Villa Duchesne Seventh Graders Stretch Their Science Abilities

Recently, eight Villa seventh graders discovered the wonders of robotics when they worked together to design, build, program and document a robot.

Their collaboration was so successful (and fun) that they went on to compete in the Midwest Regional Botball Competition in Terre Haute, Ind. on May 13.

Botball, a hands-on learning experience in robotics, is designed to engage students in learning the practical applications of science, technology, engineering, math and writing skills.

In their first tournament appearance our Villa team Julie Bazan, Mary Clare Fonseca, Katie Foster, Corrie Griesedieck, Lilly Hawes, Caroline Holmes, Jennifer Lin and Erin Meadowscompeted with 19 other teams from Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and Michigan. Villa students brought home the ³Judges Choice Award,² for best overall team. This award was introduced as the ³most important award² in terms of teamwork and problem solving.

This foray into robotics began in March when Villa science teacher Mary Beth Rothermich attended a training workshop at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute. ³Villa became involved because of the National Science Foundation Study (NSF) which is focused on seventh grade girls. What I particularly liked about this competition was that is was not a ³battlebot² program. It¹s all about teamwork, figuring out strategies and solving a problem. It was positive, and I liked that,² she explained.

Students who expressed interest in the competition had six weeks to design, build and program a robot to perform a specific task. This year¹s mission was based on the Hurricane Katrina disaster and challenged students to rescue Tribbles from a flood, return them to shelters and deliver supplies.

In addition, students documented their project by blogging several times and presenting on site.

"I'm thrilled with our students, their success and most of all, their level of teamwork," says Rothermich. ""I look forward to the opportunity to continue Villa robotics next year."