“There were 26 teams in total,” said teacher Jessica Constant. “Teams came from St. George, North Logan, Roosevelt, Provo, Salt Lake, six were from the Davis District. They came from all over really, it was a statewide event.”

Teams already attended some qualifying tournaments in order to compete at the championship, she said. “They’ve been working since the beginning of August perfecting their designs.”

Students play a game called change up where they have to get three balls in a row. “It’s all their own strategy with different designs,” said Constant. “It’s totally student driven. It’s fun to see how they all interpret the task.”

It’s two versus two, she said. “There’s more competition at the high school level. The battle bots can get a little bit cutthroat. You can descore your opponent and take one of their balls. It keeps it exciting. It’s super fun to watch.”

The district uses the VEX robotics platform in elementary, junior high and high schools, said Constant. “It's a nice progression. They learn the basics through junior high. There’s a snap together program in elementary and junior high. Then in high school they’re teaching coding for automating a robot.”

Constant said a lot of the high school students are enrolled in an engineering pathway. “It’s a great gateway into a career for kids so they can look to the future.”

She started in the robotics program five years ago. “I started teaching science and kind of got into robotics. Now I’m stepping away from science and teaching robotics. I also help in the district in the STEM program.”

The first school Constant taught in had a Lego league. “I had that on my resume when I applied at the district and they said, ‘hey we heard you know about robots. Here try this.’ I did and decided it was something great to get behind and run with.”

Constant said she’s self taught in robotics. “I just figure things out. It shows the kids that they can do hard things and if they fail they can try again. I think that’s why I’ve gotten behind it so much.”

Normally, the winners of the state competition go on to VEX International, she said. “It was supposed to be in Texas but because of COVID it was cancelled. It will be virtual. Davis District sends a team every year, usually more than one. We’ve qualified every year for the last five years. We were lucky to hold the state championship in the Davis District.”

There are 61 total high school teams in the state, said Constant. “A little over a third get to come to the state championship. It’s super fun. As an adult and parent I wish I would have had something like this. It’s great. It’s such a good thing for kids.”