Who knew that there are competitive leagues of Lego-builders in New Jersey who incorporate robotics, science and good old fashioned ingenuity? Montclair's group of budding scientists, mentored by Montclair High Chemistry teacher Monique Dituri, are competing this Saturday in a regional qualifying robotics tournament held at Mt. Hebron Middle School.
The JFLL (Junior First Lego League) team made of kids in first - third grade (ages 6-9) from Rand Elementary School will display their problem solving Lego models which feature electric motors to power moving parts, a battery power supply, solar panels, sound and light sensors, gears, pulleys, axles, and wheels alongside their older counterparts during the local FLL (First Lego League) qualifying regional robotics tournament. 5 Teams from Montclair's three middle schools will compete against 19 other NJ teams.
A free-form Lego sculpture will be built by the over 300 participants and the public is encouraged to bring their extra Legos as well.
This year's project theme is "Climate Conditions." The event, open to the public, will be held Dec. 6 at Mt. Hebron Middle School Gym – 173 Bellevue Ave., Montclair. JFLL Presentation (ages 6-9): 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 pm. FLL Competitions (First Lego League Ages 10-14): 9 am-5 pm.
Comments (7)
404 error on the "budding scientists" link.....
Cool!!! I wanna play too! Is there a 40+ league?
Extra Legos? Seriously?
I attended the FLL competition on Saturday -- my first* -- and I was struck by how much energy and excitement there was based in solving problems and figuring out what is working and what isn't. That was really different in my experience with sports, even though teams wanted to win and advance to next week's state meet.
And what a well-run tournament! Hundreds (literally) of competitors, lots of helpers, lots of space, good judging, great trophies, and everything ran on schedule! Impressive work!
Roger Sperberg
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* I helped out with one of Renaissance Middle School's three teams, so I had a stake in things.
"And what a well-run tournament! Hundreds (literally) of competitors, lots of helpers, lots of space, good judging, great trophies, and everything ran on schedule! Impressive work!"
Kudos to MHS chemistry teacher Monique Ditore for a job well done coordinating the effort.
Bklynnative my thoughts as well. What are extra legos?
if anyone has some pix from this event, i would love to see them! perhaps you could post them on flickr or send them to
tips@baristanet.com