Friday, January 27, 2012

Lego team prepares for national award

As a preview to Tuesday's Young Achievers feature, I thought I would go ahead and introduce you to a unique group of home school students who call themselves the Flaming Robo Duckies.

Decked out in red and yellow tie-die shirts, the Duckies, spend hours on end preparing to compete in the First LEGO League (FLL) robotics competition. They took first place in their regional competition and earned a teamwork award at the state level. Now, they are preparing for the FLL Global Innovation Award, but they need your help.

The FLL Global Innovation Award supports youth innovation by offering 200,000 FLL participants the chance to compete and win support for their research projects. One winning team and two runner-up winners will be announced on June 19 at the United States Patent & Trademark Office in Alexandria, Va.

In addition, the award's sponsor, Charlotte-based Edison Nation, has offered to bring the winning idea through the same product development process showcased in their Emmy award-winning PBS television show "Everyday Edisons." This is a prize valued at up to $250,000.

Now the Duckies, ages 9-14, are asking members of the community to vote for their FLL research so they can advance.

Continue to read the Young Achievers section for a complete story on the Flaming Robo Duckies on Tuesday.

In the meantime:
Do you have someone in mind who fits the Young Achievers mold? Email me at youngachievers@charlotteobserver.com, or call 704-358-6043.

Photo: Will Silander, left and Drew Rumble put their Lego robot to the test on Jan.19. The Flaming Robo Duckies Lego team won their regional Lego robotics competition and earned a spot in the state finals in Greensboro. Photo by Todd Sumlin - tsumlin@charlotteobserver.com

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