Robotics Team Fares Well in Competition

This diligent group of students combined their engineering, design, and mathematical talents with their ability to think critically in order to design a robot that could complete such tasks as launching a ball, flipping over markers, and changing the orientation of a flag. In addition to the STEM skills, the students had to work collaboratively and cooperatively, as well as learn how to delegate responsibilities and manage time.

Two-year participant Jessica Ip elaborated: “I have been a part of this team for two years. We were able to build upon the lessons we learned from last year, and to get to a point where we could confidently enter a competition was very exciting for all of us. It is a big challenge to get everybody’s ideas to gel into a solid plan, but we established a clear division of labor and worked very well together as a team. I love engineering and design, and it was a worthwhile opportunity- and lots of fun- to build a robot capable of completing complicated tasks.”

The Sanford Robotics Team competed against nineteen schools from Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Maryland on October 27, 2018, at Holy Ghost Preparatory School in Bensalem, PA. Their efforts were rewarded with a semi-finalist designation in their first- ever competition, an excellent result. Haughey explained: “This group of students worked impressively hard all season. The robot creations were totally student-driven. They were very excited for the chance to compete, and their positive energy made our time at the competition memorable for all.”

All Upper School students and faculty were given the opportunity to see a demonstration of the Robotics Team’s robot at work during the November 8 morning meeting. The team is no longer officially meeting, as it is a fall offering, but they will convene from time to time in order to prepare for the Delaware State Robotics Tournament on March 9, 2019. We wish the team, their teachers, and their robot the best of success in that competition.