By Dominik Lobkowicz
Dressed for their skit at the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals are (from left) Sarah Robinson, Logan Heath, Abigail Sewall, Isabela Libby, and Halie Winchenbach. Winchenbach and Robinson played aliens in the skit, while the others played superheroes. (Photo courtesy the Jefferson Village School Odyssey of the Mind team) |
The Jefferson Village School Odyssey of the Mind team placed 35th out of 49 in Division 1 of the “stackable structure” competition at the OM World Finals.
The team, coached by Dot Sewall and coordinated by Jill Huber, consisted of Logan Heath, Isabella Libby, Abigail Sewall, Sarah Robinson, and Halie Winchenbach. Division 1 includes students from grades K-4.
The team, along with parents, went to the finals at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, from May 27 to June 1. The team took first place in the state tournament in March.
In the stackable structure competition, competitors had to create a structure at least eight inches tall using only balsa wood and glue. The pieces of balsa wood could be no larger than 1/8″ wide by 1/8″ thick.
As part of the requirements, the structure had to be integrated into an artistic interpretation of the earth, and after it was used in a student-written skit, the structure was removed and placed under a “crusher board” and tested to its limits.
The JVS team made an earth out of a large bouncy ball, paper, and masking tape, with hand-drawn continents on it.
The structure was used to represent pollution on the planet, which was taken off the planet during the skit, according to Abigail Sewall.
“We were cleaning up the planet,” said Winchenbach. “Me and Sarah were the aliens and Abby, Logan, and Isy were the heroes.”
“At first they didn’t like each other…” began Heath.
“But as they clean up the planet, they start to be friends,” finished Libby.
The structure only represented pollution, but did not physically look like it, Abigail said.
“It would be really hard to do that, because the structure has to be made just out of balsa wood and glue,” she said.
Abigail designed and built the structure after the team found it difficult to include everyone’s ideas into one design.
She believes the structure’s results, sustaining only 25 pounds at the world finals instead of the 35 pounds the first structure of the same design held at states, was affected somehow by the humidity in Iowa.
“It was sweltering in Iowa,” said Heath. “When we were doing our competition, it was so hot in there, it was just terrible, but we had fun.”
The first place team in Division 1 was from China. Their structure held 865 pounds, according to the Odyssey of the Mind website.
“It’s part of their daily education in China, it’s worked into their school day,” said Dot Sewall.
One of the parts of the trip the students were most excited about was “pin trading,” where they would trade amongst each other pins themed on their particular state or country.
From left, Sarah Robinson, Halie Winchenbach, Isabela Libby, and from right, Logan Heath and Abigail Sewall pose with two Korean students they met at the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals in Iowa. (Photo courtesy the Jefferson Village School Odyssey of the Mind team) |
“It facilitates them speaking with kids from everywhere,” Dot said. “Because if you want that pin from Hong Kong you have to speak with kids from Hong Kong to get it.”
A notable part of the trip was the gathering of around 16,000 people at the school’s coliseum during the opening ceremonies, Dot said.
“It was amazing to see the sheer number of people all in one place, from the whole world,” she said.
To see more photographs of the trip or to read the team’s daily journals, search for their Facebook group, “Odyssey Of The Mind World Finals. Jefferson Village School 2014.”
