Introduction to FIRST Tech Challenge
Learn the game behind the game: how FTC works and how a team works.
This week introduces FIRST Tech Challenge from the ground up: what the program is, how events and matches are organised, and what judges look for beyond the scoreboard. You will set up your team's roles, learn the safety habits and Gracious Professionalism that every FTC team is expected to show, and practise the engineering design process. By the end of the week your team will have a clear structure and a first engineering plan for the season.
- 4
- Lessons
- 6 team hours
- Estimated time
- 5
- Learning objectives
Spot the hazard
A team workshop before a practice session. Five things here could hurt someone or damage the robot — find them all in 60 seconds.
- 01Rotate the view with the mouse or a finger and look around the workshop.
- 02Click on anything that looks dangerous.
- 03Each wrong click costs 3 seconds, so think before you click.
Lessons155 min
- 01What Is FIRST Tech Challenge?Get the big picture of FTC: what teams do during a season, how a match is played, and how events, alliances and awards work. 35 min
- 02Team Organization and Engineering RolesLearn how successful FTC teams divide the work into sub-teams and roles, and how to communicate and make decisions together. 40 min
- 03Safety and Gracious ProfessionalismLearn the safety habits every FTC workshop needs and the FIRST values of Gracious Professionalism and Coopertition. 35 min
- 04The Engineering Design Process and Getting StartedLearn the engineering design process that FTC teams use to solve problems, and plan your team's first practical steps. 45 min
Team structure and initial engineering plan
Work together to define how your team is organised and what it will do first. Create a team structure chart showing sub-teams, leads and drive team candidates, write a short team safety and Gracious Professionalism agreement, and produce a first engineering plan that uses the design process to set goals for the next four weeks.
Tick items off as your team completes them.
0/4Learning objectives
- Describe what FIRST Tech Challenge is and how a season is structured.
- Explain how matches, alliances, rankings and awards work in general terms.
- Organise a team into sub-teams and roles with clear responsibilities.
- Apply basic workshop and robot safety rules and the values of Gracious Professionalism.
- Use the engineering design process to plan the team's first steps.
Required materials
- Notebook or shared online document for the engineering notebook
- Whiteboard or large sheets of paper and markers
- Safety glasses for every team member
- Access to the current official Competition Manual from FIRST
- Computer with internet access for research
Expected outcomes
- Students can explain FTC to a new member or parent in two minutes.
- The team has agreed roles, sub-teams and a meeting routine.
- Every member knows the workshop safety rules and the battery safety basics.
- Students can describe the steps of the engineering design process and use a decision matrix.
- The team has a written engineering plan for the first weeks of the season.
Knowledge check
15 questions across this week's lessons. Your best score for each lesson is saved.
- What Is FIRST Tech Challenge?–/4
- Team Organization and Engineering Roles–/3
- Safety and Gracious Professionalism–/4
- The Engineering Design Process and Getting Started–/4
Completion checklist
Tick items off as your team completes them.
0/7