2020-2021 SEASON

FIRST and FIRST in Michigan are busy planning for the upcoming season. Now more than ever it’s important to help our students to comfortably engage with technology, to prepare to be future STEM problem-solvers, and to connect to their FIRST LEGO League team and worldwide community! Our program aspects will remain the same, though the execution might look a little different this year.

TEAM RESOURCES FOR DEALING WITH COVID-19 CHALLENGES

Some very helpful resources to help teams creatively problem solve to meet the challenges of COVID-19 restrictions:

• FLL Guidance for COVID-19 Interruptions from FIRST

CHALLENGE RELEASE

Check out the FIRST LEGO League Explore PLAYMAKERS challenge release video! RePLAY is part of the FIRST GAME CHANGERS season theme. You can find all of the season materials at our freshly updated FIRST in Michigan FIRST LEGO League Explore Resources page.

TEAM REGISTRATION

Registration for the 2020-21 season is open! You can complete your registration by following the detailed instructions at the FIRST in Michigan FIRST LEGO League Explore site or by logging into your existing FIRSTinspires account. Returning teams keep their same team number from year to year. Do not register your team as a new team; instead use your existing team number by registering the team currently listed in your Dashboard. (Rookie status is not determined by team number, and it’s an extra step on our end to link your previous team to your new number.) If you are unsure if your school has an existing team, please contact them before registering to check. If you are moving up to FIRST LEGO League Challenge, please replace yourself on the team Dashboard with an incoming coach before signing off (and contact Angela Hite at angela@firstinmichigan.org for more information!)

EVENTS

We plan to have Festivals, but we are considering all options for modifying events, including a delayed time frame and remote events. FIRST has not released the remote platform information yet for FIRST LEGO League programs, but state partners will know more about the specific format later this month. Details will follow in another team eblast by the beginning of September. Remote Event details will roll out to teams from FIRST in late September. We will use this platform for at least remote reviewing. We are currently working to make sure that there is an event format available that works for every team, within the state and your school’s guidelines.

GRANT UPDATE

The state grant is still moving through the legislative process and we’re getting positive feedback regarding its likelihood to survive budget cuts. State reps agree that we need to keep students on the STEM path, now more than ever. There will be more information about grants in coming weeks. If you are interested in the state grant, watch for an announcement of the registration deadline in an upcoming coach email. Teams will likely need to be registered by early November to take advantage of the grant.

FIRST LEGO LEAGUE REBRANDING REMINDER

All coaches received an email announcement that FIRST has made name changes to both the FIRST LEGO League and FIRST LEGO League Jr. programs. FIRST LEGO League will now be the name of the overall program with three separate divisions within that. As such, the old program names have changed:

• FIRST LEGO League is now FIRST LEGO League Challenge
• FIRST LEGO League Jr is now FIRST LEGO League Explore
• The new Pre-K program is now called FIRST LEGO League Discover

While the names may have changed, the age ranges for Michigan’s FIRST programs have not. All Michigan teams must follow the Michigan age ranges which vary from the overall FIRST age ranges you see on firstinspires.org in order to allow our grant-supported PreK-12 Progression of Programs which makes FIRST accessible to all Michigan students:

• High School: FIRST Robotics Competition
• Middle School: FIRST Tech Challenge
• PreK-Elementary: FIRST LEGO League (now three divisions)
  • 4th-end of elementary: Challenge
  • K-3: Explore
  • Pre-K only: Discover

Please talk to your district about starting a Pre-K FIRST LEGO League Discover program! We piloted Discover in two school districts last season to RAVE reviews. Using Duplo blocks, Discover is a playful introductory STEM program that will inspire preschool students to develop a natural curiosity for learning. Contact our FIRST LEGO League Explore & Discover Director Cindy Nader at cindy@firstinmichigan.org for more details.

PROGRAM INFORMATION

Links to program information on the FIRST in Michigan website:

• Run a Team – Step by step guide for Michigan coaches new and old
• Resources – Conveniently categorized links to FIRST and outside resources, season documents, training, etc.
• Grants – information will be updated as grants become available; check back periodically

PROGRAM REMINDERS