Prashant Pundir
Update: This article was last updated on 19th July 2022 to reflect the accuracy and up-to-date information on the page.
Competition, competitiveness, and compete are related terms that are like a tonic for the brain. Taking part in any competition is like exploring the farthest corner of your brain and filtering out the best of your skills to have an edge over other participants.
Believe it or not, it’s one of the best exercises to evaluate yourself and find out where you stand. There are different competitions specially designed to challenge children’s creativity. As we are harvesting technology, a lot of related competitions are available for children.
If your child is a robotics fan and shows sparks of innovation, encourage their competitive spirit by providing opportunities to take part in a robotics competition. Robotics competitions create a sense of harmony among researchers, students, and enthusiasts, all coming together to work on a unified goal in the challenging areas of robotics.
There are many benefits of participating in the robotics competition. It is an ideal platform for students to explore the diverse world of robotics, robot design, and computer programming. What makes them unique is the opportunity to put knowledge into practical use.
How?
Robotics competitions present an opportunity for students to work on challenging robotics scenarios and create a robot design through the application of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics. Any robotics competition brings the best in children by allowing them to tap into their creative headspace to come up with innovative solutions.
Here are some of the best robotics competitions:
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1. FIRST Robotics Competition
A competition for high school children, it is full of intensity and often described by students as “the hardest fun you will ever have”. They challenged students to raise funding, design, build, and program against other teams with limited resources and only six weeks.Who: Teams of ten or more high school students (grades 9–12) are invited to participate.
When: Registration usually takes place in the fall, with the competitive season starting in January and ending in April with the FIRST Championship. You can find more regional information on the webpage.
Where: Regional/state competitions take place across the United States and the world! For a complete list, click here.
Prize: Access to over $50 million in scholarships as a prize.
2. The VEX Robotics Competitions
The Robotics Education & Competition Foundation hosts several robotics tournaments. They give each group of students the responsibility of developing and building a robot that will compete against other teams in a game-based engineering challenge.Who: Students from elementary through collegiate levels. The minimum age requirement is eight years old.
When: Tournaments are held at the regional, state, and national levels all year long. Each April, winners are asked to compete in the VEX Robotics World Championship, albeit this year’s tournament may be virtual.
Where: All across the world! Check your local listings for times and locations.
Prize: Check out the website for more details.
3. MoonBattle
The competition is based on the theme – ‘EMPOWER THE PLANET. The competition encourages children to think of ways to create a better future for the planet! The challenge is about coming up with the most innovative ideas related to the environment, etc.Who: MoonBattle is open for 2 age groups, 8-11 years and 12-15 years.
When: The enrollment for the competition is on.
Where: 8-Week online competition. Click here to enroll.
Prize: Check out the website for details.
4. BEST Robotics Competition
A robotics tournament in which teams compete against each other. Every year, they chose a new challenge based on current events. “BEST” stands for “Boosting Engineering, Science & Technology.”Who: Middle and high school students.
When: Registration dates vary for every competition; for the most up-to-date information, see the event website.
Where: You can view a list of upcoming events here.
Prize: For each competition, BEST awards a variety of prizes, including the renowned BEST award, creativity honors, and software design. Prizes differ depending on whether the competition is held at a regional, state, or national level. For more information, visit the website!
5. Wonder League Robotics
Designed for youth, the participants have to clear three rounds of this robotics competition spread over five months. They do it under the supervision of a coach. Teams that place first in the preliminary competition rounds are invited to compete in the open invitational against other teams.Who: Children aged 6 to 12 years.
When: Runs throughout the year. Registration opens in late summer. The competitions take place in the fall and winter, with the finals in the spring.
Where: Children with a variety of schedules can join because registration is done online and preliminary competition rounds are held remotely.
Prize: Check the website for the details
For more details, visit Wonder League Robotics website.
6. Zero Robotics Tournament
During the five-week program, the STEM curriculum introduces students to computer programming, robotics, and space engineering, and provides hands-on experience programming Astrobee Satellites. They organize the competition in collaboration with several organizations, including MIT and NASA.Who: Students, schools, and community-based organizations can participate in it
When: The 2022 Zero Robotics Summer Program will begin on July 1st.
Where: Locations vary according to program and age around the United States and other nations. To see the sites, click here.
Prize: Check out the website for more details.
7. World Robot Olympiad
It is a forum for robotics competitions focused on science, technology, and education. WRO’s aim is to engage and entertain young people while helping them develop their creativity and problem-solving skills. WRO is a non-profit organization that operates on its own. All the money raised will go toward their aim of supporting robotics through STEM education around the world.Who: Robotics competitions in four different categories for students aged 8-19 years.
When: Check out their World Robot Olympiad website for more information.
Where: WRO tournaments are organized in over 85 countries worldwide.
Prize: Check out their website for more information.
8. Micromouse
It is a robotics competition in which miniature robot mice must solve a 16×16 maze. The site’s major goal is to assist college students in the United States in improving their abilities and project quality for their Micromouse.Who: Students of all ages. Check out the Micromouse website for more information.
Where: Events are held worldwide, most popular in the UK, U.S., Japan, Singapore, India, and South Korea, and becoming popular in subcontinent countries such as Sri Lanka.
When: Check out their website for more information.
Prize: Check out their website for more information.
9. RoboGames
Walking humanoids, soccer bots, sumo bots, combat robots, firefighters, LEGO bots, and many more compete in a robot Olympics featuring roughly 50 distinct events.Who: As an open event, anyone can compete.
Where: Check out the RoboGames website for more information.
When: Keep an eye out for the 2022 event.
Prize: Check out their website for more information.
In a nutshell
Something is better than nothing. If your child has free time, make sure they invest in learning something new and enhancing their knowledge. Competitions challenge children and make them curious to explore and give their best.
Currently, a lot of children are hooked on robotics, a futuristic subject that is gaining rapid momentum across the world and educational institutions are making giant leaps to inculcate robotics in their curriculum.
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