Robotics at Abbotsleigh: Help the ARTEMIS Club
ARTEMIS is an acronym for Abbotsleigh Robotics Team: Engineering, Mathematics, Inspiration, Science. The team designed its logo with arrows to represent Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt. Students in the team aim high as they strive to be the best they can be.
The team, now in its third year, had success in the 2016 regional championships of the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) when they won the Rookie All Star Award for their commitment and teamwork in the competition. This enabled them to compete in the world championships in St Louis USA, a great opportunity for team bonding, networking with more experienced teams from around the world, establishing invaluable contacts and learning more of what it means to participate at a high level in this competition.
In 2017, ARTEMIS won the award for gracious professionalism, an integral part of the ethos of FRC, which encourages high-quality work, emphasising the value of others while respecting individuals and the community. Strong competition and mutual gain are the two sides of this coin. The girls stepped in to act as translators at the regional competition to assist a team from China whose translators failed to show. Another example during the competition was their generosity in giving their climbing mechanism to the Chinese team to improve their mechanism.
Robotics is more than circuits, motors and coding. The students on the team learn about budgets, fundraising, sponsorship, engineering and design, electronics, mechanics, prototyping, problem solving, critical and creative thinking, coding, CAD, safety, media outreach, public speaking and even driving. Students benefit in many ways, which flow into their academic and social life. They gain confidence as they learn to be more organised, to work in teams, solve challenging problems and create innovative solutions.
Team members volunteer at events such as the Asian Pacific International Competition and at the Macquarie University FIRST Lego League (FLL) Regional Competition, and are developing community projects designed to improve life for people in need. The girls also help with the FLL Club and the Junior School Robotics Club.
ARTEMIS is always looking for people to act as mentors for sub-teams (mechanical, electrical, CAD, software, safety and media) or who are willing to support the team in any other way. They especially need someone to act as mentor to the media/marketing sub-team.
The team is growing and flourishing as a result of the passion and enthusiasm of the students, combined with the tireless efforts of the mentors, led by Erin Filan, who freely give of their time and expertise. In addition, sponsors have made possible the purchase of tools and materials for building the robots and payment of competition fees.
You are invited to visit the team after school on a Wednesday, or on a Saturday morning. Follow the team on Facebook and Instagram and watch the YouTube videos being developed as part of Project Athena, designed to support other teams.