The Spring Ridge Middle School Destination Imagination Team, Tiny Space Whales, will participate in the Global Finals May 25 through 28 in Knoxville, TN. Destination Imagination is the world’s largest celebration of creativity. Teams from more than 15 nations compete in challenges in science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM), the arts and service learning.
Destination Imagination is a leading educational nonprofit dedicated to teaching students the skills needed to succeed in school, their careers, and beyond. DI develops project-based learning programs that blend STEM education with the arts and social entrepreneurship.
Through Destination Imagination’s programs, students use the creative process to turn ideas into reality and learn invaluable skills through the process including: creative and critical thinking, team building, problem solving, risk taking, project management, perseverance, and self-confidence
Each year, Destination Imagination works with educators and industry experts to develop seven new academic challenges. Students work in teams to research, design and build a solution to their preferred challenge. In solving a challenge, they learn the creative process — a powerful learning tool that helps students assess problems, reflect on their progress, learn from failure and turn their original ideas into reality. Students who participate in the challenge program have the opportunity to present their solutions at a local tournament. Teams that qualify at the state level, are invited to participate in the Global Finals, Destination Imagination’s crowning international tournament that celebrates student creativity.
The team is comprised of four eighth-grade students who have worked all year in preparation for competition and achieved first place in both their regional and Maryland state competitions. At the state competition, the team came in first of 18 teams.
Destination Imagination has afforded these students with the opportunity to put in effect college and career readiness skills that they have worked on throughout the year while also reinforcing patience, flexibility persistence, ethics, respect for others and their ideas, and the collaborative problem-solving process.
If you are interested in sponsoring or making a donation toward the team’s trip to the global competition, visit here.
The Patuxent Partnership (TPP) is a nonprofit member organization headquartered in Lexington Park, MD, home of NAS Patuxent River.
The organization works with government, industry and academia to advance education through STEM-based initiatives. A speaker program is conducted to advance technology and provide networking among the STEM industries. TPP advances science and technology transfer through the exchange of ideas, information, and data.
The Patuxent Partnership fosters workforce development through an array of initiatives. The Partnership builds cooperation and collaboration among academia, private industry, and government, bringing together the key economic drivers in Southern Maryland to collaborate on growth for the betterment of all.
To learn more about The Patuxent Partnerships and its programs, visit their Leader Page.
