As the GEAR season wrapped up, three Frenship teams headed to the Whitacre College of Engineering at Texas Tech University to compete in the Regional Championships after they dominated at the qualifying meets.  

Get Excited About Robotics, or GEAR, is a program Frenship elementary and middle school campuses compete in each year. Students and coaches prepare for GEAR Robotics events by building robots with the LEGO Mindstorms program and the EV3 robots.   

This year’s competition theme is ROBO Park. Students must build and program robots to clean up trash, sort out recycling, build playground equipment, install benches, and plant trees.    

Competitors from Alcove Trails Middle School, Willow Bend Elementary, and Upland Heights Elementary represented Frenship at the GEAR Championships. After a long day of tough competition, the Willow Bend team placed 4th and won the Most Elegant Statue Award. 

Throughout the season the teams competed with skill, dignity, and sportsmanship. They were successful because they were consistent and determined. The students continued to learn and develop their abilities throughout the competition.  

“We are so proud of our team,” said Susannah Coppola one of the GEAR sponsors at Alcove Trails. “This is our first year having a robotics team and the students did well learning not only how to code the robot but how to problem-solve difficulties and failed coding. They never gave up!” 

The GEAR students learn how to overcome adversity and solve problems throughout their competition season.  

“The tasks this year were difficult, but students were creative and able to complete most of the tasks with their robot,” said Sandra Dannemiller the GEAR sponsor at Willow Bend. “Students also learned how to work as a team through communication and collaboration.” 

The teams are already looking forward to next year's competition and are eager to continue learning.