FIRST® LEGO® League Explore teams (up to 6 members and for youth between 6 and 10 years old) develop a model based on engineering problem solving to a real-world problem such as trash, food safety, recycling, energy, etc.. The model is built using LEGO® WeDo 2.0 pieces and the Inspire Kit. Here’s more information about this year’s program.
What roles are needed most?
(Event is Remote and all roles will be completed virtually.)
- Reviewer – Talks to the teams about their LEGO models and Show Me Posters, then collaborates with other Reviewers to assign awards to all teams.
- Emcee/Master of Ceremony – Sets the tone of the event and is responsible for the Welcome and Closing ceremonies.
- Room Hosts/Moderators – Help manage the online platform for the teams at the event.
FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge teams (up to 10 members and for youth between 9 and 14 years old) research a real-world problem such as trash, food safety, recycling, energy, etc., and are challenged to develop a solution to their project issue. They also must design, build and program a robot using LEGO® MINDSTORMS®, then compete on a table-top playing field. Here’s more information about this year’s program.
What roles are needed most?
(For 2021 season, we will have Hybrid and Remote Events. All judging will be online/remote. Game play will be in person for Hybrid events and online/remote for Remote events.)
- Robot Design Judge  – Interviews the teams about their robot including mechanical, programming and game strategy.  Works with other judges to assign awards to teams.
- Project Judge – Interviews the teams about their project which will provide an innovative solution to a problem identified within this year’s theme. Works with other judges to assign awards to teams.
- Core Values Judge – Interviews the teams about their teamwork, core values, collaboration and overall team structure. Works with other judges to assign awards to teams.
- Judge Advisor – Facilitates the overall judging process.
- Game Referee / Head Referee – Responsible for reading and enforcing the game rules and scoring each match from recordings. Works as a team under the direction of the Head Referee.
- Master of Ceremony / Emcee – Sets the tone of the event and is responsible for the Welcome and Closing ceremonies.
FIRST® Tech Challenge teams (up to 15 members and for youth in grades 7 to 12) are challenged to design, build and program a robot to play a sports-like game. Gracious Professionalism is part of the ethos of FIRST. It’s a way of doing things that encourages high-quality work, emphasizes the value of others, and respects individuals and the community. Here’s information about this year’s game.
What roles are needed most?
(For the 2021 season, most events will be in-person. Some will be remote. For each in-person event, there will be local requirements that everyone attending the event must obey, such as masking, etc.)
- Technical Judge – Interviews the teams about their robot including mechanical, control systems, programming and game strategy.  Watches game play. Collaborates with other judges to assign awards to teams.
- Non-Technical Judge – Interviews the teams about their teamwork, outreach, documentation (notebook) and overall team structure. Collaborates with other judges to assign awards to teams.
- Master of Ceremony / Emcee – Sets the tone of the event and is responsible for the Closing ceremony.
Presidential Volunteer Service Awards
Be recognized for your volunteer service on behalf of Playing At Learning’s programs! Â Learn more
Congratulations to the 16 individuals that contributed 100 or more volunteer hours for Playing At Learning and received Bronze, Silver or Gold recognition:
- Bill Brees
- Nicholas Hammes
- Alvin Cheng
- Ambika Mago
- Anika Greene
- Barbara Toole O’Neil
- Bob France
- Dianne France
- Earl Nichols
- Jeff Greene
- Joshua Oh
- Karen Mahoney
- Matthew James
- Natalie Edelman
- Rathish Jayabharathi
- Steve George
Congratulations to our Presidential Lifetime of Service Award recipients for volunteering 4,000 or more hours for Playing At Learning:
Jill Wilker
Mark Edelman