NewsAcademicsScience
Team claims second at Georgia Odyssey, advances to state competition
Mar 11, 2008 10:21 AM
By Tannika King - Faculty
After placing second in Division II at the Georgia Odyssey of the Mind competition on Feb. 23, the team from Darlington’s Middle School will advance to state, which will be held April 19 at Columbus State University.
The six-person team worked on Problem 2 – DinoStories. Team members had to come up with a theory as to what caused the dinosaurs to become extinct and convey this theory in a humorous performance. The team’s presentation had to include a dinosaur, a replica of the same dinosaur, an animal that is not a dinosaur, and a technical simulation of the team’s extinction theory. At least part of the performance had to take place in a setting from the Triassic, Jurassic or Cretaceous periods.
“We made the TV show ‘Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader?’ take place in the Mesozoic Era and changed the name to ‘Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grade Dinosaur?’” explained seventh-grader Remy Jennings, who is participating for the second year in a row. “The audience doesn’t think the contestants are funny anymore, so the ratings are dropping. In order to receive better ratings, the show producer and the host decide to spray laughing gas into the air. The dinosaurs then laugh to death … The host and producer, who are both foxes, survive the extinction by slipping out of the studio after the gas is sprayed. It was a play on words because the showed is aired on FOX and the host is Jeff Foxworthy.”
Teammate Madeline Gaffney, who has been involved in Georgia Odyssey since elementary school, said in thinking about how to address the problem, her team wanted to go the creative route. “We knew almost everyone would choose something common from the Mesozoic Era, so we decided to go with our most random idea … We hoped it would be original, and sure enough, our extinction theory was one of the most creative ideas presented,” she said. “I love competing at Odyssey because everything and everyone there is very unique, creative and a little out of the ordinary. It’s something about the atmosphere that makes me very comfortable and relaxed. It’s just so much fun.”
Other members of Darlington’s Middle School team included Gaffney’s sister Meredith, an eighth-grader, and seventh-graders Blair Holcombe, Shelby Martin and Mary Lyn Stegall. The team was coached by Darlington parent Ellen Gaffney.
To prepare for the state competition next month, team members are using the judges’ comments and scores to spice up their presentation. “We are adding more detail to the set and changing some of the things we didn’t score well on,” Jennings said. “I enjoy Odyssey of the Mind because you make new friends and have lots of fun. Thinking outside of the box is encouraged, and the point is to be different. Even though you are competing against other teams, everyone is supportive and encouraging of everyone one else.”
According the Georgia Odyssey Web site, the competition promotes creative team-based problem-solving for students in kindergarten through college. Teams are given their long-term problem months before the competition. Participants build their own sets, make their own costumes and write their own scripts. They are judged on their long-term problem-solving abilities and style (the look of their set and costumes), as well as their ability to solve a spontaneous problem, one that they are given the day of the competition.
For more information on Georgia Odyssey of the Mind, please visit www.georgiaodyssey.org.
The six-person team worked on Problem 2 – DinoStories. Team members had to come up with a theory as to what caused the dinosaurs to become extinct and convey this theory in a humorous performance. The team’s presentation had to include a dinosaur, a replica of the same dinosaur, an animal that is not a dinosaur, and a technical simulation of the team’s extinction theory. At least part of the performance had to take place in a setting from the Triassic, Jurassic or Cretaceous periods.
“We made the TV show ‘Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader?’ take place in the Mesozoic Era and changed the name to ‘Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grade Dinosaur?’” explained seventh-grader Remy Jennings, who is participating for the second year in a row. “The audience doesn’t think the contestants are funny anymore, so the ratings are dropping. In order to receive better ratings, the show producer and the host decide to spray laughing gas into the air. The dinosaurs then laugh to death … The host and producer, who are both foxes, survive the extinction by slipping out of the studio after the gas is sprayed. It was a play on words because the showed is aired on FOX and the host is Jeff Foxworthy.”
Teammate Madeline Gaffney, who has been involved in Georgia Odyssey since elementary school, said in thinking about how to address the problem, her team wanted to go the creative route. “We knew almost everyone would choose something common from the Mesozoic Era, so we decided to go with our most random idea … We hoped it would be original, and sure enough, our extinction theory was one of the most creative ideas presented,” she said. “I love competing at Odyssey because everything and everyone there is very unique, creative and a little out of the ordinary. It’s something about the atmosphere that makes me very comfortable and relaxed. It’s just so much fun.”
Other members of Darlington’s Middle School team included Gaffney’s sister Meredith, an eighth-grader, and seventh-graders Blair Holcombe, Shelby Martin and Mary Lyn Stegall. The team was coached by Darlington parent Ellen Gaffney.
To prepare for the state competition next month, team members are using the judges’ comments and scores to spice up their presentation. “We are adding more detail to the set and changing some of the things we didn’t score well on,” Jennings said. “I enjoy Odyssey of the Mind because you make new friends and have lots of fun. Thinking outside of the box is encouraged, and the point is to be different. Even though you are competing against other teams, everyone is supportive and encouraging of everyone one else.”
According the Georgia Odyssey Web site, the competition promotes creative team-based problem-solving for students in kindergarten through college. Teams are given their long-term problem months before the competition. Participants build their own sets, make their own costumes and write their own scripts. They are judged on their long-term problem-solving abilities and style (the look of their set and costumes), as well as their ability to solve a spontaneous problem, one that they are given the day of the competition.
For more information on Georgia Odyssey of the Mind, please visit www.georgiaodyssey.org.
