FIRST Lego League is a robotics program for 9 to 16* year olds and is designed to get children excited about science and technology and to teach them valuable employment and life skills. FLL teams are comprised of up to 10 members with at least 1 adult coach. FLL teams can also be associated with a pre-existing club, organization, homeschooled, or just be a group of friends. FLL now has over 15,000+ teams in over 50 countries. * Ages are 9-14 in the U.S.A. and Canada.

FLL teams cannot win by robot performance alone. They must be strong in four areas: Presentations, Teamwork, Technical Discussion, and Robot Performance in order to advance in rank. Programming an autonomous robot using the LEGO MINDSTORMS robot to score points and creating an innovative solution to a problem as part of their research project, together, are what make up what is called the yearly Challenge. Just like FRC, teams also have to fundraise and rely on their sponsors.

Team 1718 has embraced this program starting four FLL teams and one Jr.FLL team. Fighting Pi members and mentors have coached and mentored three of these teams personally, and have also given guidance and advice to the others. While the teams are still very new (the first one was started only three years ago) they have had major successes. One team, The Bricks of Fury, has even gone on to win one of the local competitions; while the others have had a phenomenal rookie year, often times placing higher than many veteran teams. While not all of the Fighting Pi's FLL teams have not had outstanding robots, they have been particularly competitive in the presentations and teamwork areas winning awards for their success. Through their continued mentorship, Team 1718 hopes to strengthen these teams and grow the program to include more local schools.

FLL Teams
- The Bricks of Fury - Armada Middle School
- Fire Bricks - Armada Elementary
- Armada Team #1 - Armada Elementary
- Armada Team #2 - Armada Elementary


Jr. FLL Teams
- Blocks of Souls - Capac Elementary School

Lego League Competitions


FIRST Lego League was founded in 1999. Under 1000 students participated in a mission design to help astronauts trapped in a space station escape.






In 2000, the Volcanic Panic challenge was introduced to 1,540 students. Students were motivated to complete the challenges quickly prior to a volcano erupting.







Arctic Impact was released in 2001. Each task related to life in the Arctic. 1,902 students competed that year.





Lego League's challenge in 2002 centered around life in the city. "City Sights" challenges included delivering food, clearing rocks from a soccer field, collecting toxins, and other similar tasks. 3,001 students took part in the competition.

After Mars Rovers Spirit and Discovery landed on mars in 2003, the "Mission Mars" challenge was released. OVer 4,330 students worked to solve challenges based around the Mars rovers.



In 2004, 5,859 students set out to address issues faced on a daily basis by disabled persons. The challenge was called "No Limits".





2005's "Ocean Odyssey" focussed on ecological responsibility and deep sea exploration. 7,501 students completed challenges involving sunken ships, submarines, and oil spills.







Interest in Nanotechnology sparked 2006's "Nano Quest". Students learned about the microscopic science while they competed in tasks that ranged from computers to the environment. 8,808 students completed that year.








The "Power Puzzle" challenge was featured in 2007. 10,894 students faced challenges that highlighted alternative energy and environmental issues.




Earth's future was the 2008 game's focus. Called "Climate Connections", 12,944 students found a climate issue that affected them, then competed in various climate themed challenges.





In 2009 FIRST highlighted the challenges of modern day transit. "Smart Move" involved 14,725 students and centered around transporation.








"Body Forward" was released in 2010, and focused on health, fitness,and healing. Various tasks included repairing bones and the heart, identifying damaged blood cells, and dispensing medicine. 16,762 students accepted the challenge of Body Forward.







"Food Safety" was in the forefront of the 2011 Lego League Compeition. Food Factor served up a generous helping research on bacteria, food safety, and food processing.



More information about starting a lego league team can be found at: firstlegoleague.org