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TMS Wins Award at State FLL Competition

The Tabb Middle School Robotics team has had an exciting few weeks! On November 10, they were awarded first place overall champions at the FIRST Lego League Regional Competition. The TMS students went on to compete at the Virginia-DC State tournament held at James Madison University this past weekend with over 100 teams, 35 at the middle school level.

Tabb Middle received the First Place Award in Core Values, one of four awards given by FIRST. This recognition seeks a balanced emphasis on all aspects of FIRST LEGO League in addition to the integration of teamwork and gracious professionalism. "The TMS Robotics team is grateful for the generous financial support from the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association, US Falcon, the York County School Division and the Tabb Middle School PTA," shared principal Heather Young.

This year, FIRST Lego League teams were challenged to solve a problem related to human space travel. The TMS team chose to design a solution to osteoporosis of disuse. Members conducted extensive research and skyped with an astronaut and an oncology nurse in the process. They designed a prototype vibration suit to simulate muscle movement and minimize effects of disuse. In an interactive skit, students explained and demonstrated their design to the amusement and amazement of judges. Additionally, students used the engineering design process to design, build, and program a robot to navigate through a field of space related Lego models arranged into challenging missions involving, lifting, pushing, pulling, and launching.