Announcement

Registration for the ERMS Robotics Club 2026–27 school year will open on Friday, August 21st 9:00 AM and close promptly at 5:00 PM on Friday, August 28th.

Please read through the information below carefully to learn more about the club's curriculum, schedule, and how this program can benefit your child.

Club Sign Up Link 

Robotics Club Interest Meeting

We will hold an interest meeting on Monday, August 31st for students and parents to learn more about the club, ask questions, and get clarifications.

All Eagle Ridge students and parents who sign up using the link above will receive an invitation with the specific time and location prior to the meeting. The communication will go out on August 29th.

Club Overview

This is an after school club for Eagle Ridge students to explore their interests in STEM. Through this robotics club, students learn to design a robot by applying the engineering design principles, and learn problem solving techniques by working together as a team. Robots are built using hardware (aluminum, wood, polycarbonate, etc.), powered by Android technology, and can be coded using a variety of levels of Java-based programming. Club members receive guidance from mentors who are high school students from Academies of Loudoun (AOL), Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST) and various other high schools in Loudoun County. A selected group of club members (7th and 8th grade) form a travel team to participate in FIRST Tech Challenge robotic competitions. 

FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) Robotics

The club follows the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) Robotics program format. Every year FTC announces a robotics game as the challenge for the students. Students design and build a robot that adheres to the game rules. The season starts from September and runs until February. More details about FTC can be read from the following links

• https://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/ftc 

• What is FIRST Tech Challenge? (Video)

• FIRST is more than Robots (Video)

• Students have fun while learning STEM (Video)

• FTC Robotics Kick Off (Video)

How can I request to join the club?

The club sign up communication will be send via school. Students and parents can expect to receive this communication in the first week of school.

Club Sign Up Link 

The club is run by parent volunteers with support from school PTA and staff. There is a limited capacity and we usually receive more registrations than we can accommodate. Students we cannot accommodate will be added to the waitlist and notified accordingly. There are several other amazing clubs at Eagle Ridge that students can participate. 

What is the club meeting schedule?

• The club meeting is planned on Monday evenings 6:30 to 7:30pm. Only enrolled students can participate in the club. 

• There is no busing for the students.

• Because this is a hands-on, community-driven club, parent participation is vital. A parent or guardian is required to be present during meetings to help supervise student safety and support student focus.

What will students learn from the club?

Students will have opportunities to learn different skills including ideation, strategizing, engineering design, and programming. They work in a group environment collaborating and brainstorming with other students in the club. While students receive guidance from coaches & mentors, this is a platform for students to develop independent learning abilities through a diverse community of peers. Many students form long lasting relationship with their peers through the club. At the end of the year, students who find a deeper passion in robotics often start a community team to expand their skills.

Is there a fee?

There will be a fee collected to cover the costs of running the club. This fee will be waived based on demonstrated financial need. This fee covers the student t-shirt, annual registration fee, annual game sets etc. There may be an additional expenses (travel, food, etc.) for those who are interested in being part of the travel team. 

Club Resources

Click here for Club Resources