General Rules

Students Work in Teams
  1. Team(s) representing the school at the regional competition will consist of:
    • Three 6-8th grade students (must be from same school)
    • A teacher-sponsor
  2. Initially, in the N TX Regional, you may work on the program in team(s) (as defined above) or in larger groups or classes. But, when you come to the competition, you must have a team.
  3. More than one team per school can compete through the preliminary round of the competition. The top 4-6 teams based on scores will advance to the finals and only one team per school is permitted to advance to the finals.
  4. All schools must be registered. Registration fee is $25 per school, regardless of the number of teams.
  5. Teams should recruit their own engineer-mentor. However, if you need help finding an engineer-volunteer, contact the Regional Coordinator.
Building a Future City - Competition Deliverables
  1. Design a city of the future using SimCity software provided by the competition (courtesy of EA).
  2. Build a 3-D scale model of a section of the city.
    • Models must contain a moving part and be built to scale.
    • If a power source is used, it must be self-contained, e.g. no plugs.
    • The model must be within the specified dimensions (see specific rules in the "Team Center."
    • The team will decide what materials to use to build the city. The total cost of all materials used to make the model and including any other materials used in support of the verbal presentation, must not exceed $100 cash or in-kind.
  3. Write an essay on an assigned engineering topic.
  4. Prepare and present a 5-7 minute summary of the city, your design decisions, city amenities and operation.
    • Cost of all materials - presentation and model construction - cannot exceed $100 cash or in-kind.
    • No laptop computers, videos or audio equipment may be used in the presentation.
Other Rules
  1. Deadlines will not be extended. Teams that submit competition items after the specified deadlines may be subject to penalty points.
  2. Any conflicts will be resolved locally. There is no appeal.
  3. Prizes are neither transferable nor exchangeable.
  4. The judges' decisions are final.

For a more complete listing of rules, see "Team Center."