What is FIRST?

If you follow our blog or social media you’ve certainly seen us talk about FIRST hundreds of times. 

That got us thinking… Does everyone who follow us know what FIRST is? 

To make sure we are all on the same page and turn you guys into FIRST specialists, here we’ve got everything you need to know and more about this awesome organization. 

So buck up, and keep on reading to learn more!!

Foundation

FIRST is an American non-profit organization. It was founded in 1989 in a partnership between inventor and entrepreneur Dean Kamen and engineer Woodie Flowers.

FIRST stands for “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology”.

Mission, vision and values

The organisation was created with the main goal of inspiring US youth to become leaders in areas of science and technology. As time went by, the project got bigger, and today, FIRST is made up of more than 780 thousand young people and volunteers across the globe. 

Their mission, other than engaging people in areas of STEAM (Science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) is to inspire innovation and promote lifelong traits, such as self-confidence, communication and leadership.. 

Throughout the years, FIRST has been transforming students’ lives with robotics, by making it accessible and fun, taking away the idea that only NASA engineers have what it takes to learn to program or build a robot.

FIRST has two main philosophies that are applied in their competitions:

• - Coopertition, a term created by Dean Kamen himself, meaning that teams can work and cooperate with each other even whilst competing.
• And Gracious Professionalism, which means that one must compete with all it takes, but always treating others with respect and kindness.

Some of their values include:

• Discovery: So that new ideas and skills are always explored.
• Innovation: Using creativity and persistence to solve problems. 
• Impact: Applying what you’ve learned to improve the world.
• Inclusion: Respecting others despite their differences.
• Teamwork: We are all stronger when working together
• Fun: Having fun and celebrating what you do!

Categories

Children and teenagers from 6 to 18 years old participate in competitions organized by FIRST. The competitions are divided into 4 modalities, namely:

FLL Junior

     A First Lego League Jr. (FLL Jr) propõe desafios não competitivos para crianças de 6 a 10 anos,  consistindo na criação de projetos de pesquisa usando lego e ilustrações, assim, iniciando as primeiras experiências com robótica e  trabalho em equipe, impactando logo cedo seu desempenho escolar. 

FLL 

     Na  First Lego League (FLL) os integrantes têm entre 9 a 14 anos, diferentemente  da FLL Jr, a equipe deve desenvolver um robô, utilizando a plataforma LEGO® MINDSTORMS®, programar e testar ele. Proporcionando aos jovens capacidade de inovação, criatividade e raciocínio lógico.

FTC

 The First Tech Challenge (FTC) is made up of teams of about 15 members aged 12 to 18, whose objective is to build robots made of aluminum, whether they are small or medium, in the competition skills are acquired that help in the personal and academic life of the student.

FRC

    E por último temos a  modalidade que amamos e participamos, a First Robotics Competition (FRC). 

Atualmente, já existem quase 8.500 equipes FRC.  Elas trabalham com jovens de 14 a 18 anos e desafiam os alunos a construírem, programarem e testarem um robô de grande porte feito basicamente de alumínio e afins. A categoria estimula a partir de prêmios variados o conhecimento nas áreas da engenharia, programação e marketing. 

    Competitions take place primarily at the regional level, for 7 weeks, in countries such as the United States, Turkey, Canada, Australia and Mexico and the winners of each regional, or of some prizes, gain the right to participate in the Championship, which takes place in Houston, TX, USA and also in Detroit, MI, USA. 

More than a robot

FIRST is just a gateway for some way bigger!

Não é só a construção de um robô, é um esporte para cérebro,  é a criação de amizades especiais, é a inspiração para os que serão os futuros engenheiros, médicos e pesquisadores e acima de tudo, é a universalização do conhecimento para todos, feita pelas equipes por meio  da disseminação da STEAM nas comunidades.

Por isso, deixamos aqui nossos agradecimentos para as pessoas que dedicam o seu tempo para que a FIRST continue existindo e  estimulando os jovens dias após dia a seguirem no rumo da ciência e tecnologia.

We are very happy to be able to be part of such project, and we hope that in the near future there will be many more teams here in Brazil so more people can experience it!  

Tell us in the comments your opinions on FIRST and don’t forget to follow our path on Instagram, Facebook, Youtube and LinkedIn (FRC5800)