Judging and Awards
Questions about Judging? Check out the Judging FAQ or email flljudge@usfirst.org
FLL has redesigned the rubrics and awards!
FLL is known around the globe not only for what we do (the Robot Game and Project), but also how we do it, with Core Values at the heart. We have refined the rubrics to better reflect these three equally important aspects of FLL.
Official tournaments must follow the judging and awards structure determined by FLL. Although the audience mostly sees teams playing the Robot Game at tournaments, teams are also being judged on:
- Core Values
- Project
- Robot Design
Team Profile Sheet
Some regions refer to these as Team Introduction, Team Profile or Team Information Pages; others prefer to use their own form. As each region determines if/how this form will be used (for example they may collect in advance via email or ask you to bring multiple copies to provide directly to the judges), please check with your local event organizer if you have any questions regarding plans for use in your area.
About Judging:
- Teams must participate in all elements of an FLL competition including the Robot Game and all three judged areas in order to be eligible for any FLL Core Award.
- Judges use the rubrics to help them determine which teams will receive awards.
- With the exception of the Robot Performance award, FLL awards are determined by a deliberation process, which is formulated around discussions of team performance in each category.
- If a team does not exhibit Core Values at a tournament, they will be disqualified from winning any awards – including Robot Performance, no matter how well they scored.
- Adults are strictly prohibited from directing team members or interfering with the judging process or robot rounds in any way.
- No team is allowed to win two awards, unless one of the awards is for Robot Performance. Robot Performance is the only category based solely on score.
- While they may attend other events for fun, teams are only eligible to win awards at the first official event of each qualifying level attended during the season.
The FIRST® LEGO® League Global Innovation Award is designed to encourage and assist FLL teams to further develop their innovative solutions to real-world problems. Submissions to the FLL Global Innovation Award can only be made by teams officially registered for the current Challenge season.
Note: The FLL Global Innovation Award is optional and in no way affects the judging outcome of qualifying events or tournaments.
The rollout of the new judging materials for Food Factor would not have been possible without the extraordinary contributions of Skip Gridley, our volunteer Global Judge Advisor, more than 20 Pilot regions, and the thousands of teams, judges and others who have provided input, feedback and guidance over the last two years. Thank you to all for their generous and important contribution to the FLL Community around the globe.
