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By: The Coding Collider Girls 6576G

Hello I’m Piper. When I hear the phrase “Girl Power” the first thing that comes to my mind is that girls can be small or tall but can be mighty. No matter what, girls can do anything they put their mind to and nothing can stop them. No matter what gender you may be, you can play whatever sport you want and be great at it. My sister was in robotics and she was the only girl on the team and was a coder. She had to do a lot of work, studying and practicing, but nothing stopped her. How this reflects on our team’s approach in robotics is that girl can wear fancy clothes, but can still do everything that the boys can do. Me, Afra, Emily, Sophie, and Katie did not let any boy get in our way.

I am the only one in regular math and the other 4 girls are in Elite math. I joined robotics because my sister was in robotics and she inspired me to do so. The benefit of having a diverse team is that we can learn different cultures and robotics strategies from other countries.

Someone who inspires me is my sister, Mia. One of the biggest reasons is that she always challenges herself to do new and exciting things and does not let anything stand in her way. When she first joined robotics she was the only girl on the team and she set her sights on being one of the coders. It was not an easy task but she studied hard, practiced and put her mind to it and succeeded. That is something that I admire and look up to.

Hi, my name is Afra.

When I hear the word “girl power”, the thing that comes to my mind is that girls are just the same as boys and girls can sometimes be MUCH better. And also girls might seem girly, weak, and dumb, but AREN’T! Also some people say that blue is a boy color and pink is a girl color. And even in the dictionary girl power means “used in reference to an attitude of independence, confidence, and empowerment among young women.” This is reflected in our team’s approach to robotics because us girls, include everyone and we don't discriminate anyone.

Our group creates a very inclusive environment to EVERYONE. Our team includes everyone no matter what we look or think like. We let everyone say what they think and do what we want. And because of these reasons, our team is inclusive to everyone.

We have 5 awesome people on our team; Me (Afra), Katie, Sophie, Piper, and Emily. So, starting with me, I am a driver, coder, a STEM researcher, and also a designer. Sophie is a coder and also driver. And Emily is a driver, coder, a STEM researcher, and a designer. Piper is a driver and Katie is a coder and also a driver. What I learned in this experience is that SCIENCE IS NOT AS HARD AS I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE WITH ROBOTS! Also I got better at coding A LOT, learned how to drive a robot, and also I learned how to MAKE a robot which was very fun doing with my friends. I believe that diversity of perspective helps us with our robot design and team’s chemistry. Everyone in the team had different ideas from different angles that helped us to be very creative in solving our problems.

My STEM model is Christina Hammock. I picked her because she made it to NASA by earning two bachelor degrees and a master degree in science. She also graduated from the NASA Academy. She is a dedicated scientist.

Robotics is SUPER fun, I get to learn code, drive, make robots, and enjoy my time with my friends!

Hi, my name is Katie. Let me tell you about me! Likes: Robotics, Dogs, Food, Math, Hair Clips, Reading, The color blue Dislikes: Nothing! I am a very happy person! ♡

I first joined robotics in 2019. I was looking for a good after school club to be in. I found out about robotics and thought it would be a good place to make friends and do competitions. I found a lot of awesome friends and now we work together to be the best we can. Why I joined robotics: I thought that in robotics, I could make friends that have the same interests that I do. I also wanted something where I could travel to lots of places! I love coding, so that is another reason I wanted to do it. Now, I am in the amazing robotics team you know today!

When I hear the phrase, “girl power”, the thing that comes to my mind is that, well, basically girls and boys should have the same rights and not be criticized for doing “boy” activities.

A girl who enjoys rough, noisy activities traditionally associated with boys. Now, many boy activities include getting dirty, going hiking, camping, and yes, robotics. But, this does not mean that girls can’t do robotics. So, this is what comes to my mind when I hear the phrase, “girl power”.

Our group creates a very inclusive environment for all students. I think all students, including the ones who may seem a little weird or maybe come from a different place as well. We all have different sexualities and preferences. But, our group lets everyone join in and fulfill their preferences. We never judge each other on our looks, thoughts, and ideas. We let everyone have their own ideas and let them fulfill them. What I am trying to say is, together, we made a friendly, inclusive environment.

To make a good team, we each had to find out what we individually were good at. We each tried all of the options that were available. When I first joined the team, I tried driving. I was not very good at it, but the rest of my team was. I settled on coding for the first few weeks of being in the club. Then one day, I practiced driving and became one of the best drivers on the team. So know, I am known as a coder and a driver.

Everyone has their own ideas based on their belief, personality, and knowledge. It is very important that our ideas stick out from the others. If our ideas stick out, then our robot design will as well. Our team is quite diverse, so our ideas are always very good ideas. Our robots may look quite similar, but there are tiny differences that make them our own. We put thought and effort into our ideas, so our robot is always very good. The Coding Collider Girls robot is very, well, I would say unique. Especially the name (Kevin Pickle). So, our diverse ideas created the diverse robot that everyone knows today. Our diverse ideas create more space for great robots. Our diversity can actually pull us together. Sometimes, I think that this team was meant to be. I love it! Plus, when we have diverse ideas and an unstoppable friendship, our ability to succeed is high! ♡

My STEM role model: Katherine G. Johnson Ever since Katherine was a child, she was always very creative and brilliant. She even skipped several grades when she was in school. By thirteen, she was already attending high school! She was the third African American to earn a PhD in Mathematics. She graduated with highest honors in 1937 and took a job teaching at a black public school in Virginia.

Hello I’m Emily. What inspired me to be in Robotics is my dad. He is always pushing me to do better and I think this time when he pushed me to be in robotics it was the best idea he's had had ever. I also want to give a shout out to our coach Mr. Royal because he has been there for us all the way♡ (thank you). When girl power comes to my mind, it makes me feel powerful and like nothing can stop me, and I love that feeling!

Some people in my group are very different which can sometimes lead to super small arguments but we always figure something out that make us all happy.

My TSEM role model is Ada Lovelace. She wrote the first computer code and was a very smart mathematician. She reminds me of myself.

I LOVE robotics and I will never stop EVER!

My name is Sophie Favorite color: mint (or lime) When I hear “girl power”, the thing that comes to my mind is that girls were thought as worse than boys when its vise-versa to me. Girls are just as equal as boys and can do all of the activities that are meant for boys. (credit to the computer and google)

Ever since Robotics started, every-one started being friends and hanging out. My STEM role model is Joan of Arc, she was a woman who listened to angels. She believed that she would save her country from a threat. She was killed because she wore men’s clothing, she inspired me to believe that all men and women were created equal and women can do things that are men.

Credit:

Piper Doran Afra Karatas Emily Eichenseer Katie Maloney Sophie Sheahan