IT was a race to find the top of the bots as inventive students from across Limerick and the wider Mid West took part in the 11th annual Analog Devices Primary Schools Robotics Competition final this past weekend.
Knockanean National School, of Ennis, County Clare, took the top prize for the first time, in a competition that saw 15 local Limerick schools test their mettle after constructing and programming their own robots.
105 fifth and sixth class students from across Limerick, Clare, Cork, and Tipperary competed in a series of knock-out rounds where their robots faced off against one another.
Adam Maguire, Donnacha Mockler, and Orla Brooks from Knocnanean National School were crowned overall winners, while Holly Boyce and Mya, Shauna, and Annie White from Scoil Mhuire Broadford, County Limerick, took the runners-up spot.
In the lead-up to the final, participating schools took part in a hands-on robotics workshop, where they learned to design, build, and programme their own robots, as well as testing their skills in teamwork, creativity, and problem-solving, and developing important skills in coding.
The robot wars took place in the Analog Devices Campus in Raheen over the weekend. Now in its 11th year, the popular competition has been won in previous years by Scoil Íde, St Patrick’s Girls NS, Our Lady Queen of Peace NS, Killoughteen NS, Scoil Mhuire Broadford, St Patrick’s NS Bruree, and St Patrick’s NS Dublin Road.
The annual competition is designed to promote science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM) in primary schools by giving students a practical introduction to engineering and technology. Close to 10,000 primary students have taken part in the competition in its 11-year history.
15 Limerick primary school took part in this year’s competition, along with eight from Clare, six from Tipperary, and three from Cork.