SHERBURNE – Students in Sherburne-Earlville’s Talented and Gifted program have a lot to feel good about, not the least of which is their recent success at the world finals of a creative competition.
In a journey that began early in the school year, teams from S-E and many other schools throughout the country have been competing in a extensive problem-solving contest. Odyssey of the Mind is a competition that focuses on creative problem solving. S-E sent nine teams to the regional Odyssey Competition on Feb. 24, and of those nine, six came in first place for their respective division and problem and went on to compete in the state competition. Winners from the state competition went on to compete in the World Finals, with the S-E middle school team coming in first and the high school team placing third for their respective categories and divisions.
“With unwavering passion, unrelenting enthusiasm and undeniable energy, Sherburne-Earlville has preserved and promoted all that Odyssey of the Mind fosters; that is brilliant creative problem solving, extraordinary teamwork, and personified curiosity,” said S-E Talented and Gifted Teacher and Odyssey of the Mind Coordinator Jonathan Sherry.
Odyssey of the mind presents students with a problem, and they work throughout the year to find a solution, which they present at the competitions.
“We first had to choose our teams and audition to get into the program. That was in September, and it was really the preliminary problem,” said high school team member Adrian Enscoe. Both the high school and the middle school teams worked on a problem called “The Large and Small of it.”
“The Large and Small of It is an Odyssey of the Mind technical problem. You must have three different sets that change, and small sets that resemble them. We came up with three large wooden sets, the first one a scene in the woods, the second one a farm that changes using gears and the third a newspaper article that changed using a waterwheel powered by an exercise bike,” explained Haley Muth, a member of the middle school team.
The students presented their problem-solving solution and were scored based on several criteria. “I think that our creativity and technicality in solving our problem helped us to win our extraordinary awards,” said another middle school team member Mary Longman.
After presenting their solutions at the World Finals in late May, both teams said they knew they had done well, but had no idea exactly how well. “We thought we would not receive first place, but we still had a little bit of faith,” said Stephanie Staley of the Middle School.
Both teams agreed that the one of the best parts of the competition is meeting new people. “It is extremely fun to watch other schools, from all over the world, and see how they solve the same problem in different ways,” said middle schooler Geana Giglio.
Other team members enjoyed the competitive aspect. “I think the motivation of doing so well in the competition is moving onto the next level and meeting new people. After each level of competition, the people you meet are that much more genius than the last,” said high school team member Joe Mettler.
Students and teachers agree that Odyssey of the Mind is a wonderful opportunity for young people. “Odyssey of the Mind is important because it challenges people our age to not only solve problems, but create the means by which you solve them. You’re given a randomly vague problem and told to solve this, so you’re truly your own master. It’s the only way to see how resourceful you really are.” said Enscoe.
Students on the S-E middle school team took first place for their problem and division. The team was coached by Rita Longman, and students on the team included Mary Longman, Kayla Osterndorff, Geana Giglio, Stephanie Staley, Haley Muth, Grace Dunshee and Kevin Dunshee.
The high school team placed third for their division. Team members Eric Muth, Joe Mettler, Taylor Morris, Adrian Enscoe, Ellen Fagan and Leigh Schmitt were coached by Heather Pfohl.
“Odyssey of the Mind is a creative problem solving competition. It teaches participants to cooperate to reach new heights and to have fun. My team and I learned to overcome obstacles and to have fun, no matter what the scores are,” said middle schooler Kayla Osterndorff.