I feel so out of the loop at this point I'm not even sure how to get back in.
Soon, I will get back to reflecting on my teaching (oh, do I still do that???), but I am so excited for my kids that I really feel like I have to share. As you may know, I sponsor a Robotics team, but what you may not know is how something like that can completely take over your life. I discovered that last year, so I knew going in this year more or less what to expect. What I was not expecting this year was to continue on after Game Day.
Yep. They did it.
This year my kids placed fourth in our hub and qualified for the Frontier Trails BEST Regional Competition. Talk about being blindsided. All season we had talked about what it would be like to go, but it truly was never really on the radar. But then it happened. So we spent another three weeks working on Mike and all his paraphernalia. Then we loaded up a bus and I hauled sixteen teenagers across three states into the unknown (again) to one of the most amazing activities I have ever witnessed. If you have ever been to a robotics competition, you know how crazy it is.* Go to a regional competition and it is that times ten. My ears are still ringing.
We had a blast. We learned a ton. We got to see the amazing creativity that comes out when you let kids run with an idea. We even placed higher than we thought we might!
I have been involved in a lot of activities in the time that I have been a teacher. None of those can hold a candle to the experience of a robotics team. My kids are excited about learning. They are excited about science. They are excited about accomplishing something difficult and amazing. They are excited about next year. We were at GAME DAY and my kids were making a list of things they wanted to do for next year.
So it must be a good thing. Seriously. Look into it!
*You know kickoff at a football game where the band is playing, the people are cheering and the atmosphere just feels charged? At a robotics competition, this goes on for six hours. It. Does. Not. Stop.
2 comments:
So glad to see you writing in your blog again. I would love to do a robotics team and have thought about it but... four preps is enough for me right now. I appreciate your candor about how much time it takes.
Maybe another year...
Thanks Kathryn! Last year, if I would have had any idea the amount of time it would take I probably would not have done it. We logged 1,423 hours for all my kids and me this year. We pretty much live in my room for six weeks. It is really crazy for awhile, but it really is worth it :)
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