Hightower Trail Middle School FIRST Lego League (FLL) Team Wins Award!

Hightower Trail Middle School earned the FIRST Lego League Mechanical Design Award for their robot at their qualifier on Saturday, December 5, 2015!

Principal Mrs. Montgomery also stopped by to support the team and cheer them on. This rookie team did a fantastic job all the way around and are robo-superstars!

We loved mentoring them and are SO proud of all they've accomplished! Way to go team!

Robotics Queens First Lego League (FLL) Team Wins Award!

Breaking News: Rookie team the Robotics Queens won the FIRST Lego League 3rd Place Champion's Award on December 5, 2015 at their qualifier!

It was an exciting but long day and it ended with the award (and ice cream!). We had a great time mentoring these girls, and it was a true group project.

They had help from our team East Cobb Robotics, Walton Robotics Team, GENIUS Robotics, and Duct-Ties And Zip-Tape. The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation and Georgia FIRST Robotics as well as Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta were key supporters, and made the whole thing possible. Thank you!

We can't wait to see what great heights these ladies reach!

FULL! Minecraft Camp/Parent's Night Out

Thanks to everyone who signed up for our Parent's Night Out Event. We're looking forward to a fun evening!

This Parent's Night Out Camp is now FULL, but please sign up on our Notify Me form so we can let you know when our next camp will be held.

Questions? Please email info@EastCobbRobotics.org

Parent's Night Out / Minecraft Camp! (Now accepting 1st grade)

Camp and Parent's Night Out

What:          Minecraft Camp / Parent's Night Out
Who:           Available to kids in grades 1st - 8th
When:         Friday, December 4th from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm
Where:        3162 Johnson Ferry Road, Suite 430 Marietta, GA 30062
Hosted By:  East Cobb Robotics Team

Parents, it’s your chance to go out and have some fun or do some Holiday shopping while your kids learn new ways to use Minecraft from East Cobb Robotics Students. The night will be fun filled and your child can get their Minecraft questions answered while playing with other kids.

IMPORTANT Tech Notes: 
For a successful evening, each child needs to:

• Have their own computer-based Minecraft account and know how to log in.
• Bring their own LAPTOP with Minecraft already installed.
• All machines must run Windows, iOS or Linux and have Java installed.    
• No Kindles, iPads, iPhones, or Chromebooks

Cost is $30 per child and includes drinks, snacks, and pizza for dinner. Children must be in grades 1-8.

To register, click on the “Minecraft Camp sign-up” tab!

Questions? Please email info@EastCobbRobotics.org

Can't make it this time, but want to know when our next camp is? Fill out our Notify Me form.


Refunds require a 24 hour cancellation notice. All proceeds go toward East Cobb Robotics' mission of promoting STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics).

Planes, Drones, Robots –Oh My!

October was a busy month for East Cobb Robotics.  We visited the Cobb County Radio Control Modeler’s Club in Acworth.

Photo of the team and CCRC members taken by their drone!

CCRC members showcased entry-level radio control airplanes, drones, helicopters and a plane that runs on jet fuel.  (Due to the size of the runway this plane was unable to fly –it is very loud!)  During the demo flights our driver’s fingers were itching to get their hands on the controls!  We are thankful to say there were no crashes or in flight collisions this was due to teaming up with an experienced pilot and strictly following their instruction

A key to successful radio control operation is the controls function logically while the plane is flying away from you however, while flying toward you everything is reversed.  The left lever is now controlling the right flap, etc.  Team members learned about scale, various materials used in exterior construction, electrical systems, thrust, lift, propulsion and what a fun hobby this can be!

It’s no surprise that the careers of our hosts ranged from technology to aeronautical engineering and of course – a pilot!  We really appreciate the time they took with our team and the guidance they provided.

GRITS recap

On Saturday at GRITS (our pre-season robotics competition) the rookie members learned how a competition operates and got to experience some of the excitement and action involved. Veteran team members got to see another version of the GRITS competition and were also able to relive the excitement and action of competition. We had lots of fun, showed great spirit (more about that later), and represented East Cobb Robotics well in front of other students, the public and Georgia FIRST leadership.




Students also learned great problem solving skills, how to work as a team and how to handle challenges that arose. Through the talents of the All-Rookie Drive Team and build, electrical and programming team members working together, we wound up coming in 8th place out of 25.

Our t-shirt cannon shot off shirts to the crowd and had a lot of interest from the public as well as other teams. We had fun interacting with the Dodgen FTC team, The Afterburners, who were there demonstrating their robot, and shared information about the next level of FIRST (FRC) with them as well as some pizza.

We also got to share information about STEM with the public and had more than a few people interested in our competition robot, King Tote, our t-shirt cannon and the FIRST Progression of Programs.

While we encountered some challenges during the robot portion of the competition, we had NO trouble with spirit. We impressed the judges with our awesome dance moves and infectious team spirit and brought home the GRITS 2015 Spirit Award! This is our second GRITS trophy, and it's a beautiful addition to our collection.

Thanks to everyone who came out and cheered on ALL the participants at GRITS and for helping to encourage a love of STEM in the community.

GRITS (an off-season robotics competition!)

Teams from all over Georgia and beyond are coming together in Marietta, GA. Come watch robots compete in the 2015 FIRST Robotics Competition game – Recycle Rush!  The 120lb robots compete in 3 team alliances and score by stacking totes and garbage cans on top of each other to score points.

East Cobb Robotics will be one of 28 teams participating in an off-season competition named GRITS: the Georgia Robotics Invitational Tournament and Showcase on Saturday, October 10.

FTC, FLL and robotics for all grades will be showcased. The event is FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. 

The link to the official Georgia FIRST page is HERE

Date: Saturday, October 15, 2015
Time: See schedule below
Location: Walton High School, 1590 Bill Murdock Rd, Marietta, GA 30062

8:30 AM Opening Ceremonies
9:00 AM‐ 12:00 PM Qualifying Rounds
12:00 PM ‐ 01:30 PM Break for lunch
1:30 PM – 03:30 PM Qualifying Rounds resume
03:30 PM – 04:00 PM Short break and Alliance Picks
04:00 PM – 05:00 PM Semi‐ Finals and Final Match
05:15 PM Awards

HURRY! Registration Closes Friday for Minecraft Camp!

The East Cobb Robotics Team is hosting a MINECRAFT CAMP! 

We'll be helping students explore different aspects of Minecraft, including Redstone...  

 

Who:       Students, grades 3rd - 8th

What:      Minecraft camp!

Where:    3162 Johnson Ferry Road, Suite 430 Marietta, GA 30062

When:      Saturday, October 3rd, 2015

9am-12pm for grades 3-5

2pm-5pm for grades 6-8

In this camp, kids will learn new ways to use Minecraft from our high-school age robotics team members! Your child can finally get their Minecraft questions answered while playing with other kids.

Each child needs to bring their own laptop with Minecraft already installed.

Each child needs to have their own Minecraft account and know how to login.

Cost is $25 per child.

Space is limited to 30 children for each session so sign up soon!

Refunds require a 24 hour cancellation notice. All proceeds go toward East Cobb Robotics' mission of promoting STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).

Click on the “Minecraft Camp sign-up” tab up above!

Can't come to this event but want to know when our next session is? 

Sign up on this Notify Me List.

2015 East Cobber Parade and Festival!

The 20th Annual East Cobber Parade and Festival was a huge success all the way around. The weather held out: it wasn't too hot or too cold, and although the wind kicked up a little, it wasn't a problem.  All the team members worked together beautifully. We had compliment after compliment from the community and other businesses telling us how impressed they were with our students - they were polite, well mannered, professional and so SMART! Most people were blown away by seeing what the kids had built and accomplished. Many told us that they wish that they had this opportunity when they were in school. Even more told us (and the students) to stick with it, as this program would be a great benefit to them now, for college, and for future jobs.

We outreached to hundreds of people through the parade and afterwards at the festival, and had a lot of interest in our program. The t-shirt/stress ball cannon was a big hit during the parade and at the festival where we had a shoot-off with the Walton team.

 During the Festival itself, we promoted GRITS and our upcoming Minecraft Camp which had many kids really, really (really) excited.

We also featured a STEM activity with bubbles - EVERYONE enjoyed playing with the bubbles, and we snuck some science in there on the sly (elasticity, surface tension, chemistry, light, and even geometry) so that kids could experience the fact that science and math are everywhere, and that it's FUN.

More fun was had by kids driving our outreach robot. We had all ages and sizes of kids driving the robot (and some parents got in on the action too!). After a quick explanation on how to drive, they took turns driving it around the test site. We had a pretty long line going at one point.

Drivers were rewarded with a really cute "Certified Robot Driver" sticker and came away with a more personal man/machine connection and saw that robots are fun and not scary or "something out of my league".




It was especially gratifying to see all the girls who stepped up to take the controls. From the little, little ones, to cheerleaders in ponytails and bows, all the girls who drove the robot came away with a sense of accomplishment. What a great feeling to know that our team may have helped inspire some of them to pursue careers in STEM.

That's what yesterday was all about... Inspiring the community and kids about STEM, robotics and our team. We had fun getting the word out there through our robots, our activities and our team members.

Getting Ready for the East Cobber Parade

Tonight we had 8 students training on the t-shirt cannon. Isn't it beautiful! ;)

To see it first hand, you'll need to come to the East Cobber Parade and Festival this Saturday, 9/12. We're right up front and we'll be shooting off t-shirts for the East Cobber Magazine in addition to our very own purple stress balls.

Come by and watch the parade, have the chance to catch a t-shirt or ball, and then stop by the festival and do a fun STEM activity, and drive a robot.

Rain or shine! More info on the parade can be found at the East Cobber's website.

Girl Power!

 You go girl(s).

On the Job Training

Our new Rookies are getting a taste of building and constructing through on the job training. We had a safety training session, and now some of the hands on training begins.

We're constructing more workbenches for our site and getting ready for the East Cobber Parade on Saturday, September 12

He Got the Memo

Testing out one of our old chassis with a new friend, who just so happens to be 

beautifully color coordinated. 

Robotics Queens!

East Cobb Robotics is really excited to be working with Georgia FIRST and several other local FRC and FTC teams to help get an FLL Team started at the Boys and Girls Club. 

The Robotics Queens (for now - they may change the name!) are a dynamic group of 10 girls who are excited to be part of FIRST for this year's challenge: Trash Trek.

 Last week, the girls started brain storming ideas for their project and getting familiar with FIRST. We're looking forward to seeing what these enthusiastic and motivated girls can achieve!

T-shirt cannon...

will be making its debut at the East Cobber Parade on September 12, 2015. Stay tuned!

UltraFun with UltraViolet

It was definitely a purple sort of day when East Cobb Robotics got together with UltraViolet FLL Team #335 to brainstorm ideas on how to create a more stable robot and to get feedback on some building techniques.

All the students really worked well together and learned a lot while having fun with robots. (Always a great thing).

We're looking forward to seeing what the FLL Game Reveal on August 25th brings to the girls of UltraViolet and hope that we can get together again soon!

It's TOOL TIME!

After the split with our former host school, the team was left with almost no hand tools and we were facing some serious challenges as to how we would be able to keep building robots in our new space.

Thanks to an incredibly generous gift from Stanley Black & Decker tools, the team now has a ginormous set of brand new tools! (We were so excited, we took pictures of the boxes.)

The inventory and unpacking starts this weekend and our students are literally hugging the boxes, and can't wait to open them up and start using them.

Thank you, Stanley Black & Decker for helping our team and for your commitment to helping to grow lives and foster young engineers and a love of STEM. You're helping us make a difference.

Successful Membership Drive!

We had a great turn out for our membership drive this year!

Our veteran students presented information like the pros they are, and we able to successfully share what FIRST is all about to students and their parents at two separate Information Meetings.

More evidence that this program is more than robots!

Assisting at the STEM Compass Robotics Camp at GT

East Cobb Robotics students, collaborating with Walton Robotics, helped staff a camp put on by STEM Compass at Georgia Tech this summer.

Students from both teams taught campers how to create a robot that could complete a previous FLL challenge. Everyone also got to tour the Robotics Lab and the Georgia Tech campus.

Campers were able to program and build robots that met the challenges while discovering new potential careers in STEM fields and being inspired by the Georgia Tech campus.

Robotics Camp at Boys and Girls Club

Robots don't stop over the summer! The team had the opportunity to help teach middle school aged students at the Boys and Girls Club all about teamwork, leadership and FLL robotics during a week-long summer camp.

Collaborating with Georgia FIRST and the Arthur M. Blank Foundation, FIRST Robotics students from local FRC and FTC teams acted as teachers and were able to assist Campers in building a robot using Mindstorm NXT kits. The campers were able to build and program their robots to complete challenges using motors, sensors and new found programming skills.

Some of the girls (the "Pink Ladies") had received training previously regarding leadership skills, and these Robotics Queens will be forming their own FLL team this school year.

On the last day, parents and special guests came and saw the accomplishments that their camper had made, and awards were presented for highest points, Safety, Gracious Professionalism, Coopertition and more.

The Campers had a really fun and educational week that was the highlight of the summer for many of them. We enjoyed helping out and inspiring young minds as to the possibilities that their futures could hold.

Announcing the new East Cobb Robotics Team!

Attention, all Marietta and East Cobb area high school age students;  Now there is an organization in your community with opportunities to participate in one of the fastest growing trends in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM): Robotics!

Originally formed to help enhance Pope High School's STEM curriculum in 2013, the resource demands and community interest in our program rapidly exceeded the school's ability to sponsor our activities, resulting in the need for us to independently develop East Cobb Robotics. Our new charter allows us to expand our reach to serve all eligible high school age students in the Marietta and East Cobb area, filling the demand for a STEM-based program for students of all educational backgrounds.

As East Cobb Robotics, our core concepts and work ethic remain unchanged. We are a fully committed FIRST FRC team dedicated to helping our students and the community at large by developing the students' interest in STEM. This program prepares students to further enhance their education and career goals.  Our parent and corporate mentors form a vibrant, experienced leadership team which trains and helps oversee all activities. We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and work closely with other local FIRST FRC teams and Georgia FIRST (among many others) to promote STEM and serve the community.

FIRST is an internationally recognized organization that sponsors robotics competitions involving over 41,000 schools and community groups in 80 countries for students K-12.

Informational Meeting for Prospective New Team Members 2015-16

Currently we are accepting applications for new team members who are interested in robotics, programming, community outreach, business, marketing, video production, and engineering. Training in all of these areas will be provided. Prospective team members should fall within the age range of 14-18 and have a desire to learn, a mature attitude, a strong sense of commitment, a willingness and ability to work well within a team, and a healthy work ethic. Parental involvement is key to the success of the team and is expected and encouraged.

We'll be hosting an Informational Meeting on Saturday, July 25, 2015 at 11:00am at the Mountain View Regional Library located at 3320 Sandy Plains Rd, Marietta, GA 30066. It is highly recommended that you come to the meeting to hear more about this opportunity prior to applying. Applications for students and parents will be due on Saturday, August 1, 2015, with follow-up interviews to be held the week of August 3.

Please contact us at info@EastCobbRobotics.org with any questions and for student and parent applications.

NEW FRC Team in East Cobb!

Welcome to East Cobb Robotics!

We are a community-based FIRST FRC team located in Marietta, GA in the East Cobb area. More details regarding membership to follow - stay tuned!

Please contact info@eastcobbrobotics.org for more information.