VEX Robotics

How Middle-Schoolers are Engineering Robots

vexrobotics.com

By: Luke Sangkharat, Peyton Reed, and Cristian Reinaga

VEX Robotics help students learn all about STEM and engineering in a way that they can understand easily.

Luther Jackson Middle School’s engineering program allows us students to build high tech VEX robots. We use the build kits and instructions to complete the task. In the Engineering 1 course, we use VEX IQ to build our robots. These robots are shared by a table group, and the entire group must collaborate to complete the robot. We then race our robots and try to make them complete a simple course against another table group’s robot. In the advanced engineering courses, VEX V5 robot kits are used. We follow the directions posted by VEX to build these robots. Then we add to them to make them perform unique tasks that highlight and represent our projects. These robots are much higher level than the VEX IQ robots, requiring screws and nuts to assemble them. These robots require a great deal of problem solving and collaboration skills. The added tasks we need them to perform require creativity and teamwork in order for the robot to work.

VEX Robotics annually hosts tournaments and competitions for kids as young as third grade. Each tournament entails a teamwork event: where two teams work together, a solo event: one robot plays against the clock, and a problem solving aspect: where competitors use prior knowledge to research and solve a challenge. The VEX Robotics competitions and programs are managed by the Robotics Education and Competition Foundation( RECF). In April 2018, VEX Robotics Competition was deemed the biggest robotics competition ever by Guinness World Records. They are 3 types of Vex Robots in the Yearly World Championship in Dallas, Texas:

VEX IQ: Usually used for Elementary and Middle Schools.

VEX AI: Used for the advanced students in High School and Universities

VEX V5(Formerly known as VEX EDR): Used for Middle School and High School Students.

other ones: VEX 123 (Ages 4+), VEX GO (Ages 8+), VEX EXP (Ages 14+), VEX V5 Workcell(Ages 14+).

Here at Luther Jackson Middle School, we purchase and create Vex V5 models.

RELATED STORIES

https://www.vexrobotics.com/

https://www.vexrobotics.com/support/get-started

https://www.vexrobotics.com/competition

https://www.vexrobotics.com/iq

https://www.vexrobotics.com/v5

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