Decoded Destiny - DI Champions

Destination Imagination is an amazing, yet unfortunately not widely recognized, program where students learn and experience creativity, teamwork and problem solving.  This is the second year Nicholas and Patrick have participated, and it has been a wild ride so far!

The Decoded Destiny DI Team

In DI, students set up teams to compete in a challenge.   There are various challenges in which they can compete.   This is completely student led.  Students decide what they want to do and put it all together themselves.  There is an adult coach who can rein the kids in when needed and help pull them in to focus if need be, but the adult cannot offer suggestions or ideas to the team.   It's all kids!!

Nicholas and Patrick and five other 5th graders put together a team named "Decoded Destiny" and selected the Triple Take Road Show challenge.  In this challenge, the students had three goals. 

• Use three different Storytelling Methods to tell the same story to three team-chosen Pretend Audiences
• Portray the Travel Methods used to move your Traveling Road Show between different Pretend Audiences
• Integrate a team-created Technical Spectacle into one presentation to a Pretend Audience

They would be judged on such things as playwriting, theatrical presentation, storytelling, storytelling relevance, special effects, innovation and design process, construction and teamwork.

Well these kids were astonishing.   They worked together since last November and put together a simply fabulous program.   They competed in regionals in March, winning the competition.   This past Saturday, they competed in the state competition and placed second in their challenge!!  We (being students and parents alike) were thrilled.  Not only have they done an amazing job so far, this placing qualified them for the Global Competition.   

Wow.  Students from all over the world will descend on Knoxville, TN the week of May 23rd for this competition.   Being in TN, it is fairly close for us, but there comes a hefty price tag to compete.   We have only a month to come up with the hard cash.   So we are scrambling to plan some fundraising and I am trying to figure out how to cover our expenses.  But the kids worked hard and this is a great opportunity for them.   So we are planning ahead for a Knoxville trip and competition, staying for 4-5 nights at the University of Tennessee.  I am so incredibly proud of all of these students!!!!!!!

So Go Decoded Destiny!!!  Let's pull out a global win!!!!

NOTE:  If you want to help this team go far and would like to make a monetary contribution to the team, please let me know.  Every little bit will help get them to Knoxville.