About

At FalconCamps, middle and high school students learn about mechanical design and/or programming in the context of competitive robotics. Camp sessions help students develop valuable skills for joining an FRC team or pursuing a future in a STEM field.

FalconCamps sessions are one-week long and consist of daily two-hour classes. With the guidance of experienced members of Team 4099, campers work cooperatively to design and/or program a robot to complete certain tasks, as they would for a FIRST Robotics Competition. Each camp session culminates in a final project where students show off what they have learned.

This year, Team 4099 is hosting two weeks of FalconCamps (one beginner and one intermediate). Design sessions are held in the morning, and programming sessions are held in the afternoon. Read further to learn more about the material being taught in each of the sessions.

Design

Beginner

This session covers the basics of Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and mechanical design thinking. We take a look at the thought process behind robot mechanisms and some complex robot CAD. This all leads up into the final project — creating your own full mechanism!

More Details

  • Monday: What is CAD? We go over the basics of mechanical design thinking and some examples in CAD, as well as real-world scenarios in which CAD has a role.
  • Tuesday: Getting comfy with CAD! You'll learn about some of the basic tools and get some hands-on experience in making some basic models.
  • Wednesday: We look at more complex features of CAD and talk about more shortcuts in the design process!
  • Thursday: Start your projects! Groups are given a real-world problem and will come up with a solution using CAD and mechanical design skills they've learned over the week.
  • Friday: Groups will finish up their projects and show the great ideas they've come up with!

Intermediate

This course covers the optimal usage and mathematical analysis of FRC hardware. In addition, we take a deeper dive into the more complex features of Onshape and FRC-specific tips and tricks. The final project is to fully CAD a robot subsystem from scratch!

More Details

  • Monday: Introducing Mechanical Design Thinking! We go over some circuitry and physics basics, as well as the hardware used when we're building a robot. We also get started on working with CAD and get familiar with some of the tools on there.
  • Tuesday: We look at some of the things you need to factor in when designing your robot.
  • Wednesday: Hands-on experience of designing different parts of a robot! We go over some more tools we use in CAD and look at some past robots from great teams.
  • Thursday and Friday: Groups will work on making a full mechanism that fits in with a past robot used in FRC competition!

Programming

Beginner

This course covers core programming concepts, the basics of Python, introduction to object-oriented programming. Campers will finish the course with a basic understanding of how Python works.

More Details

  • Monday: Introducing Python! We will go over the basics, such as getting a sentence to print to your screen and understanding the flow of code.
  • Tuesday: What are booleans? We'll go over the basics of booleans, if and else statements, and finish the day off with loops.
  • Wednesday: We look at the basics of storing data in Python and how we can combine what we learned from yesterday with today.
  • Thursday: Writing code efficiently! We'll learn what and how to use methods and their fundamental purpose in programming.
  • Friday: Introducing Turtle! An interactive way to recap all of what was learned from the week into a singular project.

Intermediate

This course covers more in-depth Python concepts as well as learning more about object-oriented programming and working together on making a project.

More Details

  • Monday: Rewind time! We will recap concepts from Beginner and go over built-in methods for certain data types.
  • Tuesday: What are objects? We'll introduce a fundamental concept in programming and its use.
  • Wednesday: Building on yesterday, we'll see how we can make our own classes that could later be used to make objects.
  • Thursday & Friday: Groups will work on a programming project that uses all of their knowledge from the past two weeks!
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Logistics and General Information

Sessions: Beginner (June 29 – July 3), Intermediate (July 6 – July 10)

Time:

  • Design: 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
  • Programming: 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM

Location: Held daily over Zoom. The link will be sent via email a few days before the session starts.

Registration Fee: $100 / session — please pay via the PayPal link in the registration form. If cost is an issue, email the Scholarship Application Form to camps@team4099.com.

Discount Program: Refer a friend who signs up and receive a $10 refund!

Required Forms: The Online Media and Consent Form should be signed and uploaded during registration.

Refund Policy: Withdrawing two weeks prior gives a full refund. Withdrawing one week prior gives a $60 refund. No further refunds for later withdrawals.

Further questions? Check out our FAQ section or email us at camps@team4099.com.

Prerequisites

Before registering, please review the prerequisites below. If your camper meets the requirements described, they are ready to enroll. Questions? Email camps@team4099.com.

General Prerequisites (all sessions):

  • Stable internet connection
  • Zoom client — download here
  • Slack desktop app — download here

Design - Beginner:

  • A device that can run Onshape (test here)
  • A real mouse as opposed to a trackpad (highly recommended)

Design - Intermediate:

  • Understand Beginner course topics: Navigating Onshape, using material options/tools, creating a mechanism sketch

Programming - Beginner:

  • A computer

Programming - Intermediate:

  • Understand Beginner course topics: Python logic and syntax, methods, how to use Repl.it

FAQ

Q: Who are the camp instructors?

A: The camp instructors consist of adult mentors and student members of Team 4099. All instructors have mastery over the content they are teaching.

Q: What is the difference between RoboCamps and FalconCamps?

A: RoboCamps is focused on teaching robotics concepts to elementary and middle school students using VEX IQ robots in an in-person setting. FalconCamps focuses on technical FRC-related skills like engineering, design, and programming for middle and high school students in a virtual environment.

Q: What will a FalconCamps session look like?

A: Sessions open with an interactive lecture led by a mentor or counselor, where everyone can ask questions. We then break up into small groups where students work on interactive exercises designed to hone the skills taught in the lessons.

Q: Who are FalconCamps meant for?

A: FalconCamps are designed for:
  • Middle and high school students who want to learn mechanical design or programming.
  • Students planning to join a FIRST Robotics Competition team who want a head start.
  • Mentors or students on teams that lack mentorship in programming or CAD.

Q: My child has no experience with robotics, CAD, or programming. Can they still participate?

A: Yes! No previous experience is required for the beginner sessions. However, some experience is required for the intermediate sessions (see prerequisites).

Q: I am interested in attending, but cost is an issue.

A: If tuition is a barrier, please apply for a full scholarship by emailing the scholarship application form to camps@team4099.com.

Q: I am a mentor on an FRC team, but want to learn more. Can I sign up?

A: Sure! We do not have a maximum age for the camps.

Q: What sets these camps apart from online resources?

A: FalconCamps offers a structured, personalized learning environment that works better for many students compared to random videos or forum posts. Additionally, we focus on beginner and intermediate content that is often missing from advanced online FRC resources.