Tashua Elementary School Odyssey of the Mind Team Headed To World Finals

The Tashua Elementary School Odyssey of the Mind team finished second in the 3rd to 5th grade division at the 2012 Connecticut Odyssey of the Mind tournament, which took place March 31, 2012 at Bristol Eastern High School.   The team will now represent the State of Connecticut at the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals, a four-day competition held at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa on May 23-26.

The Odyssey of the Mind is an international educational program whose mission is to provide creative problem-solving opportunities for students of all ages. Tasked with solving open-ended problems, students develop creative thinking skills that can be applied to real-life situations.

Team Tashua, consisting of third graders, Lily Klingaman, Emma Marsh, Madeline Marsh, Grady Paulson, Matthew Reilly and Sean Sullivan, were required to choose one of five “long-term” problems as the major focus of their competition.  Opting for, “To Be or Not to Be,” based on famous line from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the team created an original skit where the Hamlet character faces a team-created dilemma that forces him to choose between easy and hard decisions.  Required elements of the skit included: incorporating characters portraying Hamlet’s conscience, a creative scene change, a creative costume change, use of a “trap door,” and two musical numbers – and all of this presented within an 8-minute time limit!

The team is excited to be representing the State of Connecticut at the upcoming World Finals. Modeled after the Olympics, the World Finals includes an opening ceremony celebrating the representatives from approximately 35 states and 15 countries worldwide, and includes competitions and a variety of creative activities for the teams and coaches, many provided by leading scientific and research organizations such as NASA.

Team coaches and parents are busy making arrangements for the 1,200 mile “Odyssey” to Ames. Fund-raising efforts are underway to help defray the nearly $11,000 that will be necessary to fund travel and expenses related to the four day competition. Contributions are welcome and greatly appreciated.  Visit the Team Tashua Facebook page at http://fb.me/HelpSendOurKidsToIowa for details.  You can also send your support through the mail, c/o Matthew Reilly, P.O. Box 110083, Trumbull, CT 06611. Checks should be made payable to “Trumbull Odyssey of the Mind."