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[Updated 2016-04-04 10:02 with info from the ever-awesome Rob Gorbet – be sure to roll down to the comments for more info from Rob who sits on the FRC board of directors and served as an FRC judge, including the World Championships – Thx RG!]

On Saturday I headed over to The University of Waterloo PAC to catch the FIRST Robotics Canada Regional competition. My crew has been hitting this event since the Waterloo Regionals edition kicked off in 2010 2005. If you’re new here, FIRST == For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology. These are high school students working with teachers and industry mentors to build robots that compete each year in a different challenge.

As a maker myself, I see a ton of positive outcomes in this for the community and the future. We’ve got young makers designing, fabricating, programming, maintaining and driving robots which looks like a whole lot of learning opportunity. We’ve got students connecting with mentors outside of the classroom which establishes an important and inconsistently practiced mechanism for personal and professional growth. And we’re celebrating the making and competition with the same enthusiasm and infrastructure typically reserved for sports. Hands up if you didn’t play on the basketball team in high school and spent your nights and weekends building stuff in the garage. Yeah, that’s me.

I enjoy seeing the different problem-solving approaches that teams have employed. I see the range of experience in the pits. I like to get up close to see the various bits of tech used. I’m impressed with the cooperation under pressure and the camaraderie among teams. And most importantly, I’m glad my kids get to see this stuff too. Many years ago now, I was talking to my son Calder about the importance of putting his best effort into his schoolwork. I told him it was important to care. He surprised me with a big question: “That’s just it, Dad. How do I make myself care?” I’ve spent the last eight years working on that question with both my kids. Attending the FIRST Robotics competitions and talking to FRC teams where you find them is a small but concrete step in establishing motivation for learning. FRC’s Rob Gorbet adds:

“Whether you start a team, support a team, volunteer for the event, or just bring your kids and yourselves every year to watch, FIRST can change the way people think about education, for sure.  I know, because I’ve seen and heard the stories of so many kids inspired by FIRST participation.

It would be awesome to add links to the FIRST Robotics Canada web page and a sentence or two on getting involved.  FIRST has programs for all age ranges from grades 1-12, and Waterloo also hosts the FIRST Lego League provincial competition for grades 4-8.  We’re always trying to help get new teams started in the region, and always looking for new volunteers and sponsors: www.firstroboticscanada.com”

I can echo the plug for FIRST Lego League: both my kids went through that program in elementary school and it was another great intro to making with your hands, adding more incentive to learn.

Local Team DAVE #3683 bot above, crashing through the gates of this year’s Stronghold challenge.

I’ve got more for you here, but first: self-promotion. There are no ads on makebright. There is no paywall or different levels of access. There is just the work I put out. My awesome Patreon supporters kick in small amounts of money per post with a monthly cap because they’re investing in Waterloo Region. If you dig my community-building work, please support it with your pocket change. Ok, now more story.

UW’s Physical Activities Complex, jammed to the rafters with fans.

Renaissance Robotics #4525 team out of St. Thomas hit the pits after a round of competition. And now click through for an utterly unreasonable number of pics…

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