LAST Friday, Halls of Learning presented Lego Yuh Mind Day at Holy Trinity High School. When TEENage arrived, students were seen bundled at the door of the hall. These students, however, were not a part of the 45 students who were selected for this practical experience.

After TEENage finally pushed through the crowd, an enthusiastic student pushed his head through an opening and echoed the sentiment of most of the other students stuck at the opposite end of the door.

"If I could build a robot, I would build one that I could go into and control. I would do so many things!" he said as a smile transformed his face.

But his face crumbled when we asked if his behaviour, as well as being strong in Mathematics, Science and Information Technology were up to par. Sadly it wasn't.

The 45 lucky students who were chosen, however, knew no sadness as they were "enthusiastic, co-operative and very diligent," according to founder of Halls of Learning, Marvin Hall.

Despite the very late start, the students were interested in what they were doing and were eager to complete all the challenges.

"It wasn't how I had imagined it, though," ninth grader, Shaunya Gayle commented.

Gayle was a member of Team 15, which also consisted of Tajera Davy and Deondre Brown, all ninth-graders. This team was among the top three performers as they advanced to the Curve Turn, the first of the three challenges, after having successfully completed the testing aspect of their robot.

"I expected to build a robot like the ones on television," she laughed. "I'm not disappointed, though, because I have learnt a lot and I got my robot to move."

Interestingly, when the girls were asked what lessons they learnt, both identified a common and powerful one; that of respect.

"Mr Hall told us that we should respect each other," Tajera Davy, another member of Team 15, said. "I've learnt that just because someone makes a mistake, it's not alright to call them an idiot or make fun of them. If you respect people, people will respect you and showing respect to my team members allowed us to do well."

The students of Holy Trinity did not progress as fast as many other schools because of the late start, but they must be commended for the high level of enthusiasm, attention and focus that they exhibited.

They were ecstatic to be given this opportunity and at the end of the day, they beamed with pride as they left with a sense of accomplishment and success.

This Friday, Lego Yuh Mind Day will be held at Wolmer's Trust High SChool for Girls.