Optiminds

For the first 5 weeks of Term 3, a keen group of Year 6 students have been preparing their challenge solution for Opti-Minds. They have been 'rewriting' a traditional children's story, 'Alice in Wonderland' to include new and interesting characters. They have also changed some of the things that happened in the original story. The team were required to act out an entertaining play that incorporated the changes to the story.


They travelled to James Cook University in Townsville on Sunday 28th August to present their challenge solution before a panel of judges. Although the team did not gain a place, they had a fantastic time and learnt some useful skills regarding problem solving and working in a team. The team members were Lauren Millett, Sophie McLaren, Megan Wright, Jessee Santo and Tayla Stoll.

Opti-Minds is a challenge that is open to students of all year levels, Prep to Year 12. There are 3 different divisions that teams can enter, depending on the age group composition of their team. This year, BTC's team was in Division 1, Prep to Year 7. Teams are able to choose from 3 possible challenges each year. One is usually maths/engineering focused, one language/literature and one social sciences. The teams are also required to compete in the Spontaneous section of Opti-Minds where they have only 10 minutes to come up with creative ideas relating to a particular theme. A great opportunity for brainstorming!