2016 Robot Challenge Update

A student-designed elevator in the middle
of a failed test.

Currently in Automation and Robotics, the students are hard at work for the 2016 Robot Challenge. This year, the challenge is for students to create an elevator that can lift a textbook! To accomplish this task, they will have to use everything they have learned, from programming, to mechanisms, to research, and the understanding of gear ratios. This is not an easy task!

The students have certainly been challenged, but many are persevering. Failure in class is a good thing, and the students have been learning a lot through this process.

With about a week left of design and creation time left, can the students complete the 2016 Robot Challenge? Be sure to follow the classroom twitter feed, and check back to find out!

Fridley Space Program Logo Design Winner

Our sixth grade class (Flight and Space) is currently embarking on their final journey of the year. The students have officially joined the Fridley Space Program, and are currently designing their missions and rockets for launch day in late May.

A week ago, I challenged the 7th and 8th grade students to design a logo for the Fridley Space Program. There were 11 spectacular logos entered into the contest. Today, the results are in! Below, I would like to introduce the winning design of the Fridley Space Program Logo Design Contest!

Design Credit: Donovan L.

Henceforth, this logo will be used as the official logo of the Fridley Space Program. It will be attached to every rocket the students construct. It will be included on the top of every official document the students fill out. It will be the banner under which the Fridley Space Program flies.

Congratulations to Donovan L. on the design of this logo! Stay tuned to twitter for more updates on the Fridley Space Program as we approach launch day!

The First Design

Fridley Middle School's first student-design vehicle in 2016.

In Design and Modeling, students have been working hard to learn and improve their skills using the 3d modeling program Autodesk Inventor.

The final project in Design and Modeling, is to create a car based on their own design. Just yesterday, the first design was printed and the first student in our 7th grade at Fridley Middle School received her plastic, 3d printed car to take home.

Over the next month, the rest of the 7th grade students will be working very hard to research, design, and create their own model cars. The student's hard work will, of course, cause me to begin a printing flurry, in an attempt to print off every 7th grade student's car design by the end of May!

Stay tuned both to here and twitter, for many updates on car designs, and much more from our design classroom at Fridley Middle School!