[Jaine Perotti]

While I understand why the other people in this thread have responded by suggesting starting a second team, I have another suggestion that may be more feasable (considering that 2 teams requires extra of money and alot of extra work).

It is always hard to reject kids when you have more applicants than spaces available on the team. What I have done at my FLL team's school district is start up a secondary "Lego Club", which is NOT a competitive robotics team, but an after-school activity which meets weekly. After the regular Lego League season is over, why don't you start a "Lego Club" 1) for the kids who didn't make the cut for the regular team, 2) to get other kids interested who might not have the time/dedication to be on the regular team, and 3) to prepare younger/less experienced kids for future participation on the regular team.

I like the "Lego Club" because it is all inclusive (all you have to do is sign up), there isn't a limit to how many can join (just make sure you have enough materials to go around), and it doesn't stress a competitive atmosphere. Also, you don't have to try to multitask by running two seperate teams at a time (it's ALOT of work!).

While I love the FRC and FLL competitions, sometimes I think the best way to introduce kids to the world of robotics is in a NON-competitive way. One of the reasons why beginners get turned off by robotics is that they feel intimidated by the thought of having to compete. In the Lego Club and the Lego summer camps that I have run, I have the kids build interesting projects that they build just to demonstrate and display to their parents and the rest of the group. I believe that it is helpful to build up the kids' confidence in their skills before asking them to perform under the stress of competition.

Another tip (although not totally on topic) -
It is very hard to run an FLL team at it's max capacity (10 kids). I would suggest having a smaller team if possible. If thats not possible, try splitting up the kids into a group for the Research Project, and a group for Robot Design and Build. That way, it is easier to delegate tasks and come to a group conensus while problem solving.

Hope this was useful! PM me if you have any other questions about running an FLL team or a Lego Club. I have lots of teaching materials that I can share with you, and plenty of advice if you have any questions.

-- Jaine