Renfrew County Catholic District School Board’s (RCCDSB) school teams had a string of successes at Eastern Ontario’s Destination Imagination® (DI) Challenge tournament held in Stittsville last month.
One of RCCDSB’s elementary school teams received a special recognition award, while a total of five teams qualified for the provincial tournament to be held in Toronto next month.
The DI Challenge tournaments are sponsored by Destination Imagination®, an international non-profit organization that aims to teach students 21st-century life skills and the principles of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in an atmosphere of fun and camaraderie. The DI Challenge invites schools to form student teams that compete in a range of categories from technical to scientific, as well as engineering, fine arts and improvisation.
Members of the team from Our Lady of Grace School in Westmeath, called Around the World, received Renaissance Award certificates for their scientific category submission, said Doug Hunter, DI’s Eastern Ontario Regional Director. The judges were “so impressed with the team’s use of a lemon-based battery to turn on lights and send an SOS message” that they unanimously nominated team members for special recognition, Mr. Hunter said. The Renaissance Award “recognizes the demonstration of outstanding skill in engineering, design or performance,” Hunter added.
The six RCCDSB teams competing in Stittsville were:
The Around the World team, from Our Lady of Grace Elementary School in Westmeath, which took first place in their category of the TOP SECRET Scientific Challenge category. Melissa Carroll-Dubeau is the team’s manager.
The Mighty Stingrays, from Our Lady of Sorrows in Petawawa, which took second place in their category of the 3-PEAT Improv Challenge. Managers of this team are Katie Moyles and Karen Keels.
The Steaming Shamrocks of St. Michael’s Catholic School in Douglas took first place in their category of the VANISHED! Fine Arts Challenge category. The team’s managers are Teresa Lynch and T.J. O’Grady.
The Kids on the Wall team, from Bishop Smith Catholic High School in Pembroke, which came second in their category of the 3-PEAT Improvisational Challenge. Team manager is April Laabs.
The BeeCheese came third in their category of the TOP SECRET Scientific Challenge. The team is managed by Janet Goulard.
The Bishop Brainstormers, a Grade 8 team from Bishop Smith, came fourth in their category of the VANISHED! Fine Arts Challenge category. They are managed by Elizabeth Addicott.
“The RCCDSB teams all performed very well,” reported Karen Keels, Vice-Principal at Our Lady of Sorrows School, “largely due to the amazing leadership of the staff managing the teams.”
The teams from Our Lady of Grace, Our Lady of Sorrow, St. Michael’s, as well as the Kids on the Wall and BeeCheese teams from Bishop Smith High School will compete in Toronto this month.
“We are very proud of everyone from RCCDSB who participated in the Destination Imagination® Challenge,” said Michele Arbour, RCCDSB Director of Education. “We encourage all of our students at RCCDSB to learn creative thinking and collaborative problem solving skills. The success of our teams at this DI tournament shows not only how well they are learning to problem solve, but also how well they work together and how much they can achieve through collaboration. Congratulations to all of the students and their teachers.”
