It is undeniable that critical thinking and problem solving are among the most valuable skills children learn in school. The ability to think creatively, “outside the box,” work as part of a team to devise a solution to a problem empowers students in every subject area and situation. At Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School, we pride ourselves on incorporating these concepts into our daily lessons as well as classroom management styles. For the past several years, OLL has participated in a program called Odyssey of the Mind. Odyssey of the Mind is a critical thinking competition for students of all ages. Our four teams began work on their problem and project many months ago in preparation for their big competition last month.
In mid-February, the teams from O.L.L. headed to the Odyssey of the Mind competition in Dover, FL. At the competition these teams used creative problem solving skills to produce solutions for a problem they have been working on since the beginning of fall. All of our teams from O.L.L. presented their problems wonderfully and did an awesome job! Students received very informative and wonderful feedback from all the judges. Two of our Teams (Primary and Division II) will be continuing on to the State Competition this coming April. We wish them all the luck!
Also at the competition, one of our O.L.L. students Jackson Abernathy from the Primary team received a special award called the Omer award. Omer awards are given to team members, coaches or parents that have been nominated for something they did the day of competition that shows the “true spirit” of Odyssey. Jackson received his from the judges of his problem. The Primary team had a little bumpy beginning to their presentation, but the judges stated that Jackson stayed very calm trying to console his fellow teammates and he helped the team to finish their presentation. Congratulations to Jackson Abernathy!
