Earlier this year, we started to plan for this year’s Expo with the same fun fair. The highlight would be a “Building Newark” activity to let all teams collaboratively build New Jersey’s largest city on a gigantic map out of 70,000 LEGO bricks.

When the pandemic swept across the entire world, we were certain that the Expo would not happen at all. Boy were we wrong! The Expo host, LRC FLL team Flame Machines, started to plan a virtual Expo while busy collaborating with other kids and adults in the LRC community to redesign face shields for frontline workers (#LivingstonShield https://www.livingstonrobotics.org/livingston-shield/). In the end, 18 teams submitted video presentations and participated in the virtual Expo and award ceremony on the exact day on which the Expo was scheduled.

While some teams started their season last year and were able to complete their model, programs, and Show Me Poster before the lockdown, many teams had barely formed when all our lives were turned upside down. How do you build a Lego model and cultivate teamwork when you can only talk to your teammates on a computer screen? How do you practice your presentation when you don’t have a display board behind you? How do you share your project when all FIRST events are canceled?

These are real problems, but nothing could stop these teams who know the FIRST Core Values by heart! They developed new skills and used their creativity to solve these problems as a team while having a blast of fun. Some teams even made separate parts that would combine to make one grand Boomtown Build model.

These amazing teams made the virtual Expo an inspiring and exhilarating success. Let’s all celebrate their incredible achievements with a virtual round of high-fives, just like Flame Machines did throughout the award ceremony:

– Amazing Builders: Gracious Professionalism Award

– Awesome Builders: Complexity and Decoration Award

– Boom Town Boys: Awesome Machine Award

– Boomtown Buildwalkers: Impressive Coding Award

– Busy Bees: Complexity and Decoration Award

– Hartshorn1stBuilders: Inquiring Minds Award

– LEGO Gators: Effort and Learning Award

– LEGO Tigers: Team Spirit Award

– LEGO Warriors: Innovation Award

– Legonauts: Excellent Research Project Award

– Livingston Huaxia Chinese School Team 1: Awesome Machine Award

– Livingston Huaxia Chinese School Team 2: Effort and Learning Award

– MoonQuest: Construction Innovation Award

– North Caldwell Creators: Amazing Robot Design Award

– Rambots Construction Crew: Excellent Research Project Award

– RoboDominators: Amazing Robot Design Award

– Super Creators: Cool Programming Award

– XWing Builders: Super Sensor Award

Congratulations!!!