Ridgefield Library's Odyssey of the Mind Teams Triumph, Headed to World Finals!

Both Odyssey of the Mind teams sponsored by the Ridgefield Library are advancing to the World Finals in Iowa, scheduled for May 21-24. They secured their spots after excelling at the Connecticut Odyssey of the Mind State tournament in New Haven last week. The Division I team, consisting of seven students from Branchville Elementary, claimed second place in their category among tough competition. Meanwhile, the Division II team, comprising six students from both middle schools, clinched first place.

Odyssey of the Mind (OM) is an international, creative problem-solving program where teams work together over several months to create and present a long-term problem solution through building, scriptwriting, costume-making, and teamwork. Teams also compete in short-term “Spontaneous” problems where they are given a verbal or hands-on challenge that they have to solve on the spot. The program emphasizes out-of-the-box thinking and independence, with the most important rule being that students do all of the work on their own without any outside assistance.

The Ridgefield Library has sponsored the program since 2014. Both teams are thrilled to have the opportunity to interact with other teams across the world and compete in problem-solving at a global level. This is the first time the town has two teams competing in the World Finals. Those interested in supporting the teams on their journey can visit the Division I and Division II GoFundMe pages to donate.

The teams will also be holding fundraisers at the Downtown Spring Stroll on May 4th.

To learn more about Odyssey of the Mind you can visit https://ctom.org/ or reach out to rlodysseyofthemind@gmail.com.