Submitted photo | Xenia Community Schools
McKinley students work on a tactile presentation at the recent robotics tournament.
XENIA — One of McKinley Elementary School’s FFL LEGO Robotics teams competed at a regional qualifier tournament and advanced to the district event while earning several awards.
X Marks the Box finished in fifth place overall out of 14 teams at the Dec. 9 event and will compete at the district competition on Saturday, Jan. 27 at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. The team earned the Motivate Award for its team spirit and kindness and nominated Tim Carey, who won the Coach/Mentor Award.
“Hands-on STEM learning is incredibly valuable for young students and can set them on a path to school and career success,” said Superintendent Dr. Gabriel Lofton. “The ongoing success of the robotics program at McKinley is testament both to the dedication of the coaches and volunteers and hard work of the students involved.”
The second McKinley LEGO Robotics team, led by Coach Cara Disalvo, competed at a separate regional qualifier tournament on Jan. 7 at the museum.
According to school officials, as part of the LEGO Robotics competition, teams must complete an innovation project which is presented to judges during competition. Students must identify a problem based on the annual theme and design and an innovative solution.
For 2023-2024, both McKinley teams worked together on an innovation project about making tactile art for the blind.
The robotic teams invited Richard Payne, Ohio Chapter president of the National Foundation of the Blind, and Molly Brockman, owner/curator of Beyond Vision Art, to talk to the students about their blindness and provide feedback on their project according to Kristy Creel, XCS coordinator of communications.
During the visit, students shared the tactile they had created with Payne and Brockman, and received positive feedback. Brockman plans to continue working with the teams to put together an art show for the blind community.
“We are very proud of the work the students have done so far and the way that they received feedback on their project,” said Carey. “The students were excited to hear what our guests had to say and took their advice to heart.”
Reach Karen Rase at 937-502-4534.
