The Robotics Program at Ranney School (Tinton Falls, NJ) is flourishing across all three divisions. New robots and equipment have been purchased and teachers are trained and ready for the upcoming season. This year’s world competition will be held in Louisville, Kentucky, in April 2015, and students of all ages will keep that event in mind as they learn, compete and have fun throughout this robotics season.

Our 12 Upper School teams will have 2 to 4 students per team, and we anticipate a core group of more than 30 students traveling to competitions. In the classroom, Advanced Robotics students will be designing and testing underwater robots in the school’s Walling Aquatic Center in preparation for the SeaPerch competition in the spring of 2015. SeaPerch is an innovative underwater robotics program that equips teachers and students with the resources they need to build an underwater remotely operated vehicle in an in-school or out-of-school setting.

Lower and Middle Schoolers will be strengthening their robotics skills this school-year as well. Eighth-grade students will be competing along with the Upper Schoolers in regular VEX competitions and all Middle Schoolers will be meeting during activity periods and after school in preparation for their competitions. In addition, they will be mentored by their Upper School peers taking the Advanced Robotics class.

Four Lower School teachers were trained over the summer in the VEX IQ system and 10 new VEX IQ robots will be used by Lower School students year-round as part of a new robotics elective. Students in the Lower School will also have the opportunity to compete with the Middle Schoolers at VEX IQ events, one of which will be held at Ranney School in January 2015. It is an exciting time to be involved in Robotics at Ranney!