Orchard Odyssey of the Mind Team Wins OMER’s Award

Quick thinking, creativity and teamwork are key elements for Odyssey of the Mind.  Five Orchard students recently participated in the Odyssey of the Mind State tournament.  They formed a team in January, bringing their various talents and creative minds to weekly meetings.  Their task was to put together a solution to a Long Term Problem and become a cohesive team capable of responding quickly to Spontaneous Problems. 

Their chosen Long Term Problem incorporated many required elements including; a float that changed appearance three times, two technical parts, a celebration and a maximum time limit of eight minutes.  They began by brainstorming their theme and decided on ‘Explorers in the Jungle’.  Their float started as a canoe, then changed to jungle bushes and finally emerged decorated with streamers and balloons.  Blair, in character as a monkey, joined three explorers, XiXi, Daniel, and Morgan in their travel through the jungle.  They come upon a “weird bug’, played by Caleb.  To their joy, (Eureka! A light bulb goes off on Morgan’s hat) they realize it is a new insect.  They perform a song and dance and celebrate.  All this was put together in two months!

During their meetings they also practiced spontaneous problems where quick thinking and creative ‘out of the box’ answers are rewarded.  These problems could be verbal, nonverbal (pictures, building something) or a combination. 

At the State Tournament the team presented their Long Term Problem and did a Spontaneous Problem.  The team was thrilled to be presented with the OMER’s Award for their division at the award ceremony that evening. This award is given to teams who exhibit exceptional talent, outstanding sportsmanship and/or outstanding teamwork.  The nomination reads, “They were positive and really pulled together as a team – very unique group of kids!!!”

As their coach, I saw how these students grew so much as a team as they negotiated group decisions, strategized for spontaneous problems and have much to be proud of as they worked effectively under pressure.  Individually they challenged themselves by working in a group situation, taking on tasks to complete the problem, and presenting in front of an audience and judges.  Their words describe their experience:
          “Odyssey of the Mind (OM) meant care, share and fun.  You have to work together A LOT!”  said XiXi. 
          “OM was a mixture of creativity, co-operation, teamwork and fun.  I loved it,” continued Daniel. 
          “OM is the best!!! I loved it!!! My favorite part was seeing all the familiar faces!!!” thought Morgan. 
          “I liked OM a lot.  I liked meeting new people and how much team work our team put into it,” said Blair. 
          “OM is very fun. You learn to be creative,”  added Caleb.

            Odyssey of the Mind has a long history at Orchard.  I hope the enthusiasm of these students encourages others to consider participating next year.

For more information: http://vt.odysseyofthemind.org.

Nancy Hellen OM Coach