is a great resource.  I recommend you read it through cover to cover if this is your first or second year because it has great reminders and an overview of what to expect in the season and at a tournament.

4. Field Setup Kits

If you haven't already done so, you need to make sure to call Spectrum to order your Field Setup Kit for this season.  Details on doing so can be found on my blog post from June 23.

 5. FLL Global Innovation Award 

This piece is TOTALLY optional and teams usually look at this AFTER their event is over - either way, don't stress over this one if you're new to FLL!  This is meant more for the experienced teams ready to take their project to the next level.

Submissions are being accepted for the FIRST® LEGO® League Global Innovation Award presented by XPRIZE! FLLteams may submit their innovative idea from the FLL WORLD CLASS℠ season until 2 p.m. ET February 10, 2015. The winning team will receive USD $20,000 to further develop the team’s invention and/or to support team activities related to FIRST programs.  Each member of the three Finalist teams will also win a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® Education EV3 robot set.  Encourage teams to go to http://fllinnovation.firstlegoleague.org/ to find out more.

Go Teams!

Dave