CWA Robotics Brings Gliders and Grins to the Tacoma Kids Fair

Students from CWA's FLL and FTC teams spent a Saturday at the Tacoma Dome sharing what they love with thousands of local families. 

The Tacoma Dome was full of noise on Saturday, August 29, and a good share of it came from the CWA Robotics table.

Middle and Upper School students from Charles Wright Academy’s FIRST LEGO League (FLL) and FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) teams joined the Tacoma Police Department’s annual Health and Safety Fair, where more than 5,000 local families received backpacks, school supplies, and other essentials ahead of the school year. Families were also connected with health and wellness services that can be tricky to access in the Tacoma area. Between supply tables and service booths, CWA students ran two hands-on activities: a Hoop Glider make-and-take and a chance for kids to take the controls of a competition robot.

For many of the children who stopped by, it was the first robot they had ever driven.

"When we were volunteering, I really enjoyed seeing the smiles on the kids' faces. When they were done making their hoop gliders, and they were testing them out and running to their parents to show them what they made, it made me so happy to see that," said Middle School student and FLL team member Hannah E. ‘31.

The coaches noted that several community members sought them out during the day to share how impressed they were with CWA’s students, singling out their enthusiasm, patience, and kindness – all values that Charles Wright strives to instill in students from preschool through 12th grade. Explaining how a robot works to a six-year-old who has never seen one, over and over, for hours, takes a particular kind of generosity.

Tacoma Police Chief Patti Jackson described the fair as an opportunity for the community to connect with the Department outside of an emergency, and credited Community Engagement Senior Manager Bervin Smith with the vision behind the event. The same logic applies to a school. Days like this one let families meet CWA students as neighbors first.

For the robotics program, the fair was an early-season warm-up in more ways than one. Competition season is just getting underway, and outreach is a formal part of how FIRST teams are evaluated. But the students who showed up on Saturday were not there for a grade. They were there because they are passionate about what they do and want other kids to experience it too.

When asked what she is most excited about for the upcoming year, Hannah said, "I'm excited about some of the new FLL changes: learning a new coding program we are going to use and just the challenge and opportunity to work with my teammates, new and old, for one more final season."