How the MDY Robotics Team Engineered a Strong Season
The journey began back in October when the MDY robotics team received this year’s official robot objective. Faced with a complex challenge, the students demonstrated true engineering skills. Utilizing the Center for Initiative and Jewish Education (CIJE) program, they brainstormed, debated, and analyzed various robot designs, ultimately selecting the blueprint they felt would best meet their goals.
For the students, stepping into the role of a creator was half the excitement. “I love building. It’s so fun to be like an engineer,” one team member shared, capturing the hands-on spirit that defined the early months of the season. Once the design was chosen, the real work began, with students spending numerous hours engineering the robot, coding its movements, and practicing for upcoming competitions.
Their first true test came in February. While that first competition showed them they still had work to do, it provided a valuable learning experience. Seeing what the competition was up to proved to be an eye-opener. As one student noted, “It was interesting to go against the other schools and see what they built.”
The team took those lessons learned in the heat of competition, put their heads together, and began tweaking and refining not only their design but also their overall strategy to improve performance. All that hard work and willingness to adapt paid off during their most recent competition in April at the Manhattan Armory. Facing tough opposition, our students executed their strategy and made it to the qualifying round for the first time. Beyond the success on the scoreboard, the event was a thrilling experience for the kids. “Going to the competition was the best. It was so fun to compete,” remarked one student.
Making it to the qualifiers was a wonderful milestone for our program, and we are so proud of the MDY Robotics Team’s dedication and growth. We cannot wait to see what success they achieve in the year ahead.
