[Katie_UPS]

I hate the "I'm too stupid for robotics" misconception. Unless the local FLL team is full of very bright students who are very exclusive, I don't think he'd actually have a problem. If he's good at chess, he's probably good at problem solving and thinking logically: both are good things for robotics.

If he really doesn't want to join, then don't make him. But if you can, take him to an FRC event- thats what did me in. Have him wander around in the pits (supervised maybe and with safety glasses) and look at cool robots, collect buttons, and ask questions. If he thinks thats cool enough, he'll probably want to do robotics in high school, if not middle school. Also, remind him that not many people go into robotics knowing anything and that he's there to learn. If you can make it clear that you don't have know everything on day 1, he'll understand that he CAN join.

On a different note, FLL teams have a restricted team size, so he may not be able to join due to a full roster.