Current Countries with FIRST Programs Argentina Austria Bahrain Belgium Chile Columbia Czech Republic Denmark Egypt Faroe Islands France Germany Haiti Hong Kong Hungary Iceland Ireland Israel Japan Jordan Kuwait Lebanon Malaysia Mexico New Zealand Norway Palestine Peru Portugal Qatar Saudi Arabia Singapore South Africa South Korea Spain Sudan Switzerland Syria Taiwan, R.O.C. Thailand Tunisia Turkey United Kingdom Yemen Indonesia Scandinavia Benelux Brazil United States India Canada Australia Sweden Netherlands Lithuania Luxembourg Poland Slovakia Romania Bosnia/ Herzegovina Russia China Philippines Estonia Slovenia F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY Its a competitive sport. Its a life experience. Its opportunity. Its community. Its amazing. F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY Founded in 1989 by inventor Dean Kamen Devoted to helping young people discover and develop a passion for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). 294,600 Students 90,000+ Mentors/Volunteers/Adult Supporters More than 50 countries 2011/12 F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY Who is it for? For Students (ages 6-18): the hardest fun youll ever have. For Mentors, Coaches, Volunteers: the most rewarding adventure youll ever undertake. For Sponsors: the most enlightened investment you could ever make. F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY FIRST learning never stops building upon itself, starting at age 6 and continuing through middle and high-school levels up to age 18. Young people can join at any level. Participants master skills and concepts to aid in learning science and technology through innovative projects and robotics competitions, while gaining valuable career and life skills. F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY The FIRST Tech Challenge F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY Head-to-head competition using sports model Teams design, build and program robots based on sound engineering principles Develop strategic problem-solving, organization, and team-building skills Mentored by professional engineers Awards for competition, community outreach and design Qualify for $10 million in scholarships What is FTC ? F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY FTC is a widely accessible, hands-on high school robotics program INSPIRES children in grades 7-12 to participate in science and technology DESIGN, BUILD AND PROGRAM robots GET hands-on programming and rapid prototyping experience APPLY real-world math and science concepts TEACHES the engineering process DEVELOPS strategic problem-solving, organizational and team-building skills LEARN about Gracious Professionalism What is FTC ? F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY What is FTC ? How It Works PROBLEM-SOLVING AND TEAM-BUILDING Conceive, build and compete using a modular robotics platform New engineering-based game challenge presented each year TEAMS OF CHILDREN AND MENTORS Work as a team of up to10 students Learn with adults and Mentors BUILD AND COMPETE Building, programming, testing and leaning the iterative (engineering process) Compete and cooperate in Alliances at Qualifying and Championship events F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY What is FTC ? FTC Teams APPLY real-world math and science concepts to research, design, build and program autonomous and driver-controlled robots USE LEGO MINDSTORMS technologies GAIN hands-on experience Robot Game Project-based Learning LEARN from and interact with adult mentors WORK as a team to overcome obstacles and meet challenges ENGAGE with their communities F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY FTC Impact Proven Results 78% of FTC participants believe their desire to do better in school is a direct result of their participation in FTC With FTC, interest in majoring in math and science - and pursuing those fields - has risen by 84% FTC is unlocking interest in math and science (90% of participants cite FTC directly responsible) F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY 2,300 U.S. teams (projected) 21,000 middle and high school-age students 100+ Qualifying and Championship Tournaments; 1 World Championship U.S., Canada, Mexico, Australia, China, India, Netherlands, New Zealand, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan Pilot programs in Germany and Spain FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC ): Season What is FTC ? F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY FTC Growth OVER YEAR 2011 Program Growth F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY 2011/2012 Game Ring It Up! is played on a 12x12 diamond shaped field. Two alliances comprised of two teams each, compete in matches consisting of a 30 second autonomous period followed by a two-minute driver controlled period. The object of the game is to score more points than your opponents alliance by placing plastic rings onto pegs on the center rack. Teams will also be challenged to detect special weighted rings to earn a special multiplier bonus. F OR I NSPIRATION AND R ECOGNITION OF S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY Organizations Any group can create a team: schools, community groups, churches, neighborhoods Up to 10 students, grades 7-12, and 2 to 3 adult Mentors per team Cost $2,500 for new teams; $1,200 for returning teams (U.S.) Season Overview May October ...Online registration Early September ..Game is revealed September October...Design & build November March...Tournament season April ..World Championship What is FTC ? FTC Season