St. Mark’s school team – composed of the 6th and 7th students, Quinn Rudkin, Zaia Ormandy, Violet James and Leo Davey – was invited to represent New Zealand at the International Seperch Challenge in Washington DC in May.
It arrives after overcoming the primary school division at NZ Aquabots Nationals.
Teacher and coach Christy Yonetani said it was an extraordinary opportunity.
“It means the world for us,” said Yonetani.
“Our tamariki appreciate that this is a unique opportunity in life and they are very excited to bring their engineering skills to the global scenario.”
To get to the US, the Dot Bot team needs to raise $ 40,000.
The journey began last year with a free construction day organized by the Ministry of Inspiration, where students from primary schools across the country created and tested their first remote operated vehicles (ROV) built from new and recycled pieces.
Team Dot Bot beat Christchurs Regionalas, winning a place in Auckland finals in December.
Dot Bot is a robot designed to navigate obstacles and underwater challenges.
Yonetani said the Aqua robot is required to perform tasks during the competition.
“Students need to think like engineers, design, test and improve their ROV to perform tasks, simulating real -world marine conservation tasks, such as collecting coral samples and removing invasive species.
“They worked after school and on weekends rebuilding Dot Bot several times to create its best version.”
Seaperch is a underwater robotics challenge, with this year’s theme being the restoration of corals.
Fifty high school teams (11 to 13 years), including those from America, China, Egypt, United Arab Emirates and Brazil, will participate in the competition.
Yonetani said the project was an enriching experience for children and herself.
“They are learning about engineering, physics and environmental conservation.
“Their desire to learn more is surprising, when you give children the chance to challenge yourself, it has been amazing to see their teamwork, resilience and dedication on this Aquabots journey.
“I went back a hundred times by the students.”
Students were also interested in sharing their knowledge with other children who want to get involved in STEM projects.
