Students at École des Glaciers used their programming, patience and problem-solving skills in a robotics competition last month.
Zone01 hosted the contest on April 30, with schools across British Columbia participating virtually. Forming three teams, 12 students from grades five to seven competed at École des Glaciers.
“All the students participating worked super hard,” says Véronique Ellyson, a teacher at École des Glaciers.
“I cannot do what they did with the programming. They are super into it.”
There were two challenges for the teams to complete. Students programmed one robot to finish an obstacle course, and another robot to compete in a “sumo ring.” This involved programming the robot to push another robot out of the ring.
After many lunch hours spent in the classroom sharpening their skills, one team at École des Glaciers won the competition. They are competing in the online international finals in June.
Robotics and programming are already a part of the École des Glaciers curriculum, according to Ellyson. Starting in the second grade, students learn programming basics before moving onto more advanced robotics.
“They do most of the programming by themselves,” Ellyson says. “I’m really proud of them.”
École des Glaciers hopes to participate in the Zone01 challenge again in the future. For now, the finalists are back in the classroom, practicing and preparing for the next big challenge.
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