VEX Robotics — A Parent's Starter Guide

What VEX is

VEX is the world's largest school robotics competition program. Teams build and program a robot to solve a brand-new game challenge each year, then compete in tournaments.

For a 10-year-old, the right entry point is VEX IQ — a snap-together plastic kit with no soldering or wiring, designed for elementary and middle school. Kids program it with drag-and-drop blocks or Python. Because the game changes every year, it stays fresh season after season.

The advancement path

Every level follows the same climb — from a local gym to a global stage. Here's how it actually works.

First, what happens at one tournament

A single VEX IQ event has two scoring formats, and every team does both:

Teamwork Challenge — Two teams are randomly paired as an alliance and cooperate to score as many points as possible in a 60-second match. Because partners are random, cooperation and consistency matter as much as a fast robot.
Robot Skills Challenge — Each team competes solo across two runs: a Driver Skills run (student-controlled) and an Autonomous Coding run (the robot runs a pre-written program with no driver). These build a season-long World Skills ranking.

This is a big reason VEX IQ suits a 10-year-old: it rewards teamwork and coding, not just having the best robot on the day.

How a team moves up

There are two ways to earn an invitation to the next level:

1. Win a qualifying award — at a qualifying tournament, top awards earn a spot at the next level. The headline awards are the Excellence Award (the event's highest honor — the strongest all-around team), the Teamwork Champion Award, the Design Award, and top Robot Skills finishers.
2. Rank high in World Skills Standings — if a championship isn't filled by awards, the remaining spots go to the highest-ranked teams by combined skills score for the region and grade level. Consistent skills scores all season are a reliable back door upward.

If a team qualifies two ways at once, the extra spot rolls down to the next-highest team — so strong regions send many teams onward.

The event ladder

Local & qualifying tournamentsWhere a new team starts — one-day events run by schools and clubs. Some regions also run leagues: several sessions over weeks, with rankings that build over time.
Signature EventsLarger, invitational-style tournaments that draw strong teams from a wide area and offer Worlds spots. Optional, but great experience.
Regional / State ChampionshipThe top qualifying teams in your region compete for the biggest pool of World Championship invitations. California is large and competitive.
VEX Robotics World ChampionshipThe global culminating event — thousands of teams from ~50+ countries. 2027 Worlds: April 27 – May 6, 2027, in St. Louis, Missouri. (Heads up: once invited, teams have only about one week to register and pay, or the spot is released.)

And as she grows, the programs step up

VEX IQ
elem / middle · plastic → V5RC
middle / high · metal → VEX U
college

VEX IQ is the plastic snap-together kit she'd start on. V5RC (middle/high school) moves to metal parts, more powerful motors, and harder coding. VEX U is the collegiate tier. There's also VEX AI for advanced fully-autonomous competition. The skills transfer the whole way up.

The season & timing

One game per year. The season runs roughly May to May and the same game is played all year, so a robot built in the fall keeps improving through spring.

This year's VEX IQ game

"Level Up!" 2026–27

Game revealed

April 30, 2026

Team registration opened

Late July 2026

2027 World Championship

Apr 27 – May 6, 2027

A typical season, month by month

Late Apr – May Game reveal. The new challenge ("Level Up!" for 2026–27) is unveiled at the World Championship. Teams study the rules and start early designs.
May – Aug Form & register. Teams register on the official platform, order the kit, and prototype over the summer. Team registration for 2026–27 opened in late July.
Sep – Nov First tournaments. Local qualifying events and leagues begin. Great time for a first competition — the field is friendly and everyone is still learning.
Dec – Feb Peak competition. The bulk of qualifying tournaments, leagues, and Signature Events happen here. Robots and driving get noticeably better.
Feb – Mar Regional / State Championships. Top qualifying teams compete for World Championship invitations. Skills-standings spots are assigned after results post.
Late Apr – early May World Championship. The season's finale. 2027: April 27 – May 6 in St. Louis — and the next year's game is revealed there, restarting the cycle.

Dates shift slightly each year. Official qualifying criteria are published around June 1 and Signature Event details around November 1. Always confirm current dates on the official VEX/RECF sites before registering.

Your next step in Saratoga

Good news: you're in one of the best VEX regions in the country. Saratoga sits in Santa Clara County / Silicon Valley, which has a dense, competitive VEX IQ circuit — plenty of teams, clubs, and tournaments within a short drive in San Jose, Cupertino, Santa Clara, Sunnyvale, Fremont, and Milpitas.

The main thing to sort out first is a team — through her school, a local robotics club, or a class/camp program. Many programs recruit in late spring/summer for the fall season, so now is good timing.

How to find a team & events near 95070:

Official event finder — browse VEX IQ tournaments and filter by your ZIP to see what's nearby and when registration opens.
RobotEvents.com — the registration platform; searching the Bay Area shows local VEX IQ tournaments (e.g. Magikid / BASIS-hosted events in Fremont and the South Bay).
Her school & local clubs — ask whether there's an existing VEX IQ team, an after-school STEM program, or a nearby club taking new members.

Find VEX IQ events near you →

Also useful: RobotEvents.com VEX IQ listings · a broader NorCal example is Placer Robotics (teams & camps).

Smart questions to ask any team or program:

Is the kit included, or do we buy the VEX IQ kit ourselves?
How often does the team meet, and does that fit our schedule?
How many tournaments do you attend in a season, and roughly where?
What's the coach-to-student ratio, and how much parent help is expected?
Is it beginner-friendly for a first-year 10-year-old?