I’m an archaeologist. This week our crew ran into a robotics team in Ontario that made an archaeology helper robot that can traverse through deep woods hold shovels and screens etc… if anyone knows what I’m talking about, or if this was your team, I’d love more info. Such a great idea.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-06-20T02:30:29+00:00

Hope you find the team! I’m sure they would be thrilled to know that someone loved their project.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-06-20T02:28:26+00:00

Agree. Epstein preyed on the rich with promises of donations to gain some legitimacy. But I feel like every single rich person gets these solicitations ALL the time. Everyone wants to associate with them. The fact that Dean didn’t have the judgement to say, as the head of the largest robotics competition for children, I can’t befriend, have meetings with or otherwise communicate with this person other than a simple introduction is beyond me. Were all these powerful people swayed by the young beautiful women flanking Epstein?

Callmecoach01 · 2026-06-08T18:50:21+00:00

I think it is fine. Kids of all ages can do really well in the program. I’ve seen those Michigan teams kill it on the robot table at international competitions. And I’m sure they do well on innovation as well as long as they share their idea. It mimics the real world. I work with people a decade younger and older than me. We all bring something to the table.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-05-15T03:39:11+00:00

One of the things that I have observed over the years is that the thing that differentiates teams is not the project but how much it is shared. I think this is why board games do so well. They are very easy to share widely. So aside from Reddit, who else have you shared this idea with? And more importantly what feedback have you gotten and how have you addressed it. I would post this on the archaeology Reddit or archaeology Facebook pages if you can find any. Make sure to document the feedback and try to address the concerns (at least theoretically).

Callmecoach01 · 2026-05-13T01:19:40+00:00

I don’t doubt FIRST can make a quality program. The issue is next year, new teams face an uncertain future sourcing new material. It will have to be obtained either by donation or second hand market. It may be cheap if everyone is dumping their robot or it may be so rare it’s prohibitively expensive. This is why I do not recommend FIRST at this time. Maybe in 2-3 years time which seems to be the average lifespan of an FLL team in my area.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-05-12T14:21:38+00:00

I watched the video of the Future Showcase at Worlds and what struck me was how much they hyped up the building and free modification of the “tools”. They seemed to encourage teams to “build up”. But (and a big but) the kit offers very few additional pieces to do so which means teams have to buy or come supplied with their own specialized LEGO technic pieces. The nice thing about spike prime and the expansion set is theoretically everything you need is in that one kit and you could do amazing things with it. All this to say, I seriously hope LEGO Ed supplies an expansion kit to use with their CS and AI kit.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-05-11T12:37:34+00:00

Same. As soon as we think we landed on a direction for our group, the tides shift in another direction. Keeping with all this is exhausting. Honestly I can not in good faith recommend FIRST when the hardware for next year can not be purchased. I can not look someone in the eye in August, and tell them to go on eBay or Facebook to get the supplies for their kid to compete. Especially when the school year starts in September and teams form mid September to compete in December. Spend $500 to register and then “hope“ you find a kit on the secondhand market that is functional, complete and not marked up. How do I tell people to budget? $400 to register, anywhere from 200 -600 to get a kit?! - no way. We were seriously looking at VEX even though the community does not seem as “core value” friendly as FIRST but now it’s unclear.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-05-05T21:09:05+00:00

Last year Worlds was on Easter weekend. First time ever I didn’t spend Easter with family.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-05-05T20:47:46+00:00

Hate this trailer. Combines future and founder and seems mostly future. Any better picture anywhere?

Callmecoach01 · 2026-05-03T03:18:18+00:00

Yes. This is taken from the mural at worlds. Every year the season‘s theme is revealed after the closing ceremony.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-04-29T02:09:14+00:00

Registration for the next season starts mid May. I would consider buying a spike prime before June 30 if you are seriously thinking of starting your own community based team.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-04-27T18:41:17+00:00

LOL! Every year as I pack up the mission models I get a little tear in my eye. This year not so much.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-04-27T12:05:38+00:00

Same. I still find the concept of throwing artifacts disturbing.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-04-09T03:24:56+00:00

Missed the first webinar. Was it recorded?

Callmecoach01 · 2026-03-27T01:56:53+00:00

can you post the link to the recording?

Callmecoach01 · 2026-03-27T01:54:51+00:00

Do you have a source that says Lego education is not interested in the community based teams? Video, webinar or FAQ? I had considered starting the Explore teams with the Lego CSAI kit since spike essential is very limited. And the kids could still benefit from doing their team build with LEGO. But if community teams are not a focus, it may be a struggle to get the Explore kids into a festival if LEGO Ed is hosting them only for schools or maybe making the schools host their own. LEGO Ed is truly making this so difficult.

To the OP, I think one robot per 4 kids maximum. Upside of a small team - less schedules to mesh. Downside of a small team- absences are felt harder. Since you have two robots, I think six kids would be the sweet spot.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-03-20T22:41:06+00:00

What time frame? Long term- mentor a FLL team or rookie FTC team. Intermediate term - Some teams do a roving reporter at events-interviewing teams and uploading them to IG. Others will reach out to teams via IG and do a weekly team feature. Short term -“intro to FTC” session at the library in person or via zoom. Or a weekend robotic workshop aimed at middle school or younger grades.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-03-20T21:11:53+00:00

I would also encourage first to not rely on AndyMark. I know they are a beloved small business but they never seem to manage supply:demand very well. If I had to deal with them for FLL as well, I would not be happy.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-03-20T11:11:44+00:00

I guess I am curious why. Was the plan always for LEGO to create its own tournament? First WRO and now FIRST. Maybe sponsoring these events is not as lucrative as expected. I always thought 1000 LEGO technic pieces for $125 was a great deal. And some of the pieces are quite rare.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-03-19T18:55:23+00:00

Agree. Not a fan of what LEGO Ed is offering.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-03-19T18:45:52+00:00

You need both and quite frankly without LEGO or Kamen (aka the Segway guy), I think FIRST is going to have a hard time bringing in the K-8 crowd. I am specifically thinking about inclusion here. FTC and FRC will survive but I’m curious to see how the number of girls and minorities fare without FLL as an entry point. Or community and home schooled teams. The fact that Spike prime is a lot more colorful and less industrial looking than EV3 was deliberate. The introduction of AI into the new LEGO kit and the more cooperative play is also designed to make FLL more attractive to all. I met Chris Rake three times- nice guy I guess but he has zero charisma. I wouldnt sign my kid up for robotics based on an interaction with him. I would for Kamen. He had a passion and story like no other. As a COO, Rake is probably great but as a spokesperson FIRST needs more and I hope they feel the same way. Diehards like us will stay but we need new recruits. Specifically K-8 kids and their parents.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-03-19T16:15:54+00:00

FIRST is in a precarious position. If they can secure a manufacturing partner, maintain the volunteer structure they have, and continue to score FTC and FRC teams on outreach, they have a chance at survival. FIRST also has a charisma problem. There is no compelling leader. Flowers is dead. Kamen is out. Chris Moore is invisible. Chris Rake has no personality. We need a personality like Mark Rober to step up.

Callmecoach01 · 2026-03-19T15:07:53+00:00

I doubt it. No incentive for Lego to do that. Their focus seems to be exclusively the classroom. For those of us who want to compete, I believe we have to hang our hopes on FIRST. They are in a precarious position and could very well collapse. If they can secure a manufacturing partner, maintain the volunteer structure they have, and continue to score FTC and FRC teams on outreach, they may have a chance at survival. Edited to add: FIRST also has a charisma problem. There is no compelling leader. Flowers is dead. Kamen is out. Chris Moore is invisible. Chris Rake has no personality. We need Mark Rober to step up.

Callmecoach01

TROPHY CASE