Area robotics teams get together for tournament in Sidney

Legos, robotics, and friendly competition met in West Elementary School on Saturday in the form of a robotics tournament.

Sidney hosted its first 4-H Lego League Tournament for fourth- to eight-graders. Ten teams, involving 85 students from the panhandle, participated in the tournament.

It included a team research presentation, a Core Values teamwork challenge, robot design and then the main event – the robotics obstacle course. Each of the four challenges were scored by judges and contributed to the overall team rankings.

"The youth who participate in robotics are learning valuable life-long skills and having a lot of fun at the same time," said Cynthia Gill, a local Nebraska Extension Educator. "The Core Values are really the most important part of participation in the first Lego League, and is what sets it apart from other programs."

The core values of the first Lego League include various "we" statements fostering exploration, learning, and teamwork. Some of the values include: We are a team. What we discover is more important than what we win. We share our experiences with others.

The Core Values challenge of the tournament included a team challenge where teams were asked to make a square shape out of a rope – while blind-folded – in five minutes. After the challenge, judges asked the team what they would do differently if they were asked to repeat the challenge.

The values seem to be sticking for many of the participants.

Shravya Jallepally, a Sidney fourth-grader, said her favorite aspect of the competition is "the part where everybody worked as a team and helped each other with our robot."

Kyla Wykert, an eighth-grader from Perkins County, can relate to learning new skills.

"When I first started robotics, I didn't know how to use a screwdriver, and now I am programming robots," she said. Her team was one of many first-timers to participate in Lego League.

The teams put in consistent practice time over the past school year in building and programming the robots.

Koen Turner, a fifth-grader from Sidney, said his team met twice a week for an hour and a half. The team learned programming first and then built the challenges needed to practice for the robotics tournament.

Turner said he's planning on participating again next year. "It was pretty fun."

Charles Baldwin, an executive vice president at Cabela's, was the keynote speaker for the event. He encouraged the students to dream big.

"Everybody in this world, at one time they were 8, 10, and 12 years old," Baldwin said. "You could be the next Mark Zuckerburg."

He told of various technology that he had seen recently – big as in the size of a 218-inch flat screen TV, and something small enough to plug into your cell phone to block the wind.

"The reality is there is no limit to technology," Baldwin said.

He also encouraged participants to keep working hard, and to believe in themselves. "Don't let anyone shatter your self-confidence," he said.

Gill emphasized that the program would not have been possible without the adults who donated their time and talents to the cause.

"We were blessed in Cheyenne County with a fantastic group of robotics coaches," Gill said.

Members of the Cabela's IT department took the robotics project and ran with it in Sidney. Tammy and Steve Miller returned as coaching veterans to prepare a team in Gurley.

Individuals looking to get involved with the 4-H program are encouraged to participate, Gill said.

"We look for people who want to share their time and talent with young people," she said. "We ask volunteers to register with the extension office and pass a background check.

"There are long-term commitments such as serving as a club leader, one-time workshops or short-term projects. We can work with you to find a good fit." ​

The four teams that advanced to the state tournament in Ashland on Feb. 21 are: Kimball Kimbots, Bridgeport Bulldotz, Perkins County Spartabots and Sidney Mindblenders.