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  • 🌽Introduction
  • 🤖FRC Basics
    • FTC vs FRC
    • Season Timeline
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    • Fundraising
      • Alternative Fundraising Strategies
      • Guide for FIRST LEGO League Teams
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      • Designing Robots
      • Showcasing Robots
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      • Team Quickstart Guide
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        • Impact Essay
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  • ⚙️Mechanical Design
    • CAD
      • FRC Setup
      • FRC CAD Tutorials
      • OnShape Tutorials
      • Getting Started with OnShape
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      • Machine Tools
        • Drills
        • Drill Press
        • Band Saw
  • 💻Programming
    • Java Programming
      • What is Java?
      • Hello World
      • Printing and Commenting
        • Project: Face Paint
      • Variables
        • Project: Temperature Converter
      • Conditionals
      • Loops and Recursion
      • Object-Oriented Programming
      • Visibility and Statistics
      • Polymorphism
      • Arrays and Collections
      • Miscellaneous
    • How to Solve Programming Problems
    • Version Control
      • Google Drive
      • Git
        • What is Git?
        • How do you use Git?
        • How to use Git (Option 1): Type commands yourself
        • How to use Git (Option 2): Use GitHub Desktop
    • Web Development
  • 📊Scouting & Strategy
    • Basics of Scouting
    • Data Field Determination
  • ⚽Competitions
    • Regionals
      • Setup & Practice Matches
      • Qualifications
      • Alliance Selection
      • Playoff Matches
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Iowa City Robotics 2024

On this page
  • General FLL Resources
  • Robot Design & Programming
  • Judging & Innovation Project
  • Event Prep & Logistics
  • Community & Mentorship
  • YouTube Channels & Playlists
  • Cost & Funding
  • Time Commitment
  • Mentors & Coaches
  • Additional Resources

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  1. Outreach
  2. FIRST LEGO League

Team Quickstart Guide

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Last updated 16 days ago

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General FLL Resources

  • Overview of the program, including Challenge, Explore, and Discover divisions

  • Engineering notebooks, rubrics, coach guides, and more

  • Includes current season theme, missions, rules, scoring, and model build instructions

  • Weekly plans for team meetings — great for new coaches

  • What to expect at events, including judging and schedules

Robot Design & Programming

  • Official app for LEGO SPIKE Prime and Essential kits

  • Legacy LEGO Mindstorms programming platform

  • Python-based alternative for SPIKE and EV3 kits

  • Comprehensive tutorials from veteran teams covering:

    • Programming: SPIKE Prime (Word Blocks & Python), EV3, Pybricks

    • Robot Design: Base designs, attachments, modularity, alignment

    • Judging & Core Values: Practice activities, Innovation Project prep

    • Team Management: Calendars, checklists, coaching tips

Judging & Innovation Project

Event Prep & Logistics

Community & Mentorship

YouTube Channels & Playlists

Cost & Funding

  • First-year teams will need to purchase a LEGO Education SPIKE Prime kit

  • Used EV3 or LEGO Mindstorms kits can be found on eBay to save money

  • Engineering notebooks are optional — any notebook will work

  • After year one, expected cost is around $350 per season

  • Other costs may include:

    • Team t-shirts

    • Snacks

    • Minimal travel for events

Time Commitment

  • Minimum: 2 hours/week from August through competition

  • Many teams add extra practices the 1–2 weeks before competition

  • Not all students need to attend every practice – sub-teams are helpful

  • Local competitions are typically half-day Saturday events (8 am–1 pm)

  • State competition is a full day event in January at Iowa State University

Mentors & Coaches

  • Each team needs at least 2 coaches (no STEM experience required)

  • Mentors can be community members, local businesses, high schoolers, or topic experts

  • These contacts can also become sponsors to help cover team costs

Additional Resources

For Innovation Project, Core Values, and Robot Design

Helps teams identify problems, design solutions, and present ideas effectively

What to bring and how to prepare

Guide for hosting or participating in mock tournaments

Team photos, build help, peer advice

Tips and support from veteran coaches

Real-time discussions with teams and mentors

Season reveal videos, challenge animations, and team stories

Videos on programming and robot design

Mission strategies and robot walkthroughs

🏫
FIRST LEGO League Official Site
FIRST Inspires Resource Library
Season Materials
Team Meeting Guide (PDF)
Tournament Guide
SPIKE Prime Software
EV3 Classroom Download
Pybricks
FLLTutorials.com
Judging Rubrics
Innovation Project Guide (PDF)
Tournament Day Checklist
Practice Tournament Format
FLL Reddit Community
FLL Coaches Facebook Group
Unofficial FLL Discord Server
FIRST LEGO League YouTube Channel
FLL Tutorials YouTube
STEMcentric YouTube Channel
Grants available through FIRST
How FLL Challenge Works
Start a Team Flyer (PDF)
Challenge Pricing & Payment
Grant Opportunities
Scholarship Search
Sponsorship Tips (PDF)
FLL Coaches Handbook
FIRST Coach/Mentor Checklist