Four teams will represent Beechwood Independent Schools as they compete in the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals in Ames, Iowa, May 25-28.
Three of the teams, one elementary-level and two in high school, will be making a repeat trip after competing in last year’s competition in East Lansing, Michigan. One of the high school teams, making its fifth consecutive trip to World Finals, has been competing in the Classics problem category for seven years. The other high school team, making its ninth trip, last year placed seventh out of 60 teams in the Vehicle problem category.
To help raise the the thousands of dollars needed to send each team to the prestigious competition, Beechwood’s Odyssey program holds several fundraising events throughout the year.
On Saturday, April 30, the program will host a “Yard Sale Odyssey” in the Beechwood School parking lot. Sellers will keep all proceeds from items sold. One parking lot space will sell for $20, and a second one for the same group will sell for $15. Reservations and information can be obtained by contacting Sally Andress at 859-331-3250 or sally.andress@beechwood.kyschools.us.
Odyssey of the Mind is an international educational program that provides creative problem-solving opportunities for students from kindergarten through college. The program teaches students how to think divergently by providing open-ended problems that appeal to a wide range of interests. Students learn how to identify challenges and to think creatively to solve those problems. Participants include teams from Argentina, Australia, Belarus, Canada, China, Czech Republic, DoDDS Europe, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Japan, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Mexico, Moldova, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Slovakia, South Korea, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan, and practically every state in the U.S.
– Staff report/Photos provided
