SGC Season 4 Registration (Middle School)

SKU: 990-Global042

At Sphero, our mission is to inspire the creators of tomorrow, and we couldn't do it without you. The Sphero Global Challenge for middle school learners (ages 11–14; students must be born after June 1, 2009, meaning they will be 14 or younger when the SWC is held in Spring 2024) will challenge your learners to become master programmers, stealthy problem solvers, and top-notch teammates. With Mission Objectives designed for student agents of all ability levels, we believe that all learners will grow and have a blast on this undercover adventure.

The Sphero Global Challenge provides an opportunity for students to compete with their fellow agents around the world, with the top teams invited to participate in our Sphero World Championships in Spring 2024, where they can put their skills to the ultimate test.

With your registration, you will choose one of the two top-secret Events to compete in:

  • Spies Like BOLT: Mission - Calling all spies! Assemble your team, grab your covert gadgets, and rendezvous at BOLT HQ for season four of the Sphero Global Challenge. The BOLT Event will challenge undercover agents of all ability levels to work together to crack five intriguing and innovative Mission Objectives.
    Learn more >
  • RVR+ Spies on the Move: Mission - A spy's most prized accomplice is their trusty spy vehicle. RVR+ is geared up for action! Outfitted with a powerful drive train and an array of sensors, RVR+ is prepared for season four of the Sphero Global Challenge. The RVR+ Event will test spies and detectives of all ability levels as they collaborate to navigate RVR+ through five Mission Objectives, using diverse programming skills to solve the enigmatic case!
    Learn more >

New for 2023/2024: This season, we're thrilled to introduce Sphero Blueprint into the action-packed Sphero Global Challenge! To take your team's Challenge experience to the next level, you'll need to gear up with a Sphero Global Challenge Season 4 Blueprint Kit alongside the required robot(s) for your chosen Event. Get ready to unlock a whole new world of creative problem solving and engineering prowess!

BOLT and/or RVR/RVR+ robots and the Sphero Global Challenge Season 4 Blueprint Kit needed to complete the Events are sold separatelySee all required materials below.

Have questions? Check out our SGC FAQs or reach out to competitions@sphero.com!

Read more

What's Included

  • Coaching Guide
  • Mission Objectives for RVR+ and BOLT
  • Competition Rules and Evaluation Rubric
  • Meeting Agendas
  • Submission Slideshow Templates
  • Coaching support from the Sphero team

Important Dates

  • August 14, 2023 - Sphero Global Challenge Season officially begins! This is a good date to aim to have your team members decided and meetings scheduled
  • September 2023 - New Coaches Webinar
  • January 2024 - Office Hours Webinar for coaches
  • February 1, 2024 - Registration Deadline
  • February 14, 2024 - Virtual Submissions Due
  • Spring 2024 - Sphero World Championship for finalists (virtual)

What You'll Need to Compete (per group)

Spies Like BOLT 

RVR+ Spies on the Move

  • 1 Sphero RVR+ or RVR robot (sold separately) 
  • 1 Sphero Global Challenge Season 4 Blueprint Kit (sold separately, shipping early August)
  • 2 programming devices with access to the Sphero Edu app installed 
  • 10’ x 10’ hard & flat surface for the provided Competition Field
  • Video recording device (such as a smartphone)
Price:
$75
Sphero BOLT coding robot event.

Spies Like BOLT

Calling all spies! Assemble your team, grab your covert gadgets, and rendezvous at BOLT HQ for season four of the Sphero Global Challenge. The BOLT Event will challenge undercover agents of all ability levels to work together to crack five intriguing and innovative Mission Objectives.

What You’ll Need:

RVR+ Spies on the Move

RVR+ Spies on the Move

A spy's most prized accomplice is their trusty spy vehicle. RVR+ is geared up for action! Outfitted with a powerful drive train and an array of sensors, RVR+ is prepared for season four of the Sphero Global Challenge. The RVR+ Event will test spies and detectives of all ability levels as they collaborate to navigate RVR+ through five Mission Objectives, using diverse programming skills to solve the enigmatic case!

What You’ll Need:

WHAT COACHES GET:

Upon registration, we’ll email you everything you need to participate in the Sphero Global Challenge Season 4, including:

  • Coaching Guide
  • Mission Objectives for RVR+ and BOLT
  • Competition Rules and Evaluation Rubric
  • Team Meeting Agendas
  • Submission Slideshow Templates
  • Coaching support from the Sphero team
Kids coding in Sphero Robotics and STEM competition.

Assemble Your Espionage Network

Starting a team of spies is easier than you think! Coaches do not need to be programmers, or even educators, to support students through the Sphero Global Challenge. Instead, act as a facilitator as students work to explore, solve problems, and unleash their creativity.

The Coaching Guides will give you the tools and structure to guide your students through each event. The Sphero Global Challenge is perfect for after school programs, STEM/STEAM Clubs, school-day science blocks, or even for students to work on at home.

Structuring Your Team

Teams can consist of 1–5 students. After purchasing the registration, you will receive an email with a link to fill out a form to finalize your team’s registration. For larger groups of students (i.e. robotics clubs), we recommend forming multiple teams. In this case, you will need to purchase a registration for each team and finalize the registration for each team separately. Coaches are welcome to lead as many teams as they'd like.

Team Roles

Coaches can encourage collaboration, communication, and team building by giving students team roles to help fulfill all of the elements of the mission objectives.
Laptop with code on the screen.
A wrench and gear.
Icon of a bug.
Camera and pencil.
List with check boxes.

2023/2024 SEASON 4: THREE UNIQUE STEM EVENTS

The competition, and its three unique events, are an opportunity for students to go deeper with computational thinking, engineering, and programming skills in our various STEM and coding competitions.

Teams and individuals of all abilities will work to identify problems and develop solutions, then submit entries virtually for a chance to qualify for the Sphero World Championship in Spring 2024.

Undercover indi

Sphero indi global challenge.

SKILLS

Students will explore computational thinking skills by designing a route for indi, constructing a secret message, and disguising indi to demonstrate their understanding.

  • Problem Solving
  • Algorithmic Thinking
  • Basic Coding Concepts
  • Pattern Recognition

WHAT YOU'LL NEED

Spies Like BOLT

Sphero indi global challenge.

SKILLS

Students will use BOLT robots and Blueprint to recreate spy missions for mission objectives—all while learning different programming skills including:

  • Loops
  • Conditionals
  • Variables
  • Functions

WHAT YOU'LL NEED

RVR+ Spies on the Move

Sphero indi global challenge.

SKILLS

Students will turn RVR+ into a spy vehicle. Combined with Blueprint, students will use their sidekick spy vehicle to complete mission objectives and demonstrate their programming skills including:

  • Loops
  • Conditionals
  • Variables
  • Functions

WHAT YOU'LL NEED

  • 1 Sphero RVR+ or RVR robot (sold separately)
  • 1 Sphero Global Challenge Season 4 Blueprint Kit (sold separately, shipping early August)
  • 2 programming devices with access to the Sphero Edu app installed
  • 10’ x 10’ hard & flat surface for the provided Competition Field
  • Video recording device (such as a smartphone)
Sphero indi global challenge.
Sphero indi global challenge.
Sphero indi global challenge.

SKILLS

  • Students will explore computational thinking skills by designing a route for indi, constructing a secret message, and disguising indi to demonstrate their understanding of:

    • Problem Solving
    • Algorithmic Thinking
    • Basic Coding Concepts
    • Pattern Recognition
  • Students will use BOLT robots and Blueprint to recreate spy missions for mission objectives—all while learning different programming skills including:

    • Loops
    • Conditionals
    • Variables
    • Functions
  • Students will turn RVR+ into a spy vehicle. Combined with Blueprint, students will use their sidekick spy vehicle to complete mission objectives and demonstrate their programming skills including:

    • Loops
    • Conditionals
    • Variables
    • Functions

WHAT YOU'LL NEED