NRC 2026 — Student Handouts (Print)

SESSION 1

Build & Move

01

Build & Move

Build your robot and write your first program!

Build the drivetrain and arm mechanism
Learn movement and arm blocks in SPIKE Prime
Program a square drive and open/close arms

Port Assignments

Port	Connected To
C	Left drive motor
D	Right drive motor
B	Left arm motor
F	Right arm motor
E	Colour sensor (pointing down)

Key Blocks

Moving

Set drive motors [CD]
Set drive speed [X]%
Move [X] cm
Start dual speed
  L=[X]%  R=[X]%
Stop drive

Arms

Motor [B] speed [X]%
Motor [B] → position [X]
Motor [F] speed [X]%
Motor [F] → position [X]
Stop motor [B]
Stop motor [F]

Always add Wait 0.5s after every arm command before the next step.

Activity 1 — Square Drive

1

Set drive speed to 50%

2

Move forward 30 cm

3

Turn 90°

4

Repeat ×4 — does the square close back at the start?

Adjust the turn angle until the robot returns to where it started.

Activity 2 — Open & Close Arms

1

Broadcast [Open Arm Both] → both arms go to position 0

2

Broadcast [Close Arm Both] → arms close to a gripping position

3

Add Wait 0.5s after every arm command before the next step

Arms move smoothly? No part of the arm is hitting the robot body? ✓

My Team's Values

Setting	My Value
Left arm close position (port B)	_______
Right arm close position (port F)	_______

Your values will be different from the other teams — that's normal! Never share code values between teams.

Session 1 Checklist

Robot built: drive motors on C & D, arm motors on B & F, colour sensor on E

Robot sits flat; wheels spin freely; no loose connections

Square drive works — robot returns close to where it started

[Open Arm Both] opens both arms to position 0

[Close Arm Both] closes arms to a gripping position

I can explain what a broadcast does in my own words

Ask your coach if you didn't tick everything!

SESSION 2

Sensors & Navigation

02

Sensors & Navigation

Make your robot drive straight and follow a line accurately!

Why robots drift — and how to fix it
Gyro Straight: use the hub's built-in compass
Line Follow: use the colour sensor to track a line
Calibrate your sensor values for your specific robot

Why Does the Robot Drift?

Motors are never perfectly identical — the robot veers sideways on long drives. Gyro Straight uses the hub's built-in compass to steer itself back on track.

Reset yaw
Repeat until target distance reached:
    Error      = yaw − target angle
    Correction = (3 × Error) + (10 × change in Error)
    Left motor  = Speed − Correction
    Right motor = Speed + Correction
Stop drive

Parameter	Value	What it does
Kp	3	How hard the robot steers back when off-angle
Kd	10	How smoothly it reacts — damps out zigzag

Always call Reset yaw at the start of every straight segment!

Line Follow

The colour sensor reads the edge of a black line and steers the robot to stay on track.

Error      = calibration value − sensor reading
Correction = (Kp × Error) + (Kd × change in Error)
Left motor  = Speed − Correction
Right motor = Speed + Correction

Position 1 = follow the right edge of the line (most tasks)
Position 2 = follow the left edge of the line (some note routes)

My Team's Calibration Values

Setting	My Value
ReflectedLightIntensity midpoint	_______
Line Follow Kp	_______
Line Follow Kd	_______

Read the sensor on white tile AND black line. Your midpoint = halfway between the two readings. Save it as a variable — never hardcode it.

Activities

1

Drive 100 cm — once without correction, once with Gyro Straight. Which stays straighter?

2

Follow a black line for 50 cm and stop at the next line. Tune Kp until smooth — no zigzag.

3

Combined: Gyro Straight → turn 90° → Follow Line → stop exactly on the line.

Session 2 Checklist

Gyro Straight: robot drives 100 cm without drifting sideways

Reset yaw is called at the start of every straight segment

Calibration value found and saved as a variable (not hardcoded)

Line Follow: robot follows a line for 50 cm and stops at the next line

Kp and Kd tuned — the robot follows the line smoothly without zigzagging

I can explain: Kp too high = zigzag · Kp too low = slow to correct

Ask your coach if you didn't tick everything!

SESSION 3

Mission Tasks & Task 2 — Microphone

03

Mission Tasks

Complete the first 3 mission tasks in sequence!

Program the cables, microphone, and instruments tasks
Chain them using the broadcast system
Complete all three in under 90 seconds

The Broadcast Chain

[Cables]

──▶

[Microphone]

──▶

[Instruments]

──▶

[Notes 1]

Golden rule: test each broadcast task alone before connecting it to the next one.

Steps

✓ 15 pts each (×2)

1

Move back slightly from start to align with the cable area

2

Reset yaw → Gyro Straight to cable 1 position

3

Follow Line → [Open Arm Both] → advance → [Close Arm Both] (pick up cable)

4

Gyro Straight to grey stage area → [Open Arm Both] to release — cable must land upright

5

Repeat for cable 2 from the other side of the mat

6

Broadcast [Microphone]

Run this task 3 times independently before connecting to [Microphone]. Consistent results?

Result	Points
Cable completely in grey area + upright	15 pts each
Partly in grey area OR not upright	5 pts each
Not in grey area at all	0 pts

Time Target

Stage	Target	My Time
Cables alone	≤ 30 sec	_______

Task 2 — Microphone

✓ 20 pts

1

Follow Line to the microphone position on the mat

2

[Open Arm Both] → advance → [Close Arm Both 2] (tighter grip for microphone)

3

Gyro Straight back toward stage → turn → approach the microphone target zone

4

[Open Arm Both] → release — microphone must land upright in target zone

5

Broadcast [Instruments]

Use [Close Arm Both 2] for the microphone — it needs a tighter grip than the cables.

Result	Points
Microphone completely in target zone + upright	20 pts
Partly in zone OR not upright	10 pts
Not in zone at all	0 pts

SESSION 3

Task 3 — Instruments

✓ 15 pts each (×3)

1

Follow Line along the edge to the truck area

2

Push all 3 instruments (guitar, keyboard, congas) into the backstage area

3

Broadcast [Notes 1]

No upright requirement for instruments — just push them completely into backstage!

⚠️ Bonus — 40 FREE Points!

The Clef, Speakers ×2, and Amplifier on the mat score 40 bonus points (10 pts each) — as long as your robot does NOT move or damage them.

Plan every route to pass well clear of all 4 objects!

Time Targets

Task Chain	Target	My Time
Cables alone	≤ 30 sec	_______
Cables + Microphone + Instruments	≤ 90 sec	_______

Session 3 Checklist

[Cables] — both cables delivered upright to the grey area (tested 3× independently)

[Microphone] — microphone delivered upright to its target zone

[Instruments] — all 3 instruments pushed completely into backstage area

Full chain Cables → Microphone → Instruments runs end-to-end without stopping

Full chain timed: _______ sec (target ≤ 90 sec)

I can point to the Clef, Speakers, and Amplifier on the mat

Ask your coach if you didn't tick everything!

SESSION 4

Notes & Mock Competition

04

Notes & Mock Competition

Deliver all 6 notes, run the full mission, then compete!

Program 3 groups of 2 notes each — 120 points total
Integrate the complete mission chain end-to-end
Mock competition: 2 timed runs, best score counts

120 points — nearly half the total score! Notes decide the leaderboard.

Notes Chain

[Notes 1]

──▶

[Notes 2]

──▶

[Notes 3]

How to Pick Up and Deliver a Note

1

Gyro Straight or Follow Line to the note's starting position on the mat

2

[Open Arm Both] → advance slowly toward the note

3

[Close Arm Both 2 / 3 / 4] — notes are smaller than instruments, grip depth matters. Test which version holds best.

4

Navigate to the matching colour zone on the mat

5

[Open Arm Both] to release — check the note lands upright inside the colour zone

Reset yaw before every long straight segment. Test each group of 2 notes independently before chaining to the next group.

Result	Points
Note completely in correct colour zone + upright	20 pts
Partly in zone OR not upright	10 pts
Wrong colour zone or not in zone	0 pts

Complete Broadcast Chain

START

└──▶

[Cables]

30 pts

└──▶

[Microphone]

20 pts

└──▶

[Instruments]

45 pts

└──▶

[Notes 1]

└──▶

[Notes 2]

120 pts total (6 notes × 20 pts)

└──▶

[Notes 3]

└──▶

DONE ✅

+ 40 bonus pts = 255 pts total

Time Budget

Task	Target Time
Cables × 2	30 sec
Microphone	15 sec
Instruments × 3	45 sec
Notes × 6 (3 groups)	25 sec
Buffer	5 sec
Total	≤ 2 minutes

SESSION 4

Full Mission Chain & Competition Day

Mock Competition Rules

1

Each team gets 2 runs — best score counts

2

Each run = exactly 2 minutes, full autonomous

3

Between runs: one fix only — identify the biggest problem, make one change, done

4

After all runs: teams share what worked so everyone can learn

Final Robot Check

Tighten all loose LEGO connections on the robot

Colour sensor height confirmed — still reads lines clearly after any adjustments

Starting position on the mat confirmed and memorised

Full mission program saved on the SPIKE hub

Program backed up on a laptop or tablet

Competition Day Checklist

Final program saved on the SPIKE hub ✓

Program backed up on a device ✓

Robot, hub cable, and all building pieces packed ✓

Starting position on the mat memorised ✓

I can explain what our robot does in 2–3 sentences ✓

My Team's Roles

Who places the robot:

Who presses start:

Who observes and scores:

Scoring Summary

Task	Points	Condition
Cables × 2	15 pts each (5 pts partial)	Upright + completely in grey area · max 30
Microphone	20 pts (10 pts partial)	Upright + completely in target zone
Instruments × 3	15 pts each	Completely in backstage — no upright needed · max 45
Notes × 6	20 pts each (10 pts partial)	Upright + completely in correct colour zone · max 120
Bonus (Clef + Speaker ×2 + Amplifier)	10 pts each	Not moved or damaged · max 40
TOTAL	255