BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP

Energize your student body! With each member-ship you'll receive:

• Five long-term problems that are challenging, user-friendly, and appeal to every interest.

• One primary problem for students in grades K-2.

• An Odyssey of the Mind Program Guide, withinstructions on how to get started and basic pro-gram rules.

• Curriculum activities for use in the classroom.

• The opportunity to enter teams into competitions.• A subscription to the Odyssey of the Mind

Newsletter.• Eligibility for educational scholarships.• Support services from your local association and

international headquarters.

• All mailings and program updates.

JOINNOW!“The lesson Odyssey of the Mind

teaches is that original thinking is not just a function of

intelligence. It can belearned with training

and practice.”~ Bill Moyers,

Journalist

ODYSSEY MAKES LEARNING FUN!

There’s no denying kids want to have fun. Odyssey of the Mind uses ahands-on approach to learning and allows kids to incorporate their

own interests into their solutions. Kids can apply practically any class-room lesson to an Odyssey of the Mind problem. It's where math, sci-ence, art, history, literature and technology come together. The result?Problem solutions that incorporate a vast array of ideas that reflect thetalents of every member of the team. When kids are involved in whatthey like, they’re more engaged, more creative, and they learn more.

IT’S FOR

EVERYONE

From at-risk to gifted,from kindergarten

to college, every typeof student benefitsfrom Odyssey of theMind. Odyssey allowsstudents to use theirminds in a differentway than they areaccustomed. At everyacademic level, it’s achance for students tolearn in a non-tra-ditional way.

EX P E R I E N C E

Odyssey of the Mind is theinnovator of creative prob-

lem solving in education. It is thebrainchild of Dr. Sam Micklus,who, as a professor at RowanUniversity, challenged his stu-dents with open-ended, out-of-the-ordinary projects. In 1978,Odyssey held the first creativeproblem-solving competition.Teams from 28 New Jerseyschools participated. Now, atour annual World Finalscompetition alone, nearly 800teams come from across theU.S. and from more than 20other countries, making Odysseyof the Mind the largest interna-tional creative problem-solvingprogram in the world!

Dr. Sam Micklus founded the program in1978 because he wanted all students tohave the experience of solving problemsusing creativity. He says, “In Odyssey of

the Mind, every team is a winner.”

Odyssey of the Mind is proud to be

sponsored by NASA.

HOW TO JOIN

Any school, established communitygroup, or college or university may join

the Odyssey of the Mind. The cost for onemembership is $135, with discounts onmultiple memberships for the same schoolor school district. Everyone in the school mayparticipate in the program. For each mem-bership purchased, a school may enter upto 14 teams in competition, depending onthe grades covered.

For information on how to join and to find

your local contacts, go to

www.odysseyofthemind.comor call 856.456.7776

SUPPORTERS

Millions of educators and parents around theworld can testify to the value of the Odyssey of

the Mind. Each year, thousands of volunteers give theirtime so kids can participate. They coach teams,judge tournaments, and serve in many othercapacities. They do it because they understand howcreative problem solving helps children thrive.

® Odyssey of the Mind, the Odyssey of the Mind logo, and OMER are federally registered trademarks of Creative Competitions, Inc.

OMER is the fun-loving Odyssey of the Mind raccoon mascot. He cheers teams on and makessure everyone has a good time. Here, he shares in the excitement of a first-place team from China.

Odyssey of the Mind is for kids of all ages with all interests and from every academic

background. It’s a place where they’re appreciated for who they are, how they

think, and what they do.

Coaching a team is a great way for parents and teachers to get more involved in a child’s education. Coaches don’t help solve the problems, but they take pride in the team’s accomplishments! An added benefit is that by watching

kids be creative, they become more creative.

“Behind each one of our finalists is a volunteer

support network that can proudly claim to be one of

those thousand points of light I like to talk about.”

~ George Bush,President of the United States

“Odyssey of the Mind has beenone of the most extraordinary

experiences of my life, and my life has been devoted to

working with children from any age from 0 to 100.”

~ Chuck Jones,Animator

“Odyssey of the Mind neverends. The friends and skills you

develop during competitions will be remembered for

the rest of your life.”~ Brandon McNerlin,

Odyssey of the Mind Participant

“Odyssey of the Mind gives anopportunity for a variety of

kinds of giftedness other thanacademic giftedness.”

~ Dr. E. Paul Torrance, Researcher of Creativity

“The Odyssey of the Mind is oneexample of what young minds can

do when they are challenged.”~ Walter Cronkite,

Journalist“Imagination is more

important thanknowledge.

Knowledge is limited.Imagination encircles

the world.”~ Albert Einstein

®

A Creative ExperienceODYSSEYof theMIND

®

learning ◆ self-confidence ◆ problem-solving

thinking ◆ innovation ◆ imagination

teamwork ◆ ideas ◆ excitement ◆ originality

exploration ◆ decision-making ◆ creativity

Odyssey of the Mind provides creative problem-solving opportunities forstudents. Creative problem solving is a results-oriented method oflearning. It encourages students to analyze a situation, imagine all the

possibilities, then synthesize the best qualities of their ideas into a workablesolution. In Odyssey of the Mind, students learn creative problem-solving skillsby – what else – solving problems. They generate ideas, then apply their skillsand talents to bring those ideas to fruition.

CREATIVITY CAN BE TAUGHT

At Odyssey of the Mind, we want to develop and nurture the creativitythat lies in every individual. We strive to inspire kids to find new ways to solve alltypes of problems through critical and creative thinking. The more studentsapply their creativity, the more creative they become.

PREPARATION FOR LIFE

What better way to prepare our children for the future than by teachingthem to examine, to explore, and to create? In this world of ever-present chal-lenges, creative problem solving prepares students to face the unpredictable.In the creative problem-solving process, students conceptualize ideas, makecritical decisions, then apply the skills necessary to implement their ideas intoproductive solutions. Students work under the guidance of a coach but areexpected to do all the work themselves. This instills in them a sense of pride,achievement, and responsibility. They work within a cost limit so they gainexperience in managing resources. Working in teams, they learn to respect theideas of others while forming life-long friendships. When students rise to a chal-lenge, they learn that they are capable of achieving things beyond their ownexpectations. This will carry over into other aspects of their lives.

COMPETITION STIMULATES CREATIVITY

In essence, the Odyssey of the Mind is a competitive program. While par-ticipation in tournaments is not a requirement, the competitive elementshowcases each team’s accomplishments, exposes students to the ideas ofothers, and encourages them to work at their full potential. Typically, teamscompete at the regional level, then at the state/province/country level. Thosethat advance are eligible to attend the annual Odyssey of the Mind WorldFinals, held each spring at a university campus in the United States. SmithsonianMagazine describes World Finals as “a dizzying four-day thinkathon that lookslike some kind of kooky cross between science fair, masquerade party, per-forming arts fest and the Olympics.” It’s an international gathering, whereteams cheer each other on and camaraderie permeates every competitionsite. While the top scorers are named World Champions, in Odyssey of theMind every team is a winner just by solving the problem!

When you join the Odyssey of the Mind, you’ll find that the benefits areendless.

WHY ODYSSEY OF THE MIND?

TEAMWORK

In Odyssey of the Mind, studentswork in teams of up to sevenmembers. They pool their diversetalents and learn from each other.And they form friendships that lasta lifetime.

LONG-TERM PROBLEMS

The Odyssey of the Mind long-term prob-lems are open-ended so students can

incorporate their own interests into theirsolutions. While every problem has a centralrequirement – such as creating a structureor vehicle, performing a scene based onclassical literature, or creating a humorousperformance – each allows for a solutionthat reflects a team's individual style. This iswhere creativity comes in: the possibilitiesare endless! This team took a different approach to make

its vehicle travel for “The Chameleon.” Insteadof wheels, the vehicle“walked” on four legs.

Odyssey of the Mind team members work together towardone common goal: making their solution the best that itcan be! Along the way, they form life-long friendships.

SPONTANEOUS

On competition day, teams enter a room

and are presented with a short-term

challenge that they solve there and then.

They don’t know what to expect, but they’re

prepared to face just about anything.

Problems could range from telling an original

story to building a bridge of toothpicks and

marshmallows. Spontaneous is a lot of fun,

and it teaches kids to “think on their feet.”

Every member contributes individual skills, talentsand interests, which culminate in the team’s

“Style.” For “OMER’s Earthly Adventures,” this teamintegrated earth science and technology into a

colorful interpretation of the North Pole, completewith singing and dancing!

Kids do amazing things! For“Achilles’ Heel,” this team built abalsa structure that weighed lessthan a large envelope but held

six thousand times its weight.

LEARNING

Odyssey of the Mind is a force in education. Ourproblems and curriculum activities are integral

learning tools that teach critical-thinking skills, whichleads to improved performance in other learning situa-tions. By enhancing the educational experience withOdyssey of the Mind activities, your school will producebetter students.

This college team created its own version of “TheSword in the Stone” for the “classics” problem,

“King Arthur.” Odyssey of the Mind problems allowstudents to apply history, technology, the arts, and

any other subject or interest into their solution.

FLEXIBILITY

Participation is as flexible as ateam wants it to be. There's no

set schedule to follow and norequired number of hours to putin. Some teachers incorporateOdyssey of the Mind problemsolving into their classes. In someschools, it's an extracurricularactivity. For other teams, it's anactivity they work on wheneverand wherever it fits their schedule.

INTERNATIONALAPPEAL

You can find Odysseyof the Mind teams

in almost every cornerof the world. In Chinaalone, we have morethan one million partici-pants. From Africa toUzbekistan, studentsaresolving our problemseach year, provingthere are no barriers tocreative thinking.

SELF-CONFIDENCE

In Odyssey of the Mind, students achieve things beyondtheir own expectations. They solve the problems them-

selves, so they become more confident in their abilities.Through brainstorming sessions, they learn to generateideas and express themselves without fear of criticism.Seeing their ideas come to fruition is a satisfying experi-ence. This builds strong self-esteem, which carries overinto other areas of their lives. Students learn togo beyond the expected, and they become confidentin public situations and more active in the classroom.

Odyssey of the Mind teams come fromevery U.S. state and from more than 20

other countries, including Moldova, Japan, Poland, Singapore and Germany.