Johnston Community Education

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

In FIRST LEGO League (FLL) Challenge, friendly competition is at the heart of the program. Teams of students engage in research, problem-solving, coding, and engineering while building and programming a LEGO robot that navigates the missions of a robot game. Teams of 6-8 students, led by PARENT-VOLUNTEER coaches, will meet up to 2 days each week for approximately 1 hour. During these team "practices", teams will work together to design, build, and code their robot. Teams will also practice the FLL core values while developing a unique solution to a real-world issue related to the current season's theme: BIOGLOW. 

In the BIOLGOW™ challenge, to be released August 4, 2026, FIRST® LEGO® League teams will experience the vibrancy of the world's ecosystems. BIOGLOW is part of the FIRST® CANOPY™ season. Learn more.

The Fall 2026 FLL Challenge Season offered through Johnston Community Education (JCE) will operate similar to previous seasons:

• Teams will participate in the FOUNDERS edition of the BIOGLOW season, utliizing existing SPIKE LEGO robotics kits. (JCE will convert to the FUTURE edition in 2027.)
• Teams will have the option to attend an FLL Regional Qualifier event outside of Johnston. Qualifier event dates and locations are TBD. Travel could be required to attend an FLL Regional Qualifier. The cost of participating in a Regional Qualifier is included in your registration fee (no additional registration fees). 
• Teams will have the option to showcase their work for parents at the end of the season. The date and time of this event will be determined in collaboration with individual teams after practices begin.

Early Registration Deadline: August 23 (Fee increases to $155 on August 24)

IF YOU ARE REGISTERING ON AUGUST 24 OR LATER, THERE IS LIMITED ROSTER SPACE AVAILABLE. NO SPECIAL REQUESTS FOR TEAM PLACEMENT WILL BE ACCEPTED.

LOGISTICS:

• Please indicate during registration if the participant is NEW or RETURNING to FLL Challenge when you register. 
  • RETURNING participants will be placed with their 2025 season coach IF their coach is also returning.
• After all team rosters are created (minimum of 6 / maximum of 8 participants) - we need to identify parent-volunteers from the roster to serve as the Head Coach plus 2 Assistant Coaches. That means we need AT LEAST 3 parents from every roster of 6-8 students to volunteer to coach in some role. If we are unable to find sufficient parent-volunteer support for a team, we will attempt to relocate students to other teams based on available roster space in the order in which they registered. If we cannot find a new roster to move them to, your registration fee will be refunded.
• All teams will practice at the JCSD District Office, 6510 NW 62nd Ave, Johnston, IA 50131
• Registration Deadline: Sunday, August 23 (Fee increases to $155 on August 24)
• Coaches' Meeting to be held the week of Aug 31-Sept 4
• Teams will be contacted by parent-volunteer coaches following the coaches' meeting
• Practices can begin as early as the week of Sept 7-11
• Teams will practice 2 nights per week: Mon & Wed OR Tue & Thu
• No experience or equipment necessary for participants or coaches! 

PARTICPANT AGES NOTE: The age range for our Johnston Community Education FLL Challenge program is 4th-8th grade. This varies slightly from the recommended age range provided by the FIRST organization. Our age range falls within the FIRST recommended age range so teams do not need to be concerned about eligibility at FIRST competitions. 4th-8th grade is the age range we have found the most success with for our program. 

INSTRUCTOR: Parent-Volunteer Coaches! 

This program is dependent on parent-volunteers to operate. Rosters are limited to 6-8 students. That means we need to identify a Head Coach and 2 Assistant Coaches for every 6-8 students. A MINIMUM of 2 adults (Coach + Assistant Coach) are required to be on-site to supervise each practice. No LEGO or robotics experience is necessary. FLL provides materials to guide teams through each practice and all projects should be student-driven. With small rosters - all parents should consider how they can volunteer to support the team.

Please contact Scott.Kruthoff@Johnston.k12.ia.us with questions.