This page was last updated: November 6, 2013

What a 2012-2013 year it was for the Raiderbots!

1. Placing second at BunnyBot!
2. Placing first at the Portland Regional!
3. Outstanding showing at the World Chamionships!

We are proud of you all.
Good luck in the 2013-2014 season!

9/6/2013: We have put all the student / parent / volunteer forms online. Get them here.

(This also includes the link to the school district's background check that all adult volunteers must fill out.)

9/6/2013: Here is our robotics calendar for 2013-2014. (as we now know it...)

Useful Information, especially if you're new

Welcome to Crescent Valley Robotics!

OK, we've all been there. Your first Crescent Valley Robotics parent meeting. So much information, so little time to absorb it.

This might help. Here are some links that we've found to be useful before. The first is the CV team's own web site. See what they've done and how they've done it.

Others are links to some of the best-of FIRST robotics sites. The FIRST Robotics Volunteer Handbook is especially good because it explains a lot about FIRST Robotics in general. As they say in that handbook, the FIRST vision is "to transform our culture by creating a world where science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming science and technology leaders."

That handbook also says that the FIRST Mission is "to inspire young people to be science and technology leaders, by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering and technology skills, that inspire innovation, and foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication and leadership."

Read on -- you'll like what you see.

• Crescent Valley Robotics Homepage
• FIRST Robotics home page
• FIRST Robotics Volunteer Handbook (this also explains a lot about FIRST Robotics in general)
• FIRST Robotics Volunteer Standards of Conduct
• FIRST Robotics Gracious Professionalism
• FIRST Mentoring Guide (this is really good)
• Eligibility Guidelines for Students Not Enrolled at CV

We have put the student / parent / volunteer forms online. Click here to find them.

Why FIRST Robotics?

Brandeis University's Center for Youth and Communities conducted an independent, retrospective survey of FIRST Robotics Competition participants and compared results to a group of non-FIRST students with similar backgrounds and academic experiences, including math and science. Highlights of the study's findings include:

When compared with the comparison group, FIRST students are:

• Significantly more likely to attend college on a full-time basis than comparison students (88% vs. 53%)
• More than 3 times as likely to major specifically in engineering.
• Roughly 10 times as likely to have had an apprenticeship, internship, or co-op job in their freshman year.
• Significantly more likely to expect to achieve a post graduate degree.
• More than twice as likely to expect to pursue a career in science and technology.
• Nearly 4 times as likely to expect to pursue a career specifically in engineering.
• More than twice as likely to volunteer in their communities.

You can see the whole survey here.

NEW 10/1/2013: And if that wasn't enough, read this research report about how exposure to math and science influences students' choice of a future career path.

Here's something to warm every parent's heart

Information on FIRST College Scholarship opportunities.

Parents! Here are the forms you need

We have put all the student / parent / volunteer forms online. Get them here.

Notes to Parents on Organizing Various Events

Parent volunteers are the lifeblood of the team. Want to help, but not sure what it takes? We have notes from previous events that will serve as "recipes" to putting on these events. It's not as hard as you think!

Click here to see the recipes.

Fun Stuff

• Quad Rotor helicopters juggling an inverted pendulum (amazing!)
• Oreo Separating Machine
• Chief Delphi Portal (lots of great information!)
• My Robot is Better Than Your Robot
• "Girls Love Robots" Lyrics
• Robot Ride (kids, don't try this at home ... or at school)
• Big scary robot messes up
• Very cool -- using robotic animals to train veterinarians.
• How robots are used to build Tesla automobiles!
• Gimball: a crash-happy flying robot
• A robot that always wins at rock-paper-scissors
• Very clever spherical hexapod robot
• OK, Transformers are robots too...
• ... and they can dance!
• Autodesk 2011 Design Visualization reel

Administration Forms

We have various forms that need to be filled out at various times to facilitate the running of the team (eg, purchase requests). Rather than having to hunt them all down in some long-lost paper folder, we've collected them on a web site.

Click here to go there.

Executive Committee

The CV Robotics team has an active parent Executive Committee that coordinates the team activities. The EC page has meeting minutes and other records of their activities.

Click here to see it.

Comments? Suggestions?