projectOUTREACH: The Torchbearer Award

This award honors teams and/or individuals whose solutions have had an extraordinary impact in and beyond their local communities.
 
Recipients:
 
·        The Five Cheeses
Lawson Middle School
projectOUTREACH: Band Together Middle Level Team
This team demonstrated the meaning of Outstanding Volunteerism! Their project involving going green with native plants made a positive impact on their school community and then the greater bay area as well. Multiple pamphlets, interviews, and community plantings were involved in this team’s extraordinary efforts to find and reach out to the right people who were able to assist them in promoting their cause. May this team’s torch continue to bring light to communities throughout the world.
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DaVincI Award
For Outstanding Creativity
The paths we follow on our journeys were once uncharted and unknown – until someone took a bold step in a new direction and paved a way for us to follow. To solve our Challenges, imagination, creativity, originality, and courage are required. We honor those individuals and teams who most clearly demonstrate that spirit of adventurous risk in their solutions - those who most creatively traveled to reach truly new and unique destinations. The DaVincI Award is named to honor one of humanity's greatest creative thinkers, Leonardo DaVinci.
Criteria:
This award is given for having a unique approach to a solution, for risk taking, and/or for outstanding creativity, not skill or talent.
 
Recipients:
 
·        Drama Llamas
Graham Middle School
You’re Gonna Flip! Middle Level Team
This team flipped our Appraisers with their powerful, non-verbal Story in which a puppet transformed into a human. Still controlled by a puppet master, she was never free to fulfill her human desires. This team’s modern dance presentation, accompanied by original music and expressive body language, told a story that tugged at our hearts, and left our puppet with broken-heart art at the end.
 
·        Spectacular Six
Collins Elementary School
Rising Stars!® Weighty News Team
This team showed fantastic creativity throughout their solution. They had amusing banter while acting, changing cloudy weather into sunny, amazing costumes: a silver WA-TI-KI alien robot, giant baseball reporter’s cap and delightful fairies. Their zebra-striped arch structure made of newspaper and duct tape not only held a team member’s weight, but one of our Appraisers as well! Their creativity showed “big” in the little details – a structurally sound TV and handles on every prop for easy carrying.
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The Renaissance Award
For Outstanding Design, Engineering, Execution, Performance
On our journey we sometimes encounter exceptional travelers who entertain and enlighten us along the way. The Renaissance Award recognizes those among us who demonstrate extraordinary amounts of effort and preparation in their solutions or outstanding skill in engineering, design or performance. While the destination is creativity, these fellow travelers make the journey itself memorable.
Criteria:
This award is given for outstanding skill in the areas of engineering, design, or performance.
 
Recipients:
 
·        The Black and White Skunx
Lincoln Elementary School
DIrect DIposit Elementary Team
This team impressed us with their efficient and simple delivery device design. The five compartment device had thoughtful and innovative engineering, with each compartment’s door individually controlled by toothpicks and the tug of a line string. The team used pulleys to move their delivery device in and out, allowing them to control exactly where each object fell. They also cleverly counteracted the heavy weight of their crane by attaching large balloons to the very end, giving the device a fun and festive flair.
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Rising Stars!™ Award: For Our Rising Stars
This award recognizes the courageous, curious and joyous first steps in the journey of life-long learning.
Criteria:
This award is given to all Rising Stars!™ Teams who demonstrate a solution at a Tournament.
Recipients:

• Teams
  
  • CreativeDI – Collins Elementary School
  • Ninjas – Murdock-Portal Elementary School
  • 7 Jumping Dolphins – Discovery Charter School
  • Spectacular Six – Collins Elementary School
  • Star Rockets – Dilworth Elementary School
  • Discovery Shooting Stars – Discovery Charter School
  • Cougar Champs – Collins Elementary School
  • Destination Stars – Garden Gate Elementary Parent’s Group
  • Shining Moons – Baker Elementary School
  • Shooting Stars – Country Lane Elementary School
  • Giant Tiger – Country Lane Elementary School
  • Golden Fire Works – Country Lane Elementary School
  • Golden Team – Murdock-Portal Elementary School