State History Day Competition
There are 22 middle school students from Escalante and Miller middle schools who won first through third place during the Durango/4 Corners Regional History Day competition held on March 17 at Fort Lewis College. These students will advance to the State History Day Competition on April 29 at the University of Colorado, Denver campus.
National History Day in Colorado reaches over 25,000 students across the state each year. It is a social studies and literacy program that equips students in elementary, middle, and high school with the skills necessary to succeed in college and the real world. Students participate in a project-based learning curriculum that emphasizes critical reading and thinking, research, analysis, and the drawing of meaningful conclusions. Students can complete these projects in groups or as individuals in one of five categories: documentary, paper, exhibit, performance, or website.
State Destination Imagination Tournament
Three elementary school teams attended the Destination Imagination Colorado- Southwest Regional Tournament on March 4. Two of these teams will be competing at the state Destination Imagination Tournament on April 1 at the Auraria Campus in Denver. The Candyland team from Park Elementary School won third place for the elementary engineering challenge; and the Pinecone Patriots team from Needham Elementary School won second place for the elementary improv challenge, as well as the DI Spirit Award for teamwork. The Qwirkle team from Park also won first place for the elementary improv challenge, but the team will not be competing at state due to schedule conflicts.
In Destination Imagination (DI), students work together in teams to solve open-ended STEAM challenges designed to teach the creative process. A step-by-step approach helps students better understand problems and ask better questions, come up with solutions, learn from failure, and celebrate their achievements. In going through this process, kids learn vital life and career skills – creative thinking, critical thinking, public speaking, and collaborative problem-solving – that help them feel empowered and set them up for success in their future.
“Team Candyland showed tremendous teamwork, perseverance and calmness under pressure during their performance,” said Jenny Hill, team manager. “DI benefits the kids because they learn how to solve problems among themselves without adult participation, enjoy hands-on learning, and have lots of fun team-building.”