Classical Christian Academy Teams Advance to World Finals!
April 20, 2017 — N. Fort Myers, Fla. –– Classical Christian Academy, a hybrid school located in North Fort Myers, is proud to be sending two teams to the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals at Michigan State University from May 23-27. They will compete against teams from all over the United States, as well as teams from China, Poland, Thailand, Korea, Mexico, Canada and many more countries.
Classical Christian Academy (CCA) is the only school in the Southwest Florida region to be advancing two OM teams to World competition and is one of just two teams in the entire state of Florida to send more than one team to world-level competition. The other school, Seminole High School, has a student population of more than 3,000, while CCA has just 125 full-time students in grades K-12. This is a huge accomplishment for a small school!
Four CCA teams competed at State Finals in Orlando on April 8, with the high school and the elementary team placing. This is the first time any team from CCA has advanced to World Finals, where 800+ teams from 26 countries and the United States will be competing.
The CCA elementary team, consisting of five students in second through fifth grades, took First Place honors at state competition. The high school team, with six students in grades 9-12, captured Second Place honors. These teams were excited to bring home trophies and are now raising funds to travel to World competition in May.
It will cost about $850 to ship the teams’ scenery, props and costumes to Michigan. Including travel expenses like airfare, housing and meals, the total cost for all OM team members to attend will be about $10,000. The CCA OMers are planning two fundraisers: a spaghetti dinner on May 5 and a garage sale on May 6.
The community is invited to support CCA’s OM teams by attending a Spaghetti Dinner Friday, May 5, from 6-8 p.m. at Cypress Lake United Methodist Church, 8570 Cypress Lake Drive in Fort Myers. Cost is $10 for adults and $6 for kids. There also will be a 50/50 raffle; tickets are $10 each or 7 for $50 and must be purchased in advance.
The school has set up an Odyssey of the Mind fundraising page with all the details: http://www.discovercca.com/odyssey-of-the-mind/.
Sarah D., a member of the high school OM team, said she was “very surprised” when her team was announced as a top finisher at State — although she knew they performed even better than they had at regional competition. The team is excited to be competing with teams from around the nation and the world.
“I am ecstatic about going to Worlds,” said teammate Elizabeth D., who has been participating in OM for the last six years. This will be her first trip to World Finals. “I am extremely proud of both my own teammates and the elementary team.”
Odyssey of the Mind competition consists of two components: a Long-Term Problem and a Spontaneous Challenge. Teams practice various spontaneous problems but never know what they will face on competition day. By contrast, they work on their long-term problems for months, and their creative solutions are presented as a performance.
For its Long-Term Problem, CCA’s elementary team chose to take on the Odd-A-Bot challenge. They adopted a pirate theme and created a technical robot to perform various actions. In their skit, this robot was discovered with treasure they raided from another ship.
CCA’s high school OM team worked on the Catch Me If You Can problem. Teams had to make three vehicles that would travel independently to a secret meeting spot. This team creatively used their vehicles to help Santa break into a Pre-Christmas Packaging Contest that UPS and other package delivery companies attend.
“I like how OM challenges students to come up with new ideas and think out of the box,” said Sarah D.
Odyssey of the Mind (OM) is an international program which challenges students to creatively solve problems, ranging from building mechanical devices to presenting their own interpretations of literary classics. OM competitions take place around the world for students in kindergarten through college.
“We find that students in Odyssey learn to think creatively, work cooperatively and share effectively,” said CCA OM Coach Mrs. Tabitha Dillehay.
CCA’s OM teams are eager to perform in front of their largest audience yet. “I expect Worlds to be an amazing experience!” said Elizabeth D.
The countless hours of preparation have paid off with Regional and State-level success. CCA is wishing its Odyssey teams the best at World Finals in May!
About Classical Christian Academy:
Classical Christian Academy is the premier hybrid school in Southwest Florida. CCA offers families an academically rigorous and Christ-centered K-12 education option that blends the best aspects of private and homeschooling. Classical Christian Academy is a registered 501c(3) organization. For more information, visit www.discovercca.org and like CCA on www.facebook.com/DiscoverCCA.
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