Ark Valley News - Young robotics team competes on world stage

Members of the Intermediate School robotics team — (from left) Ethan Cline, Barrett Smith, Madison Brashers, Shelby Stafford, Hannah Clausel, Chloe Claussen, Kaylie Kinniburgh, Kelsey Sexton, Natalia Castillo-Diaz, Me (whitney Smith), Ethan Cline, Amanda Sexton — are pictured at the VEX IQ Worlds Tournament in Louisville, Ky.

Young robotics team competes on world stage
By The News staff
Last Updated: May 17, 2018

The Valley Center Intermediate School Bonebots robotics team competed at the VEX IQ Worlds Tournament, which was April 25 through May 1 in Louisville, Ky.

In its first year of existence, the 11-member team of fifth- and sixth-grade students, coached by teacher Whitney Smith, finished 292nd out of 1,600 teams, making them among the top 2 percent of teams in the world.

The competition included driving the robot the students built and computer coding they designed to score points in a variety of challenges.

Challenges included 10 teamwork matches (where two drivers from one team pair up with two drivers from another team, using each team's robot to work together to score as many points as possible in 60 seconds), a driver skills challenge (where drivers from each team drive the robot built by the team on a skills course), and a programming challenge (where the team programs their robot to perform certain actions on its own, without a driver).

The competition also included a STEM presentation. Students developed a “Medi Band" and medication-dispensing machine designed to alert patients when it's time to take medicine.

The STEM presenters were praised for their innovation, Smith said.

This was the first year Kansas had a representative in the tournament. Valley Center qualified by winning the state tournament held earlier this year at Wichita State University.

The team raised more than $8,000 for registration and travel expenses to compete in this tournament, from local individuals and businesses as well as a variety of activities (like selling coffee and doughnuts in the morning car lines at school).