For the fifth year in a row, a team from Averill Park Central School District has advanced to the Odyssey of the Mind world finals.
A team from Algonquin Middle School finished first in the state competition and will now represent the state May 23-26 at Iowa State University.
The team was one of 15 teams from Region Four (Rensselaer, Columbia and Greene counties) that advanced to the state competition from a local event sponsored by Questar III in March.
Below are the results from the competition held at Binghamton University on March 31:
Problem 1: Ooh-Motional Vehicle
Teams designed, built and drove a vehicle that displayed different human emotions for each of the three situations it encountered.
- Division I – Tamarac Elementary School (6th place)
- Division I – Gardner-Dickinson School (7th place)
- Division III – Troy High School (7th place)
Problem 2: Weird Science
Teams created and presented a performance based on scientists uncovering the cause of mysterious events.
- Division I – Tamarac Elementary School (8th place)
- Division II – Hoosic Valley Middle School (7th place)
- Division III – Maple Hill School (9th place)
- Division III – Catskill High School (10th place)
Problem 3: To Be or Not To Be
An original “Hamlet” character realized it was the wrong decision to take the easy way out in a team created dilemma based on Shakespeare’s famous line, “To be or not to be?”
- Division I – Tamarac Elementary School (10th place)
- Division II – St. Mary’s Academy (15th place)
- Division III – Troy High School (13th place)
Problem 4: You Make the Call
Teams built and designed a structure made only of balsa wood and glue that supported as much weight as possible.
- Division I – Green Meadow Elementary School (12th place)
- Division II – Algonquin Middle School (1st place)
Problem 5: Odyssey Angels
Teams performed a skit where they traveled throughout various places and found negative situations they needed to change for the better (one of the angels could not speak and one needed a special power created by the team).
- Division I – Ichabod Crane Elementary School (5th place)
- Division II – Algonquin Middle School (13th place)
- Division III – Lansingburgh High School, Team A (10th place)
Odyssey of the Mind is an international problem solving competition for students in grades K-12. Students are judged on their ability to use creativity and teamwork to solve a pre-selected problem.
Competing against same-age teams in elementary, middle and high school divisions, students presented their solutions in elaborate theatrical skits lasting no longer than eight minutes. Teams were also challenged to respond to a “spontaneous problem” that required them to solve a similar problem on the spot.
Schools from the Questar III region have done well at the state competition in recent years. Over the past 10 years, 16 teams from Rensselaer, Columbia and Greene counties have advanced to the world finals.
For more information, visit old.questar.org/education/general-ed/odymind/index.php.
