CHESHIRE – When it comes to topics like technology and STEM, most experts stress the importance of getting students interested and involved at an early age.
Jobs in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) are usually well paid and always need young minds. At Dodd Middle School, a new group of students is “using the power” of creativity and innovation to make their mark on the world of STEM. In fact, these “gentlemen” used their skills to get first place in the state Lego League (FLL) Challenge state championship last month.
The Dodd Jedi Knights team, named after the famous “Star Wars” heroes, consists of five students: Auritro Dasgupta, Lekhan Nair, Rishi Hedge, Shreyas Illindala and Yashovardhan Biswas, who have been together since 2019. The group is led by its group. two coaches, Shweta Hedge and Bivash Dasgupta.
The team competed in the FLL challenge at Glastonbury High School, which required teams to complete several missions in an effort to build a Lego robot in two and a half minutes. The “Knights” competed against 36 more teams to claim first prize.
“I’ve loved LEGO since I was a kid (little one) and I’m also interested in coding,” Auritro Dasgupta said. “Being on this team allowed me to build and program our own automated robot using LEGO technical parts. I also learned about the real-world challenges in cargo transportation. And during all these competitions I also learned how to overcome problems like team and how we could use the strengths of others ”.
The contest used current supply chain issues to encourage students to come up with innovative ways to approach the problem.
The Jedi Knights created traceable, lightweight, foldable shipping containers to address the problem of container imbalance in supply chain logistics. Containers reduce fuel consumption and the overall carbon footprint.
“We were in a state of total disbelief when we learned we had won,” coach Shweta Hedge said. “Especially considering the fact that we were competing against some seriously experienced teams.”
The Jedi Knights, close friends since 2019, attribute to the group the strengthening of their knowledge and personal friendships.
“I liked that we were able to learn new types of robot codes and also that I had fun with my friends,” Biswas said. “It simply came to our notice then. We have pajamas, parties, meetings, it has been a lot of fun working with my friends. ”
“We’ve known each other since fourth grade, so we came up with the name of our team. We all really enjoyed Star Wars then, “Nair added.
Now, the Jedi Knights will bring their talents and friendships to Houston, Texas, for the World Championships on April 20th.
“We’re so excited to go, we’ve never been to Texas before,” Hegde said. “We are nervous, but ready! Go to Cheshire! “
