So much creative energy will be flowing at Centennial secondary Saturday during Odyssey of the Mind provincials, you could light up a city.
Instead, 400 young brains from all over the Lower Mainland and the Tri-Cities will be solving problems to win top honours and a spot at an international competition at the University of Maryland.
The students will be figuring out ways to build balsa wood structures that fold without falling apart, vehicles that use mousetraps as a source of energy and complicated Rube Goldberg contraptions that do simple tasks. Some teams may also do humorous performances featuring crazy characters such as a Money Maker who has wild ideas for getting rich, and a tour guide who makes up his own facts.
Organizer and coach Kelly Doyle said the competition attracts students from Grade 1 to 12 who compete with one another on projects they've worked on for several weeks as well as a spontaneous problem they have to solve in six to eight minutes.
"It's very creative. It's a lot of stuff that the kids build. There's no outside assistance, they have to come up with all their solutions on their own," said Doyle, who coaches Odyssey teams at Port Moody's Aspenwood elementary.
She said parents sometimes face challenges because they aren't allowed to offer even the tiniest suggestion. "It's an excellent opportunity for parents to step aside and let the kids make their own decisions," Doyle said.
As many as 45 teams from the Tri-Cities are expected to participate in the event, which runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, April 16. The top-ranking teams have the opportunity to compete in the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals at the University of Maryland May 27 to 30.
