Cape Odyssey of the Mind teams set sights on states

When it comes to creativity, two teams from Shields Elementary School in Lewes know how to excel. Starting with a NASA photograph, one team developed a story about a tsunami and invented a device to help with research. Another team made an underwater car built for a mermaid.

"We got a lot of points for creativity," said fourth-grader Jayden Lesko, 10, whose Weird Science team placed first out of 14. Members of the team are Jayden, Sky Dunmyer, Paige Ludwicki, Kelsey Huling, MacKenzie Smith, Haneen Azem and Hayden Petterson.

They're putting everything they've got into the next level of competition.

"I think we'll do good but it'll be a little hard," said Sky.

Her mother and coach of the Weird Science team, Mary Dunmyer, is impressed with the team's dedication.

"They've become more motivated since they won. One girl asked me the other day if we could practice every day," she said.

For the upcoming competition, Jayden said her team is trying to improve on their spontaneous competition points. Teams are judged on how students solve a problem they receive only moments before the competition begins. Spontaneous problems are secret and they remain secret well after the Odyssey of the Mind competitions are done.

The Oh-Motional team also scored high for their creativity with a skit about a mermaid who gets her first underwater sea car. The car needs two propulsion systems; the team is working out what else to use besides human power.

"We have a couple of different ideas," said fourth-grader Lee Lee Wilson, 10, without giving any other details.

Lee Lee's teammates are Dylan Baldwin, Cameron Baldwin, Luke D'Ambrogi, Melina Kotanides, Camp Steiner and Grier Calagione. The team placed first out of 13 participants.

The Shield's team move on to state competition March 31.

Odyssey of the Mind school coordinator and coach Cheryl Baldwin said the Oh-Motional team last year placed second in states, second in regionals and made it to the world competition at University of Maryland.

"They were thrilled this year to break their second place barrier and get a first place," she said.

Baldwin said students initially had ambitious plans to build a Hovercraft type of system to propel their vehicle, or to build one using magnets to move.

"The kids were going way outside the box with this," she said.

Besides learning practical applications for mechanical devices, fourth-grader Paige Ludwicki said she realized there's more to playing with her friends after school.

"I learned that teamwork was very important," she said. "Making a commitment is good."