FLL Challenge Coach Information

COACHES & MENTORS

Involvement of Coaches and Mentors is essential to the growth of our Robotics students. FIRST LEGO League (FLL) creates powerful relationships between the students and the positive adult role models who participate.

Coaches and Mentors do not need to know how to program a robot or come with any technical experience; the students receive training and do all of the work. As a Coach/Mentor you will be able to offer valuable research, presentation, project management guidance, and administrative team support.

Coaches and Mentors can be parents, grandparents, teachers, and corporate professionals (technical or non-technical). If you have the passion to empower our students with a sense of accomplishment and are inspired and energized through their participation, then the job is right for you.

Please email us at PVRobotics@pleasval.org for more information about being an FLL Coach or Mentor.

Pleasant Valley Expectations

All meetings take place at one of the Pleasant Valley Elementary Schools or Pleasant Valley Junior High. No meetings should take place outside of school property.
When meeting, a minimum of two adults must be present and at least one must be a registered coach through FIRST.
In the event that after school activities are cancelled by Pleasant Valley due to weather or other circumstances, your team will not meet and you should communicate this information to parents.
If your team is cancelling a meeting, please let parents and the robotics coordinator know at least 48 hours in advance.
Please make sure that no students are left unsupervised at the end of the meeting and everyone is picked up before leaving.
Any requests for reimbursement for team materials must include an itemized receipt. District purchases are tax exempt and a tax exempt form can be provided prior to your purchase. Any tax paid will not be reimbursed.

Pleasant Valley FLL Team Support

Pleasant Valley provides support to its teams in terms of providing equipment LEGO SPIKE Prime kit, iPad, paying team registration fees, and paying the event fees for the Regional Qualifier and State Competition. Pleasant Valley also provides each FLL Challenge team with a budget that can be used towards materials for their project, t-shirts, and other team needs. A portion of the money used to support this program may be acquired from grants and participation fees.

For teams that advance to the State competition, Pleasant Valley will cover the registration fee. PV will also provide hotel rooms for one night with one room for every four students and one room for each coach. Teams should NOT make their own reservations for the hotel. Pleasant Valley will make the reservations for all qualifying teams. Teams should notify pvrobotics@pleasval.org of how many rooms their team will need.

Any other expenses including but not limited to transportation to and from the tournament, meals and snacks, and other incidental fees would be provided by the individual families of the team members. If there are special needs/circumstances please communicate with pvrobotics@pleasval.org and we can work on finding a solution on a case by case basis.

Pleasant Valley only provides funding up to the state competition level. Any team advancing beyond the state competition would need to find alternate sources of funding to cover the expenses associated with advancing.

Consent and Release Forms

All team members must have appropriate forms submitted to FIRST before they can participate at a FIRST event.

The Consent and Release form must be completed by all coaches and participants in FIRST programs each season. Coaches and team Members must complete paperwork online via the FIRST Website.

FIRST Code of Conduct

The FIRST mission is to inspire a generation of science and technology leaders who are both gracious and professional. This FIRST Code of Conduct lists some of the basic behaviors mentors, coaches, volunteers, team members, affiliate partners, contractors, staff, and other participants should adhere to while participating in FIRST activities.

Exhibit Gracious Professionalism® at all times. Gracious Professionalism is a way of doing things that encourages high-quality work, emphasizes the value of others, and respects individuals and the community. With Gracious Professionalism, fierce competition and mutual gain are not separate notions.
Ensure the safety of all participants in FIRST activities.
Not engage in any form of bullying, harassment, use of profane or insulting language, or any actual or threatened violence.
Adhere to all FIRST Youth Protection Program (YPP) policies.
Report any unsafe behavior to event or local FIRST leadership.

Persons who do not comply with this Code of Conduct may be barred from participating in FIRST activities.

Click Here to Access the season long meeting by meeting planning guide.

Getting Started Season Checklist

Pre-Season Preparation

Pleasant Valley will register your team with FIRST LEGO League, pay the registration fee, and order your materials.

Review the FIRST Core Values

Review your team roster and contact parents to provide them with team information, meeting dates, etc.

Begin reading any materials that you have and peruse this website.

Begin Meeting with Your Team

Share and follow the meeting schedule

Review the FIRST Core Values with parents and team members (and keep discussing them at each meeting!).

Have team members begin researching this year’s Challenge theme to get a head start on the Project.

Check your email regularly for communication from FIRST LEGO League and Pleasant Valley Robotics.

Download the Challenge from Challenge Materials and Resources and review it as a team.

Download the Mission Model building instructions at Challenge Materials and Resources and build the Mission Models from your Challenge Set.

Have team members begin designing, building, and programming your team’s robot.

Have team members begin brainstorming ideas for innovative solutions.

Complete several team-building activities with your team.

Review the rubrics that will be used to judge your team at tournaments. Discuss them with your team.

Assign a team member to check the Challenge Updates & Judging FAQ frequently for any new information. ( www.firstlegoleague.org ) and Challenge Materials and Resources

Practice, practice, practice!

Make a plan to celebrate at the end of your season. Teams are required to have one meeting after the regional qualifier or state tournament to take apart the mission models, robot, and properly organize materials to be used again next season.

Regional Qualifier

Requirements for Event Registration

Teams must have two screened coaches associated with their team in the FIRST Registration System
All Team Members (Coaches, students, mentors, etc) must submit a Consent and Release Form via the FIRST website.
Rosters can change up to the teams participation at the Regional Qualifier.

Payment Instructions and Restrictions

Event registration fees are taken care of by Pleasant Valley. As a coach, it is possible that the bill for registration or participation in an event will be sent to your email. If you receive a bill, please do not pay it and forward it to pvrobotics@pleasval.org.

Tournament Venue

All teams will register for the FLL Regional Qualifier that takes place at the Putnam Museum in Davenport, Iowa as their first choice. The Iowa FIRST registration process will require each team to pick their top three choices for a qualifier. This request is then entered in a queue that is processed one at a time. If the first choice for an event is filled by the time the request is processed, then the second choice is used. If the second choice is no longer available, the third choice is used. Due to space limitations, all teams may not receive an invitation to the Putnam event and may have to participated in another location. This is out of the control of the PVCSD as Iowa FIRST assigns teams to the location of the Regional Qualifier where they will participate. This has not been an issue in the past, but with more teams registering, it could become an issue in the future.

Planning for the Day - Coaches Checklist and Tips

As the tournament approaches, it is critical that coaches prepare their team for the day. All team members should know in what room their pit is located, how the day is laid out, along with many more details. Here is a checklist list of action items to help you prepare:

Coaches’ Event Checklist

Bring to the tournament:

Robot, batteries, accessories and extra parts.

Printouts of the robot code.

If desired, printed copies of the event schedule, agenda, and team list

A safe container to carry the robot in – protecting your robot from being jostled around.

Project Presentation with props/supplies.

If you wish to program at the event, bring your iPad

In the event you need more than one electrical outlet, bring an electrical/power strip.

Label everything with your team number (painters tape with a Sharpie). Do not label the LEGO pieces that form your robot.

Before the tournament:

Make sure your entire team and families know the location of the event and directions on how to get to the venue.

Review the FIRST Core Values, Gracious Professionalism, and Coopertition, available at Getting Started - Participation Rules and Core Values.

Review all rules for the challenge missions and Project presentation.

Check the Challenge Updates at Challenge Materials and Resources.

Make sure all kids have rides to and from the venue.

Inform parents and guests – give them a copy of the agenda and schedule.

Invite your friends, teachers and others. All tournaments are open to the public.

Top Ten Tournament Tips

FIRST LEGO League is about what happens all season, not just on event day. Focus on what you’ve learned and how much you have improved since your season started.
Make sure you read and understand the Participation Rules: Getting Started - Participation Rules and Core Values.
Judges may observe your team at any time during the day.
Don’t be nervous. Teams and judges are there to learn from each other and celebrate with you.
Make sure your team and supporters demonstrate Core Values – even when things don’t go exactly as you planned. Remember, everyone you encounter is volunteering their time and you are constantly being judged.
Make time for fun breaks throughout the day, especially before judging sessions. Have a cheer, a song, or a game ready to stay energized.
Get a good night’s sleep the night before the tournament. Be prepared for loud noise and a long day.
Go over what you want to say before going into your judging sessions, either out loud to team members or silently to yourself. Practice with the rubrics to see where you might improve.
Take the time to go around the pits and meet the other teams. Show your enthusiasm for their projects and robots. Your encouragement can mean a lot to another team.
Have fun! You’ve worked hard all season. Be proud of all you have accomplished!

Judging

There are four judging components to the FIRST LEGO League Challenge: Core Values, Project, Robot Design, and Robot Game. Each component is weighted equally (one-fourth each) when judges consider teams for the Champions Award. Each team will have an assigned time slot in which to report to their assigned judging block (as designated on the team schedules). Please arrive 5-10 minutes before your scheduled time to be fully prepared for the judging session.

Please remember that judges will consider input from other event volunteers who interact with teams. It is important that team members, parents, and coaches all should be demonstrating the Core Values throughout the event day.

Judging Rubrics

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