Teams representing the High School, Middle School and Otisville Elementary School are representing Minisink Valley at the March 1 New York State Odyssey of the Mind Region 5 competition at Orange-Ulster BOCES in Goshen.
Odyssey of the Mind is an international educational program that provides creative problem-solving opportunities for students from kindergarten through college. The Odyssey of the Mind program encourages divergent thinking as teams use creativity and teamwork to solve unique problems emphasizing teamwork, budgeting, time management, public speaking and other important life skills.
High School
The High School is presenting a creative performance addressing Problem 5/Performance: “AstronOMical Odyssey!”
Many civilizations have used stories, myths, and legends to explain the stars in the sky and their patterns. In this problem, the team has created a humorous performance set in a team-created “historical” civilization that presents constellations and original stories explaining each one. The performance will also include a humorous astronomer character with a “stellar” costume, a lighting effect and a shooting star.
Team members are Lorine Avril, Natalie Cunningham, Samiyah McKenzie, Anaiyah Quammie, Caden Solomita, Eurely Rosario Rodriguez and Sunshine Vance with Coach Jennifer DiLeo.
Middle School
The Middle School team is tackling Problem 1/Vehicle: “The OM-Mazing Race.”
In this problem, the team has designed, built and operated an all-terrain vehicle that transports riders on a race for a prize. The performance will include a race to three original, team-created destinations and each leg of the race will include an obstacle that the rider and vehicle must overcome The performance will include a host who narrates the action and it will conclude with the realization that the prize for finishing the race was not as exciting as the odyssey they took along the way.
Team members are Liam Deoragh, Christian Hines, Jacob Johns, Ashton Gibbs and Victoria Papp, with coaches Venicia Salguero and Corinne Yanis.
Otisville Elementary
Otisville is also putting together a performance for Problem 5/Performance: “AstronOMical Odyssey!”
Team members are Emma Thompson, Quinn Lattimer, Natalia Sierra, Harper Walsh, Peter Caputo, Ethan Wood and Tristen Lapertosa with Coach Jenna Colman.
Teams of up to seven students compete in five different problems which encompass vehicle, technical, classics, structure and theatrical. Each team receives its problem in early October and then proceeds to build, tape, glue, paint and "test run" props and mechanisms to prepare the best solution to the challenge. The tasks include a skit or performance that is an original creation.
Outside construction assistance from parents or adults is prohibited, and a spending limit is imposed on teams. In addition to the assigned problem, Odyssey of the Mind competitors also have the opportunity to "flex" their intellectual skills by solving a spontaneous problem which involves quick and logical thinking.
Teams do not have any prior knowledge about the spontaneous question and must present a creative solution on the spot. Students from K-12 participate in the regional tournament according to their team's division, which is delineated by age/grade level.
Team members apply their creativity to solve problems that range from building mechanical devices to presenting their own interpretation of literary classics. They then bring their solutions to competition on the local, state, and world level. Thousands of teams from throughout the U.S. and from about 25 other countries participate in the program.
Those who qualify will compete in the New York State competition at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse in April. World finals will be held at Michigan State University in May.