DI 2004-2005 Challenge Summaries
 

Challenge A: DIzzy Derby
Focus:

  • Technical Design and Construction of a Vehicle
  • Invention and Design Process
  • Playwriting
  • Team Work
 

The Destination: Where DIzzy Derby Will Take You!

Racing! Laps! Strategy! Your team-designed Vehicle will race against the clock to complete the greatest number of laps on our triangular track! Take a careful look at the rules since there is more than one way to gain lap points. Do you design your Vehicle for speed alone, or gain extra points with a risky "Detour?"

Points of Interest:
  • The team will design a reliable Vehicle with a Technical Energy Source that will race around a triangular track transporting one or more team members
  • The team will receive points for the number of Laps and Detours their Vehicle completes
  • The team will integrate three Side Trips into its Presentation.
  • A team-created skit will bring together all elements of the team's Presentation
  • This Challenge can be solved on many levels, from very simple to very complex solutions. Your team needs to develop a winning strategy. There is more than one way to score well

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Challenge B: Sudden SerenDIpity
Focus:

  • Playwriting and Point of View
  • Theater Arts
  • Technical Design and Construction
  • Invention and Design Process
  • Teamwork

The Destination: Where Sudden SerenDIpity Will Take You!

"Ring..Ring" . . . . "Zap!" The telephone and microwave - two inventions separated by 70 years, but with one thing in common – SerenDIpity! SerenDIpity, or discovery by chance, is an important ingredient in many important inventions. What brilliant invention will your team be seeking to create when serendipity strikes? Is your invention celebrated as a stroke of genius, or misunderstood? This is your opportunity to present your Story of SerenDIpity. Good luck!

Points of Interest:

  • The team will develop and present an original Story that includes an example of SerenDIpity
  • The team will present an Initial Invention and a SerenDIpitous Invention that results from SerenDIpity
  • The team will build and present a Technical Device that performs a Task through one or more Steps
  • The characters will present Differing Views about the impact of the SerenDIpitous Invention
  • The team will integrate three Side Trips into its Presentation
  • This Challenge can be solved on many levels, from very simple to very complex solutions

 

Challenge C: Live! It's RaDIo DI!
Focus:

  • Theater Arts
  • Playwriting
  • Sound Effects Technology
  • Characterization
  • Teamwork

The Destination: Where Live! It's RaDIo DI! Will Take You!

Before we had television, imaginations around the world came alive every night. Families sat beside the radio, listening to the news of the day. The radio also brought all sorts of entertainment to life without pictures. Music was popular, and so were plays – funny plays, serious plays and mysteries. Your Challenge is to create a story that can be told without pictures – an original RaDIo show being performed live for a RaDIo audience. Your Presentation will include a commercial that makes an outrageous claim for a product, and of course a "Breaking News Bulletin."

Points of Interest:
  • The team will present a Story in a live RaDIo Broadcast. The Story will include at least one Unique and/or Eccentric Character
  • The RaDIo Broadcast must have Live Sound Elements that create images in the mind of the listener. At least one of the Live Sound Elements must be produced by a Technical Method
  • The Story must have a "Cliffhanger" or "Hook" before a Commercial Break for a product
  • The commercial must include an Outrageous Claim and a Jingle to advertise or promote the product
  • The RaDIo Broadcast will be interrupted by a News Bulletin. The subject of the News Bulletin will be a randomly selected Improv Element
  • The team will integrate three Side Trips into its Presentation
  • This Challenge can be solved on many levels, from very simple to very complex solutions

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Challenge D: IMPROVing Along
Focus:

  • Improvisational Acting
  • Transportation Research
  • Invention and Design
  • Theater Arts
  • Teamwork

The Destination: Where IMPROVing Along Will Take You!

Gear up on everything there is to know about how we get around, because at performance time, this improvisational Challenge will include one of the 12 modes of transportation your team has selected to study. You’ll also create your own IMPROVmobile and create a skit on the spot that includes an Improv Travel Game and shows what happens Along the Way. Don’t forget: Your ticket only allows 30 minutes for you to plan your entire trip, and you’ll need to remember to pack your Invisible Prop! ALL ABOARD!

Points of Interest:
  • The team will create a six-minute Improvisational Skit in a 30-minute time period at the Tournament
  • The team will research a total of 12 Modes of Transportation taken from six categories and randomly choose one to be integrated into their Skit
  • The team will randomly select an event that happens Along the Way and integrate it into their Skit
  • The team will create an IMPROVmobile and integrate it into their Skit
  • The team will demonstrate one of four Improv Travel Games during their Skit
  • The team will integrate an Invisible Prop into their Skit
  • This Challenge can be solved on many levels, from very simple to very complex solutions

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Challenge E: DIsigning Bridges
Focus:

  • Bridge Architecture and Structural Engineering
  • Model Bridge Construction and Testing
  • Research on Cultural Differences and Bridges of the World
  • Playwriting
  • Teamwork

The Destination: Where DIsigning Bridges Will Take You!

What do we do when a river, busy highway, or deep ravine stands between us and our destination? We build a bridge! Your challenge is to build a bridge out of wood, glue, and fishing line that holds weight. Will your bridge be long? Will it be strong? You decide! Explore the many bridges of the world to inspire your design. Then test your bridge while presenting a story about a bridge between two nations’ cultures.

Points of Interest:
  • The team will design, build, and test a Bridge made completely of Wood and/or Monofilament Fishing Line, with Glue as an adhesive. They will
    earn points based on the weight held by the Bridge multiplied by its Span
  • The team will research bridges from Nations other than their own, and will use a design element of one of these bridges in their own Bridge design
  • The team will make a prediction about what will happen when they stack weights on their Bridge
  • The team will create and present a Story about a bridge (or connection) between the cultures of two Nations. The Story will include at least one character
  • The team will integrate three Side Trips into its Presentation
  • This Challenge can be solved on many levels, from very simple to very complex solutions

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Rising Stars!™: More to the Story!

  • Storytelling
  • Rhyming
  • Following Multi-step Directions
  • Teamwork
  • Speaking in Front of an Audience

The Destination: Where Rising Stars!™ More to the Story! Will Take You!

What happens to the characters in a story after the story ends? What did the pirates do after they found the treasure? What happened after the princess married the prince? Your team will pick any story you like. You will make up a Play about the story. Your Play will tell what happened after the story ended. Your team will tell …More To The Story!

Note: This is a non-competitive Challenge for early elementary-aged children and will not be scored.