Tomlin FIRST LEGO League team to compete in West Florida championship

A Tomlin student said the school’s FIRST LEGO League team qualified at a regional qualifier and will compete in the West Florida championship this Saturday for a chance to advance to Worlds.

The team, in its first year at Tomlin, competed earlier this season in a regional qualifier and earned a spot at the West Florida championship, the student said. "We build LEGO robots," the student said. "They're coding them to make them do different things."

FIRST LEGO League matches include hands‑on robot challenges and an innovation project tied to an annual theme. "This year's theme with the FIRST LEGO League is submerged," the student said, describing an underwater focus. The student said the Tomlin team has been working on "trying to find a self sustaining fishery kind of thing," adding that much of the work is student‑led: "It's a lot of trial and error. It's a lot of kids doing it out. They are figuring out problems. That is the biggest thing."

The student described the competition work as primarily coding and hands‑on construction: "We're building robots. We've got Legos here, there, everywhere, under the table, on the table, outside the door, in the door. And we're on our computers, we're making things happen. It's a lot of fun."

According to the speaker, the Tomlin entry will participate in the West Florida championship this weekend; the student said the team hopes to qualify again to go to Worlds. No dates, coach names, or additional logistical details were provided during the remarks. The outcome of the championship will determine whether the team advances to the world competition.