Quote:
Originally Posted by btslaser
We would like to do FTC but our middle school is grades 7-8 and FTC is for grades 9-12. We are considering VEX or BEST...
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Right.. our 7th and 8th graders competed against the 9th - 12th graders (and won the Inspiration Award, which is their version of Chairman's). (I believe the rules officially say something like "no older than 12th grade" for entry to FTC, though it is publicized as 9th - 12th) The7th and 8th graders can be very competitive.
This year, Michigan put FTC as a middle school option. Our Jr. High is now 6th - 8th. We offer FLL and FTC options here. We try to steer our experienced 7th and 8th grade FIRST kids into FTC (unless they just want to stay in FLL, which some do) and we steer our new recruits to FLL.
The experienced FLL kids REALLY love the step up to FTC, and work very hard at it. It is doable at that level. Since 2008, we have had one or two FTC teams at our jr. high all but one year.
This year we were lucky enough to secure a somewhat permanent home for our team and we invited the jr. high team to practice with us beginning in Feb. They came, and we were there to answer questions if they had them. They got to see our kids working, our kids got to see them working. Mostly, we co-existed, but when they needed us, we were right there.
Next year, they will practice with us throughout the season. It builds great ties.