Harton Primary School takes home award at National Lego competition for top robot design

Pupils from a South Tyneside primary school have taken an award home after attending the First Lego League National Final.
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Harton Primary’ School’s Lego League team recently took part in the national Lego competition representing the borough at Harrogate Convention Centre.

Pupils were joined by teams from all over England and Wales to share their project ideas about improving cargo transportation as well as participating in a robot run.

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The team, named ‘Harton Puzzlers’, was made up of eight pupils and claimed the Innovation Award from the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET).

Harton Puzzlers at IET First Lego League FinalHarton Puzzlers at IET First Lego League Final
Harton Puzzlers at IET First Lego League Final

During the competition, the team competed in three robot runs using their robot Spikeles, which the youngsters designed and programmed using Lego Spike technology, to complete timed challenges and other missions to earn points.

This earned them a place in the top 12 knockout round of the robotics game, where the pupils achieved their highest of 315 points.

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The team also presented their project to a panel of judges, who quizzed them on their idea to develop a robotic arm inside delivery vehicles.

Harton Primary School taking part in the competitionHarton Primary School taking part in the competition
Harton Primary School taking part in the competition
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The team made their presentation in the style of a gameshow, with some members acting as special guests from Amazon and Nexus, two companies the children reached out to about their idea.

Harton Puzzlers were presented with the IET award for their inventive project idea, the ingenuity of the coding used to program the robot, the adaptivity of different attachments used on the robot to solve problems and the creativity of their presentation - as well as their excellent teamwork.

Team coach, computing coordinator and Year Five teacher, Lee Forster, said, “Every year I think I have the best team and every year the children manage to surpass my expectations. We’re incredibly proud of this team’s dedication and comradery. The children are already talking about the next tournament as well as potential careers they might have as engineers in the future.”

School governor Nicola McCluskey said, “It was wonderful seeing the children work together at the national competition to represent not only Harton Primary School but South Tyneside as a region. Taking part in this competition is just one of the ways staff at Harton Primary foster a curiosity around STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics).”

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