REQUIRED: Each student must pass the CoDrone EDU Piloting Quiz with a score of 100% BEFORE flying drones at the next practice, Monday, January 6th!
Here is the link, in case parents would like to go through with their students. https://learn.robolink.com/quizzes/pilot-quiz/
ONCE YOU HAVE COMPLETED, PLEASE SCREENSHOT YOUR CERTIFICATE AND SEND TO Mrs Watson - THAT IS HOW WE KNOW YOU HAVE COMPLETED IT!
cindy.watson@bedford.k12.va.us
Thursday - December 26th FMS teams Noon - 2:00 pm
JFHS Teams 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Thursday - January 2nd TJ Elem Teams - 10:00 am - Noon
FMS Teams Noon - 2:00 pm
JFHS Teams 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
The above students wasted no time after Christmas showing up for practice
on December 26th!
JF Students who made time for practice on DAY 2 of the New Year!
FMS Students who made time for practice on DAY 2 of the New Year!
EACH Drone Team Member should have been through all the Base Camp Videos
Forest Competition Drone Team - CoDrone Edu Edition
OVERVIEW:
For the second year, Forest Middle School is offering an exciting and innovative program designed to introduce students to the fundamentals of drone technology, programming, and real-world applications using the CoDrone Edu from Robolink. Our aim is to inspire and educate the next generation of engineers, drone pilots, and tech enthusiasts through hands-on experiences. Our goal is to pilot this program and teach other local schools how to effectively run a drone competition team
We have expanded our teams this year to include both Thomas Jefferson Elementary and Jefferson Forest High School.
now known as: The Forest Drone Zone.
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Mission 2025 Gravity
Mission 2025 Gravity is taking flight. This season we're challenging you to master the forces of gravity as you navigate your drone through exciting teamwork, piloting, and autonomous flight missions
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WHO SHOULD JOIN?
This after school club/program is ideal for ALL middle school students with a passion for technology, a curiosity about flight, or an interest in programming. No prior experience is required, as our dedicated team of instructors and mentors will guide students every step of the way. We have a minimum of 4 teams already commited to compete but are willing to add more teams as needed. Let's represent FMS as a drone powerhouse!! Space us limited so apply as soon as possible. Teams are closed for the 2024-2025 school year.
The FMS Drone Team is at capacity and is no longer accepting registrations
(How AWESOME that we have soooo many students who want to participate!!)
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BEHAVIOR CLAUSE:
We welcome all well behaved students. Due to the cost of all materials and the number of teammates, there are minimum behavior expectations. The most important behavior disqualifier is if the student receives a referral during the September thru December season (remember 5 lunch detentions = 1 referral = not allowed to remain on the team), they are no longer qualified to participate. We expect the BEST from our teams in the classroom and at practice.
At the beginning of each practice we will meet to discuss the schedule for that practice. When coaches and team members are talking, students will be quiet and listen. Nobody will be on the classroom computers. With the sheer number of participants we need everyone's attention. These teamwork and soft skills learned in practice will carry over to the competition.
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ACADEMIC CLAUSE:
Your first and most important priority as a student at FMS is to be a student!! Academics trump everything! In order to stay on the drone competition team you MUST be passing ALL classes with a "C" or better. This will be checked at interims (4 week and 7 week) and end of quarter.
You will need to have the teacher signed (by class period) grade update form turned in to your coaches to verify your grades. These will be turned in three times a nine weeks.
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CLICK Below to find out how to support our teams:
To show $$$$ Support for our Teams
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2024 - 2025 "Village of Supporters"
(Through donations, grants, goods & services, and partnerships)
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COMPETITION SEASON & Practices
Our season will extend into 2nd semester. Currently we do not have competition dates locked in.
PRACTICES details are found under each group's section.
All practices will be held at FMS and team members will be picked up at the front of the school at 6 PM.
Should you have a schedule conflict, and not be able to attend a practice. You must discuss with one of the coaches. We want anyone interested to have an opportunity to be a part of the FMS Drone Competition team but need to be accountable for attendance.
Attendance will be taken at each practice.
We are fortunate to have dedicated classrooms to house our 2 practice fields. Teams will rotate thru the practice fields to perfect their flying and programming skills. Practice fields will be rotated between autonomous/piloting and the alliance courses. Each team is given calendar with information for each practice. Included on the calendar will be which practice field (autonomous vs alliance, and practice field times. Additional practice criteria will be set up at eight stations in the school. Each team (led by their captain) will be responsible for their drone, team notebook and large ziploc bag of game elements.
Thomas Jefferson Elementary Teams
Team 12550T - The Slay Queens
Drone: Princess
Abby F., Cori S., Emi L., Emma H.
Teams Practice
Tuesdays
3:00 - 5:00 pm
Team 12550J - The Chocolatiers
Drone: Lil' Wonka
Austin W., Del P., Hudson V., Jackson M.
Team 12550E - The Kittens
Drone: Tecker
Colton M., Eli A., Noah M., Xavier G.
Team 12550S - The Phoenixes
Drone: Fire Phoenix
David M., Lincoln S., Tyler S., Will Z.
TJ Practice Schedule: Tuesdays 3:00 - 5:00 pm
September 10th, 17th, 24th
October 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, and 29th
November 12th, 19th and 26th (No practice on November 5th Election Day)
December 3rd, 10th, 17th (Special Practice set for January 2 - 10:00 - Noon
Forest Middle School Teams
Drone:
Team Members: Evelyn, Kaitlyn & Cayla Not pictured: Scout
Drone:
Team Members: Riley, Deangelo, Isaiah & Daniel
Drone:
Team Members: Will, Bradley & Rudra
Drone:
Team Members:
Forest Middle Practice Schedule: Thursdays 4:00 - 6:00 pm
September 12th, 19th and 26th
October 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th and 31st.
November 7th, 14th and 21st.
December 5th, 12th and 19th .
Jefferson Forest High School Teams
Team:
Drone:
Jefferson Forest Practice Schedule: Fridays 4:00 - 6:00 pm
September 13th, 20th and 27th
October 4th, 11th, 18th, 25th
November 1st, 8th, 15th and 22nd.
December 6th, 13th and 19th? ( Special Practice over break - please see above)
More Practice Info...
Practice Info and Logistics - Click HERE
Autonomous & Piloting Checklist
PRACTICE LOCATIONS:
After meeting in Mr. Hammer's room to get instructions, we will disperse to perfect our skills. Each team will have a large ziploc with practice items along with their drone. Once the batteries are dead return them to Mr. Hammer's room. We are borrowing small drones from Mrs. Watson's class until the competition drones arrive.
Practice Locations are:
A- Main Street B-Media Bridge C-7th Gr Hallway D-6th Gr Hallway (up)
E-Cafeteria F-Room 206 G- Gym Balcony H-Library Foyer
We will rotate thru the Room 222 practice field
Please refer to the Practice Checklist each day. We will log our practice routine and how each team member performs the required tasks.
SAFETY:
Safety for our teams is a top priority. We have 5 main safety protocols in place.
1- FMS SAFETY GUIDELINES-
To keep our students safe we have created safety guidelines for each of our practices. Here are our guidelines.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TAKCJ85KlJ6VCSQO9g3HVhJm1MTIAwwPvcXYPRDiIpk/edit
2-FAA TRUST:
To keep our teams safe and also keep our drones functioning properly, all coaches and team members will complete the FAA TRUST (The Recreational UAS Safety Test). Each team member must pass the test to fly and remain on the team. This test is an online course with multiple questions to test their knowledge. Certificates are printed for each student and are on file with the team.
Here is where we completed the FAA TRUST coursework: https://www.scouting.org/the-recreational-uas-safety-test/
3-PARTICIPANT RELEASE FORMS:
Each team member will complete a release form and have it signed by a parent/guardian. This form is submitted digitally on the Robot Events site. This must be completed prior to competing at an event.
4-SCHOOL MEDIA RELEASE FORMS:
Each team member will complete a Media form and have it signed by a parent/guardian. This form is filed with our school, This must be completed prior to paticipating in any practices and events. This was part of the onlne registration form.
5-FIELD TRIP PERMISSION FORMS:
Each team member will complete a field trip form and have it signed by a parent/guardian. This form was orginally dated for the December 2023 competition but will also serve as the permission for the February 2024 competition
COMMUNITY OUTREACH:
We love what are learning and are thrilled to share our skills with everyone.
Two events will be :
1-SHOWCASE EVENT:
We are so excited about how hard our teams have been working. We held a Showcase Event that was attended by our family, friends, principals, school board members and BCPS central office personnel. 200 of our biggest fans showed up to support us!! THANK YOU!!! This event has boosted the confidence of our teams. Dates/ Times for our Drone Showcase will be posted soon.
2 - Drone Summer Camp
Each summer we host a drone camp for rising 4th - 7th graders at FMS in June. We spend time learning about not only drones, but robotics as well as rockets. Flyers will be coming soon for Summer 2025.
More Blockly Coding - added 12/4