JrFLL expo

Yesterday our team displayed their final project at the Jr. FLL Expo:

I am SO proud of our team! They did an outstanding job of presenting what they've learned to the judges and communicating with visitors to their display.  Awesome job, RRR Robot Rampage!!!

Our Senior Interview

Our robotics team interviewed our senior partner this afternoon. Here are our questions and answers:

• What were telephones like when you were 8-10 years old?

o   1 telephone, hung on the wall. Rectangle, black, #’s on rotary, sometimes 2 people shared a line (called a party line) because it was cheaper, we would stretch the cord out of shape to get privacy, our phone # was made of 2 letters + 5 numbers instead of the way numbers are now.

• ·         What was school like back then?

o   30 kids per class, we sat in wooden desks and chairs, rows in order by last name, chalk boards, 1 teacher, went to PE/music/art once each week, classes were grouped by ability.

• ·         What kind of things did you do outside of school? What was it like? Equipment?

o   Read books, jumped rope, rode a bike, collected charms, played jacks, dodge ball, kick ball, went to movie theater, watched TV (3 TV channels), went bowling. Didn’t have many toys.

• ·         What was your house like when you were growing up?

o   2 story house, we shared our house with other generations (grandfather and aunt), I shared a bedroom with my sister, 1 bathroom each level, we had a basement, elevator for aunt’s wheelchair to back porch.

• ·         How would doctors take care of injuries back then?

o   I didn’t get hurt very often. We didn’t go to the doctor unless it was really needed, Broken bones would get big heavy cumbersome casts (couldn’t get wet).

• ·         How did you do your laundry when you were growing up?

o   We had a washing machine and dryer in the basement, but my mother would usually  hang clothes on a line outside, clothes pins had no metal spring, had to iron clothing.

• ·         What were fashions like then?

o   Girls wore dresses or jumpers to school (no pants), high or ankle socks, saddle shoes or loafers, no holes, blouses with round collars. Boys wore dress shirts and pants, black or brown dress lace shoes.

o   Boys had short hair (“clean cut”), girl’s had long hair or “turned under”, curly hair would get ironed to be straight, if you wanted curly hair you would go and get it permed at salon.

• ·         What was the common mode of transportation when you were young?

o   Walked, rode a bike, roller skated, took a bus downtown. We had one car for our family. Would take a train or bus for long distance trips. Planes were used for war, some passenger planes were rarely used & expensive. Cars were big and long, didn’t worry about gas because it was cheap.

• ·         Did you have Legos when you were a child?

o   NO!!!!!!! L

• ·         What kinds of foods did you enjoy when you were a child?

o   Chicken, beef, lamb, corn, green beans, fruit, pepsi, peas, cereal, eggs, pb&j, hot dogs. We did not eat out a lot, no frozen or fresh vegies (all canned), no microwave foods, no pizza, Jiffy Pop popcorn on stove, did not eat a big variety, we ate what Dad liked.

• ·         What one electronic device that you have today do you wish you had when you were younger?

o   A computer because now you can do so much with them – get information, buy things, play games. When you wanted info when I was young, you had to go to a library or look it up in an encyclopedia. If you wanted to buy things, you had to go to the store. Don’t remember getting catalogs like we do now.

• ·         What one item do you wish you had today to help in your every day life?

o   I have trouble with my knees and my back. I wish there was a button I could push to move more easily.

• ·         What one item do you miss most from when you were younger?           

o   I miss time with family, like we had when I was younger.

• ·         Did you have a favorite toy when you were growing up?

o   We didn’t really play with toys. We did things outside.

• There has been a big change in cameras too. The way they looked, the way they were used, the film (now digital).
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• ·     To listen to music, we had record players, a large record with a needle. Now you use mp3 players, ipods, cds. 

Thinking about the project, the team is thinking of building something related to the differences in cooking. Next meeting, hopefully we can develop a plan!

And off we go!

So our team met this past Sunday, and again Wednesday evening...

On Sunday, we brainstormed team names and decided upon a "Senior Partner" to work with.  We also explored some activities to mimic the changes felt by seniors, such as arthritis and loss of balance, vision, and hearing. 

Notice their taped knuckles? It's to simulate arthritis and the difficulty in grasping and manipulating items that a senior citizen may encounter as they age.

Wednesday, Dr. Martinez spoke with the group about changes seniors might experience. We also discussed some existing inventions created to help with those changes. We also began developing a list of questions for our Senior Partner interview. 

But the best part of our meetings (of course!) is when we get to play with the materials!  Team members have already created some great simple machines!!!

Our First Meeting

Our team met briefly yesterday, so members could meet each other, hear about the challenge, and see our Base Kit materials. Everyone was super excited to break into the pieces and get to work!!!

Getting started

We have registered our team! Our kit is supposed to arrive tomorrow. Now we just have to find a time that everyone can meet!