For many of us, the mention of the word “robotics” conjures up a mysterious world of scientific processes, unknowable without extensive training.

We'd be wrong.

Like other technologies, robotics has moved on, becoming accessible to elementary and middle school students.

At Butler Catholic School, for example, a team of sixth, seventh and eighth graders will compete against more than 700 other teams from public and private schools in Western Pennsylvania at a robotics contest Saturday in Pittsburgh.

The students are participating in the 11th First Lego League Challenge sponsored by Carnegie Mellon University.

Using a simplified computer language and everyday mathematics, the children have built and programmed palm-sized robots to accomplish 14 simple “missions” on a tabletop playing field.

These motorized robots-on-wheels travel up and down the tabletop, following instructions the children have given them.

“We usually build the simplest robot and use attachments to complete the missions,” said Jayne Chobot, who teaches robotics at Butler Catholic. This is Chobot's fifth year teaching robotics, mathematics and science at the school.

“I run a summer robotics camp for fifth through eighth graders to fundraise for this event,” Chobot said. “I also want to get the younger kids involved.”

This year's competition, called Body Forward, encourages students to think about biomedical engineering, which is the use of computerized tools to solve medical problems.

“It's fun to program and fun to do the tabletop,” Joel LaRocca, a seventh grader, said.

The tabletop is a flat surface illustrated with pictures of human organs.

Points are scored when a robot successfully completes its mission — using Legos. The team also can win points for programming, robot design, research presentation, teamwork and best overall — the coveted directors' award.

In December 2009, Butler Catholic's team won second place for programming.

“The competition teaches them to work together, to use math and science,” Chobot said. “It really teaches them logical thinking.”

Usually, the team comprises seventh and eighth graders who take robotics class. This year's team also includes a sixth grader, Jack Protivnak.

Although he's too young to attend robotics class, Protivnak was asked to join the team after seventh grader Lena Tirk was unable to attend the competition.

“Jack has attended summer camp for two years, and he really wanted to participate,” Chobot said.

On Saturday, the contest will be broken into three segments, each 2Z\x minutes long, when students show their stuff. Here are some of the tasks they've programmed the robot to do, using Legos:

• Seventh grader Bennett Bonanno's robot must align an arm bone and apply a blue cast.

• Seventh graders Sarah Dodd and Lily Murray's robot must get a syringe to a base and separate white and red “blood cells.”

• Eighth grader Nate Morgus's robot must get a mechanical hand to hold a patent.

• Eighth grader Bryce Bonanno's robot must get a cardiac patch from the starting point to the heart, and install a pacemaker.

• Eighth graders Mallory Truax and Anna Swartwout's robot must signal brain nerves to move a prosthetic hand.

• Seventh-grader Claire Preston's robot must dispense blue and white, but not pink, medicine from a dispenser.

“I'm really glad the girls are involved,” Chobot said. “The first year I didn't have any girls. The second year, I had one girl, and she told her friends.”

In a second part of the contest, the students are asked to research a medical problem, develop a solution and present their findings.

The team researched asthma and created a necklace and wristwatch that double as asthma inhalers.

Win or lose at the competition, each of Chobot's students receives a medal for participating.

They'll start the process over again in February, when they prepare to compete at “May Madness,” a smaller competition usually held at the Sarah Heinz House in Pittsburgh.

“About 20 teams participate there,” Chobot said.

In May 2010, Butler Catholic's team won first place for story-telling using computer animation.