LRMS Barking Points: ‘Boe-Bot’ team prep for robot challenge

The students at Lind-Ritzville Middle School (LRMS) are finding themselves in the middle of a balancing act as they precariously juggle different components of life such as academics, family, athletics, FFA, honor society and now, robotics team.

The robotics team, with their knowledgeable advisor Lance Marquardt, is learning how to program a robot known as the “Boe-Bot” which they will enter in different competitions.

In fact, they will be competing in the Zillah Robot Challenge on Dec. 18. In the weeks precluding the competition, student participants will design and construct robots and test their programming skills, all while strengthening their problem solving abilities.

The robotics team, consisting of Jack Anderson and Devin Schafer, will face ample training and preparation before their “Boe-Bots” are ready for the unpredictable racetrack at the Zillah Challenge.

The robotics team has been meeting three days a week before school in order to plan and create the most efficient robot with the materials, sensors and motor that were provided for them by the competition.

Since the rules of the Zillah Robot Challenge dictate that the only way for the “Boe-Bots” to maneuver during the race is by sensors attached to the robot (no remote controls are permitted), students will master the art of programming their robots.

The preparation before their competition is time consuming and meticulous, but the resulting successful robots will be worth it.

During the Zillah Robot Challenge, the LRMS robotics teams will test their programming skills by racing their sensor-controlled robots as fast as possible through a series of three mystery mazes. The robots will be timed as they manipulate through each maze, and the team with the fastest combined times from all three mazes is the winner of the competition.

Teams are not allowed to touch or control their “Boe-Bot” throughout the course of the maze, so they must rely on their sufficient programming of their robot’s sensors.

The Lind-Ritzville robotics team is a worthwhile challenge that is beneficial to all of its participants. It promotes teamwork and communication in a learning situation that works for auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learners. Each specific competition increases problem-solving skills as students figure out the best programming methods.

Robotics is also a great opportunity for students interested in pursuing a career in technology or engineering; the more exposure each student has in a hands on, technologically advanced environment, the more likely a student is to succeed in such a field.

As we dive deeper into the cold, dark reaches of autumn, the students of Lind-Ritzville Middle School continue on, pouring themselves into different activities, including the new robotics team. The Lind-Ritzville robotics team has been preparing hard in order to succeed in their upcoming Zillah Robot Challenge on Dec. 18.

The members of the robotics team have a deep hunger to learn and a heavy thirst to take care of business.

They are one of many examples demonstrating how the students of Lind-Ritzville Middle School are constantly striving for success!