4-H teams flex their coding muscles in ‘Game of Drones’

Calvin Kinyon (left), Diamond Alexander and Courtney Dennis of the Vance County Victors show mixed emotions as they watch their drone landing. 4-H teams from across North Carolina competed in the Game of Drones Robotics Competition this spring, sponsored by Cooperative Extension at N.C. A&T. The teens had to use their STEM skills in aerial and land-based drone coding to prepare for a quiz bowl.

4-H teaches youth to be leaders, but few 4-H members earn the distinction of “Ruler of Earth and Sky.”

Two teams of 4-H youth—one comprised of middle school students and one of high schoolers—won that distinction at an April 29 competition called Game of Drones, offered by the 4-H STEM program with Cooperative Extension at N.C. A&T in collaboration with STEMerald City LLC, a Fayetteville-based organization that provides STEM tutoring and hands-on learning.

While the teams will not ascend to the highest levels of power and sit on the Iron Throne–as in massively popular TV series Game of Thrones–they had the chance to show off their skills in coding and piloting drones after months of preparation that included learning coding and drone piloting techniques.

“It is vital that we provide opportunities for students that lack access to technology to participate and gain skills and exposure to concepts that will better prepare them for the future workforce,” said Misty Blue-Terry, Ph.D., 4-H STEM specialist for Extension at A&T. “Coding will be one of the most sought after skills as it cuts across so many different industries. This is a fun way to learn coding and see the immediate results of your work.”

Three middle school and three high school teams competed in the event, held at the Lindley Recreation Center in Greensboro. The teams and their coaches received all the materials needed to prepare for the competition, including drones and databots, programmable sensors that can be used with drones. On the day of the competition, they received instructions and participated in real-time coding. The teams wrote original code to solve challenges by flying and maneuvering their drones. The teams also participated in a quiz bowl, where they answered questions related to computer coding, technology, drones and agricultural science.

First place bragging rights went to a team of middle schoolers from Randolph County and a high school team from Forsyth County. Terry hopes to continue Game of Drones competitions every year, with an emphasis on reaching youth in minority communities and underserved North Carolina counties.

“We went in with the mindset that we were going to make our best effort and learn something new,” said Angie Cook, a 4-H volunteer in Forsyth County who coached the winning high school team, which included her 15-year-old son Ben. “What I was most proud of was their flexibility. When the drones didn’t fly the expected course, naturally that was frustrating, but they stayed with it and figured it out.”

The program helps youth develop their creativity, their teamwork and leadership skills and make new friends, but its primary purpose is to introduce them to coding and its many uses, according to Terry.

“It is essential that we continue to introduce ways to develop computational thinking and coding skills in young people,” she said. “Drones are an engaging way to introduce coding, precision agriculture and so much more. This program has the potential to increase minority participation in coding programs beyond robotics.”

Courtney Dennis of the Vance County Victors does a celebration dance in acknowledgement of a clean landing. 4-H teams from across North Carolina compete in the Game of Drones Robotics Competition, sponsored by Cooperative Extension at N.C. A&T.

Allison Walker, 4-H agent in Randolph County who coached the winning middle school team, said her team members already are planning to compete next year and once again win the title of Rulers of Earth and Sky.

“It opened them up to different career opportunities they might not have thought about before,” said Walker. “They saw that agriculture is more than the traditional image of cows and plows, and that technology is how we are going to feed the world in the future.”

Ben Cook said the program didn’t necessarily help him decide on a career, but added that he is interested in science, and anything that exposes him to science and the tools used by scientists is helpful and interesting.

“We didn’t expect to win. The hard work paid off,” he said.

All winners received a certificate, declaring them Rulers of Earth and Sky, and light-up medallions, designed and created by a student volunteer, Miriam Price from STEMerald City. Although the culmination of the program was the Game of Drones competition, all teams spent months preparing, taking part in Zoom and in-person training sessions led by Jeffries Epps of STEMerald City, and participating in coding activities to prepare for the big event.
Ben Cook had simple advice for future competitors. “Don’t get discouraged,” he said. “Get to know your team and make sure by the end of the competition, they are your friends. That way, if you don’t win at least you’ve made some friends.”