Atkinson Team Gets First Place At Regional Odyssey of the Mind Competition

After weeks of hard work and determination, the Odyssey of the Mind teams from Caroline G. Atkinson School proved they have what it takes to win. A fifth- and a sixth- grade team from the school placed first and third, respectively, in the recent regional championships. The fifth-grade team will move on to compete in the state tournament in Binghamton on March 31.

The competition, held at the New York Institute of Technology at Old Westbury, and sponsored by Nassau BOCES, was “exciting for all of us,” said Christina Schwarz, one of the coaches for the teams.  “Not only did the students get a small taste of college life, but they were able to see all of their hard work and dedication be put into action.”

Since the end of September, Schwarz and Co-coach Carrie Frederick-Munchnic have been meeting with the teams once a week.  Both coaches served to help the students coordinate meetings, as well as develop their own ideas through brainstorming sessions.

According to the coaches, there are two components in which the teams compete. One is "Spontaneous Problem Solving," which requires the students to think as quickly and as "out of the box" as possible to complete a challenge.  The other area is "Long-term Problem Solving," in which the students are required to create a skit, scenery, costumes and props that adhere to the guidelines in the problem description.  Students wrote their own scripts and used problem-solving skills to decide how to create their props, scenery and costumes. 

“[The fifth-grade team members] are extremely excited,” Schwarz added, “and they hope to compete in the world championships, so we’ll have to keep you posted.” Members of the fifth-grade team include: Unique Boyd, Sarah King, Sierra Lake, Adia Matthews, Yamilex Rodriquez and Matthew Waldhof. The sixth-grade team members who competed were: Kaitlyn Frey, Brittany Gardner, Elizabeth Mulé, Chelsea Oramas, Jessica Ramos, Alexander Delaney and fifth grader Jessica McQuillan.

Freeport Public Schools is a diverse, innovative district on Long Island’s South Shore serving about 6,750 students in grades Pre-K through 12. The district and its eight schools take pride in having the region’s only magnet schools of choice, a longstanding and award-winning classroom English/Spanish Dual Language Program, and a high school where students excel in competitions that include the regional Academic Challenge, Odyssey of the Mind and the Future Problem Solving Program International. The district’s New Visions School of Exploration and Discovery has been named a No Child left Behind Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education for its high student performance and engaging curriculum.