Outstanding creativity was on display for the 9 Moreno Valley Unified teams competing at the Odyssey of the Mind regional tournament. More than 100 teams competed in the tournament in San Bernardino on March 3. All of Moreno Valley’s teams put on their best performances and showed their creativity, teamwork, problem solving, and critical thinking skills. Vista del Lago High School’s team advanced to the state tournament, which will be held at UC Riverside on March 24. It is the first time Vista del Lago has moved on to the state level.
Badger Springs Middle School’s team placed third in one of the categories. With teams from North Ridge Elementary, Mountain View Middle School, Vista Heights Middle School and Palm Middle School also participating.
Odyssey of the Mind is an international creativity competition that has been in existence since the mid-1970s. Dr. Lynn Larsen, professor of Education at Brandman University, is the volunteer state director for California. She encouraged Moreno Valley to bring the program back to the district a few years ago.
“The best description is to imagine a combination of theater and problem solving with a creative twist. Through the writing of original scripts, making their own costumes, props, and scenery, and incorporating technical elements, teams of students make incredible solutions to the problems put out by Odyssey of the Mind every year,” said Dr. Larsen. “Students with talents in many areas find great opportunities to show their gifts in writing, costume design, music, dance, visual arts, prop and scenery construction, engineering, problem solving, leadership, critical thinking.”