(Courtesy of AMIT) Four robotics teams from AMIT schools have advanced to the national round of the FIRST LEGO League competition after excelling at the regional stage.

Kipa Bots, the team from the AMIT Mr. & Mrs. Lester Sutker Art and Sciences Jr. and Sr. High School for Boys in Modi’in, won first place at the regional contest and advanced to the nationals for the sixth year in a row.

They are joined by the Tigers (9th grade) and the Panthers (7th and 8th grades), two teams from AMIT Midreshet Art and Sciences Jr. and Sr. High School for Girls in Modi’in, and the team from AMIT Gwen Straus Jr. and Sr. Science High School for Boys in Ra’anana.

The theme of this year’s competition is “Into Orbit,” which asks students to “explore, challenge and innovate in the vast expanse of space.” The participants must choose and solve a real-world problem and also build, test and program an autonomous robot.

The Modi’in boys’ team created a vibrating sock that helps regulate the flow of fluids in an astronaut’s body and strengthen bone density, which is weakened in space. They based their project on research and on information they learned while meeting with Israeli astronaut Yitzhak Mayo, who trained with Israel’s first astronaut, Ilan Ramon, at NASA.

The Tigers team developed a time-saving solution for dealing with the lack of gravity in space, while the Panthers invented a sophisticated shower to be used in space. The Gwen Straus robotics students’ project relates to the feasibility of using phytoplankton for oxygen production in space.

All four teams impressed the judges with their initiatives and their teamwork, earning them spots at the national competition. They will be competing against nearly 100 other teams from across Israel.

AMIT is leading an educational revolution in Israel with cutting-edge, Jewish values-based education. In 2018 the AMIT network was named the number one educational network in Israel by the Ministry of Education. Learn more at www.amitchildren.org