On March 2, School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. (SBPLI), in conjunction with Longwood Central School District, kicked off the 10th Annual Long Island FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) LEGO League (FLL) Championship Tournament. Over 40 teams participated in the event and 17 awards were given to various teams.

This year’s challenge was NATURE’S FURYSM. Elementary and middle school-aged children researched and presented their own creative solutions to one of the largest international issues — natural disasters — which have affected nearly three billion people globally. The tournaments required students to build and program robots to complete natural disaster missions, such as positioning an evacuation sign, clearing an airplane's runway of debris, and developing solutions that could be used in the future. After the tournaments, teams presented their projects that corresponded with the challenge.

Below is a list of award winners from the FLL Long Island Championship Tournament:

Awards

Team #, Team Name

Location

Zebra Award

#5570, Chickenators

East Moriches, NY

Alliance Award

#1462, Carle Place Middle School

#3181, Floral Park Brick Heads

Carle Place, NY

Floral Park, NY

Robot Performance Award

#3181, Floral Park Brickheads

Floral Park, NY

Mechanical Design Award

#4404, Merrick Masters :)

Girl Scouts of Nassau County

Programming Award

#9600, Robotics Avengers

Smithtown, NY

Strategy and Innovation Award

#5012, Fury of the Locust

Locust Valley, NY

Research Quality Award

#5288, Gear Headz

Rocky Point, NY

Innovative Solution Award

#18146, Eagles

Copiague, NY

Creative Presentation Award

#4406, Smart Cookies

Girl Scouts of Nassau County

Inspiration Award

#14190, Lakeville Lightning

Great Neck, NY

Teamwork Award

#15358, Kennedy Creators

Great Neck, NY

Gracious Professionalism Award

#8434, Rocky Point Radical Robotix

Rocky Point, NY

All Around Award

#3181, Floral Park Brick Heads

Floral Park, NY

High Energy Award

#14684, Tornadoes

Greenlawn, NY

Rookie Award

#14139, EMB Targets

Great Neck, NY

Champion’s Award

#2878, Tesla Empire

Bayport, NY

The FLL Tournament is an annual, international sports-like challenge for children ages 9 to 14 to test their creative robotic skills by using science and technology with the help of adult mentors.

Following this event, Team #2878, Tesla Empire, of Bayport, will be competing in the North American Open at LEGOLAND in California, which takes place May16-18. Also, Team #3181, Floral Park Brick Heads, of Floral Park will be participating in the Canada International Open on April 6.