Odyssey of the Mind is an international creative problem-solving program that allows students’ knowledge and ideas to come to life. Students learn to identify a problem, brainstorm solutions, evaluate ideas, select the best one, and then develop it. The process encourages creative, critical, and innovative thinking in a safe environment. Visit the Odyssey of the Mind website to learn more.
Who Should Participate?
All children can benefit
from learning creative problem-solving techniques. Each team is allowed
up to seven members and adult coach(es). Teams are organized by grade
levels K-2 and 3-6.
Program Details
There are two components to the program – a long-term problem and a spontaneous problem. The topic for long-term problems varies from technical to artistic to classical subjects. It requires teams to prepare their solutions over several weeks or months. The topic for the spontaneous problem is given at the competition site. List of 2020 problems.
When and Where?
Team Meetings are typically held
once a week or twice per week for about 60-90 minutes and start in
October. They are usually held at a parent volunteer’s house on a
day/time that is agreed upon by all team members. The schedule may be
adjusted depending upon the team’s progress in preparation for the
competition.
The regional competition is usually held on a Saturday in early March. Exact date/time shall be communicated when it’s confirmed.
Costs
The program relies on parent volunteers to
coach the participating students. This limits the cost of participation
to the cost of materials used for building the team solution (usually
ranges within a $25-$50 per student to be collected by the coaches).
Training and ongoing support for coaches is provided by the local
chapter coordinators via in-person sessions, online resources, weekly
tips and emails.
Registration is now closed.
Email with any questions.
