Winter Announcements: Time to Dive In!

Greetings FIRST LEGO League Jr Oregon,

In this update you will find:

1. Represent Oregon at the World Festival in Houston
2. Oregon Expos - When and Where
3. Looking Ahead to FIRST LEGO League
4. Volunteering with other FIRST programs
5. New WeDo 2.0 Update and activities
6. Want to know more about FIRST LEGO League Jr?

Read this as a blog post

Welcome to AQUA ADVENTURE! All coaches in Oregon are automatically added to this mailing list. Teams in neighboring communities are welcome to participate in Oregon Expos provided there is space.  If you have missed an email from Oregon you may read the archive on our blog, or see the important links on our website. Official updates and program materials can be found on the FIRST LEGO League Jr Challenge website.

1) Represent Oregon at the World Festival in Houston

Oregon is looking for two FIRST LEGO League Jr teams who would like to attend the World Festival Expo on April 19-22, 2018 in Houston, TX.  If your team is interested in representing Oregon they will need to cover all of their own costs, including the $300 registration fee. Your team MUST be registered with FIRST, and plan on using a WeDo, EV3, or NXT system before you can enter the lottery. 

To apply: Use this form

You will need:

• Your Official Team Number
• Your Team's Name as it appears on the Dashboard
• Both Coaches' Name and Email Address
• The number of team members (up to 6) who will attend the event if the team is selected.

Applications will not be accepted after January 2, 2018!

Selected teams will be chosen on January 3, 2018! All teams who apply will be notified either way by January 13, 2018.

2) Oregon Expos - When and Where
We have 5 expos currently planned for Oregon. *Fun names are coming soon!

• Morning, Saturday, March 17, 2018 at OMSI in Portland
• Afternoon, Saturday, March 17, 2018 at OMSI in Portland
• Morning, Sunday, March 18, 2018 at OMSI in Portland
• Afternoon, Sunday, March 18, 2018 at OMSI in Portland
• Saturday, May 19, 2018 at Hood River County Historical Museum

We are actively looking for a host in Bend and South of Portland, however; no venue has been contracted at this time. 

Registration for events will open in late-January. Each team will need to pay $80-40 per event they wish to attend. Tournament registration fees are on a sliding scale with sponsors willing to match up to $40 per team! 

3) Looking Ahead to FIRST LEGO League

For many FIRST LEGO League Jr teams, you are looking ahead to FIRST LEGO League next year. This weekend and next are the best times to see what FIRST LEGO League looks like in your local community as 417 teams across Oregon are competing at their Qualifying Tournament. All FIRST LEGO League Qualifying Tournaments are free for the public and the robot competition rounds are open for all to witness. The best time to watch is between 9:30am and 11 or 1 to 2 at most events. Some events will have an arena break earlier than others. Details about each event is available at our tournament website. Events are held in Bend, Corvallis, Grants Pass, Hillsboro, Hood River, LaGrande, Medford, Myrtle Creek/Roseburg, Newberg, Ontario, Portland, Salem, The Dalles, and Wilsonville.

Want to see more than just the arena? Sign up as a volunteer (details below!)

4) Volunteering with other FIRST programs

Every FIRST event takes many volunteers. Volunteering is also a great way to see behind the scenes of the other programs. FIRST LEGO League Qualifying Tournaments and State Championships are coming in December and January. FIRST Tech Challenge, the highly competitive High School itterative design program has already started their League Competitions, but will need many additional volunteers in January and February.  FIRST Robotics Competition, the high school rapid prototype program needs volunteers in March and April. You do not need to be a technical wizard to volunteer, but even if you are, we have a role for you!

Please learn all about volunteering with our programs at: https://ortop.org/volunteer/
Then use this handy walkthrough to volunteer at an Oregon event this year!
Trying to sign-up and the guide isn't helping? Please email Loridee-Wetzel@ortop.org

5) New WeDo 2.0 Update and Activities

LEGO Education has sent the following announcement:

As part of an ongoing process to improve the “Getting Started” experience for the WeDo 2.0 app, the team has released an app update for WeDo 2.0 on iOS and Chrome OS in all languages (all other platforms will have the same update in February 2018 – date TBC).

Improvements include:

1. UX Improvements

2. Onboarding and Lobby

3. 4 Quick and easy “Getting Started” activities

4 New “Getting Started” Activities:

1. Cooling Fan

2. Glowing Snail

3. Moving Satellite

4. Spy Robot

Benefits of the 4 new “Getting Started” activities:

1. Each activity takes approx. 10-15min to build and code. 

2. Enables coach and team to start using WeDo 2.0 quick and easy.

3. An A-HA moment and instant success builds the confidence and the desire to continue using WeDo 2.0. 

4. Quick and easy introduction of the WeDo 2.0

6) Want to know more about FIRST LEGO League Jr?
The powerpoints from the OMSI information nights in October are now on the ORTOP website.

Download the Introduction to FIRST LEGO League Jr or the WeDo 2.0 Introduction slides.

Check our website Hot Topics on Team Resouces to see what is happening in Oregon this season.

National Registration for FIRST LEGO League Jr remains open until April 2018! There is plenty of time for your team to get started this year.

Best Wishes,
Loridee