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Mind Games
education, odyssey of the mind, schools,
There are teams in Fulton County schools that make it to the national and world playoffs, but you won’t find them in the stadiums.
For about 20 years, the schools have taken part in Odyssey of the Mind, an international educational program that involves problem-solving competitions for students from kindergarten through college. Teams from around the United States and 25 other countries do everything from build mechanical devices to interpret literary classics, and then compete from the local level on up.
It’s all about learning life skills like teambuilding in a fun, challenging way, says Charla Simonson, a counselor at Broadalbin-Perth Central School and the program’s coordinator.
“It’s such a great program because it gets the kids so involved,” says Simonson, whose own children are participants. “This year we have 13 teams with up to seven students on a team.”
In the last couple of years, two fourth-grade teams have made the world competitions, and the squads at every level are going great guns, she says.
“Students learn to work together as a team, because adults are not allowed to give them ideas,” she says. “We can teach them skills, like how to sew or use a saw, but we can’t have any part of the project. They have to get the skill down before they get started, and learn to work well with others on their team, which they need to learn to be really successful no matter what they go into later on.”
Story by Joe Morris
