Fourteen student teams from schools in Rensselaer, Columbia and Greene counties advanced to the state Odyssey of the Mind tournament in Binghamton on March 26. They were selected from 72 teams competing in the Region Four Odyssey of the Mind Tournament coordinated by Questar III in the Rensselaer City School District on March 12.
Troy High School students, competing for the first time, won first place in two of the contests. Teams from Averill Park, Brunswick, Catskill, Coxsackie-Athens, Ichabod Crane, Wynantskill and St. Mary’s of Hoosick Falls also finished in first place.
Since 1978, Odyssey of the Mind has been an international educational program where students apply their imagination and ingenuity to solve problems that range from building mechanical devices to presenting their own interpretation of literary classics.
The winners by contest and age group (Division I, Grades 3-5; Division II, Grades 6-8, Division III, Grades 9-12) are as follows:
Problem 1: Extreme Mousemobiles
This problem requires teams to design, build, and run vehicles that use mousetraps as their only source of energy.
- West Sand Lake Elementary School – Division I
- Troy High School – Division III
Problem 2: As Good as Gold…berg
Teams will present an uncomplicated existing item that is used in a simple and effective way to complete a real life task.
- Tamarac Elementary School – Division I
- St. Mary’s Academy of Hoosick Falls – Division II
- Catskill High School – Division III
Problem 3: Le Tour Guide
Teams will create and present an original performance where a classical character acts as a Tour Guide.
- Martin Van Buren Elementary School – Division I
- Coxsackie-Athens Middle School – Division II
- Troy High School – Division III
- Averill Park High School Team A – Division III
Problem 4: Unhinged Structure
The problem is to design and build a solution using only balsa wood and glue that folds into the team’s structure without coming apart.
- West Sand Lake Elementary School – Division I
- Algonquin Middle School – Division II
Problem 5: Full Circle
The problem is to create and present a humorous performance where something changes form or appearance at least three times and eventually undergoes a final change where it returns to its original form and appearance.
- Gardner-Dickinson Elementary School – Division I
- Gardner-Dickinson Elementary School – Division II
- Ichabod Crane High School – Division III
Teams winning in Binghamton will move on to the World Competition at the University of Maryland May 27-30.
