Coaches are a huge part of what makes FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge possible. FLL would not exist without you.
What is FIRST® LEGO LEAGUE CHALLENGE All About?
At its basic level, FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge is a program of exploration for children age 9 to 11 in Michigan, which is designed to get children excited about science and technology – and teach them valuable employment and life skills. Learn More
Building A Team
Coaching can be one of the most rewarding experiences of your life. You are helping your team members see the fun in science, technology, engineering, and math. Whether or not your team receives an award at a competition, team members win just by participating. If it is your rookie year, enjoy it for what it is: a learning experience. Your goal should be to simply experience FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge for the first time. With a fun experience and meeting realistic goals under your belt, you and the children will be brimming with ideas about what to do next year. Learn More
Cost to Run A Team
What does it cost to participate? For new FIRST LEGO League Challenge teams can expect to pay approximately $800 for team registration, the Challenge Set and a reusable LEGO SPIKE PRIME kits. Additional costs for event participation, travel, food, team shirts and other optional items will vary. Usually a Michigan rookie team will get a grant from the state to cover the cost of a reusable LEGO SPIKE PRIME kits. Venteran teams will pay less since the robot set can be used year after year. Team registration and the Challenge Set must be purchased every season. Learn More
Start Your Season
It’s time to get started. Here are a few suggestions for what you could do in your first meetings with your team. Learn More
The FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge has 2 parts: the Robot Game and the Project. In the Robot Game, the kids build and program an autonomous LEGO® MINDSTORMS® robot to score points by performing mission tasks. These missions will be inspired by the Challenge theme, so you will see many concepts that may get your team thinking about this year’s topic. Missions require the robot to navigate, and to capture, transport, activate, or deliver objects precisely on a printed mat on a special table. The robot has 2 1⁄2 minutes to complete as many mission tasks as possible. The team and robot must follow a set of rules, which you will be able to download from the FLL website. For example: if team members touch the robot while it’s working, it must be stopped and carried to Base. At tournaments, a referee oversees the action to ensure that everyone is following the rules. At tournaments, 2 half-tables are attached back to back to form a full competition table, so your team will participate opposite a team on the other side. You are not competing against that team. Rather, both teams will try to earn their own highest score. The robots are isolated from each other by table border walls, but there is always at least 1 mission that causes interaction between robots on adjacent tables. Learn More
Project Resources
FLL Challenge Project Videos
Resource from the FLL Challenge Coommunity Learn More
Core Values Resources
We express the FIRST philosophies of Gracious Professionalism and Coopertition through our Core Values:
Discovery: We explore new skills and ideas.
Innovation: We use creativity and persistence to solve problems.
Impact: We apply what we learn to improve our world.
Inclusion: We respect each other and embrace our differences.
A tournament is an opportunity for teams to learn, showcase their accomplishments, and celebrate their hard work throughout the season. Even if your team does not feel 100 percent ready, we encourage all teams to participate in a FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge tournament. Here provides you with an outline of the tournament day, but expect the unexpected and focus on creating a fun experience for your team members. Learn More