Silicon Valley Region September Newsletter
Wed, 09/26/2007 - 8:15pm — John Cardosi
California Creativity
Silicon Valley Region
Destination ImagiNation®
Volume19 Issue #1 September 2007
Welcome to the 2007-2008 season of Creative Problem Solving with Destination ImagiNation®. This program provides an opportunity for kids of all ages to work together in teams, solving exciting challenges with their own ideas and imagination. Based on the concept of divergent thinking --understanding that there is more than one way to solve a problem-- Destination ImagiNation® Challenges encourage students to build on their strengths and to discover skills they never knew they possessed.
Regional Information Nights
We have a number of upcoming Destination Imagination information nights for parents and students who are interested in learning about the DI program. Monday, October 1, at Garden Gate Elementary; Wednesday, October 3, at Discovery Charter School; Friday, October 5 at Miller Middle; Tuesday, October 9, at Blue Hills Elementary; Thursday October 11 at Stocklmeir School. Details can be found on our calendar page. These meetings are open to all. If you would like to schedule a meeting at your own school, contact John Cardosi.
What’s New for 2008
The combined national and state membership fees have increased this year. In order to buy a membership, one must go to www.shopDI.org . The 5-pak costs $355 and a single membership costs $180. After purchasing a membership,all online team registration will be done through our California Creativity website.
You will also be able to register team managers and appraisers directly through the Silicon Valley regional web site.
We have kept our regional fee at $80 per team (paid directly to the Silicon Valley Region). Teams advancing to the State Tournament will pay an additional $100 to California Creativity.
The California Creativity website has been modified over the summer. If you were registered last year, it should remember your information. If you are new to D.I, please go to www.californiacreativity.org and create a log in account. This will allow you to access all of the features and will let us know you’re out there. The email address you provide will be added to (or confirmed on) our regional mailing list so that you can receive these newsletters and messages of importance relating to regional activities. To access our regional page, click on Silicon Valley at the top of the home page.
Getting Started
In order to participate in Destination Imagination, teams must be assigned a passport (membership) number. Teams may purchase an individual Team Passport for $180, or a school or other recognized youth-serving organization may purchase a 5-pak Team Passport for $355, which will provide the sponsoring organization with 5 passport numbers for competitive teams. This covers the National and State fees. A regional fee of $80 per team is paid directly to Region 11. The challenge materials are only available for download after the membership fee is paid. Purchase memberships at www.shopdi.org. Then register teams at www.californiacreativity.org. Each team must have a unique team number issued by ShopDI. Information about starting a Destination ImagiNation Membership can be found at www.caldi.org/how-get-started.
The Regional Fee and Tournament
In addition to the National and State fees covered in the membership, our region imposes a per team fee to cover local costs. This fee of $80 includes Team Manager Training, Appraiser training, admission to the Instant Challenge festival, participation pins for the team members and all tournament costs. To participate in the regional tournament a team must complete tournament registration in the region with their own unique passport number (and a unique team name if they want); provide an appraiser volunteer willing to spend two Saturday mornings in February being trained and the entire Saturday of the tournament appraising teams; provide a tournament volunteer willing to work a three hour shift at the tournament; and pay the regional fee of $80.
This year’s Silicon Valley Region tournament is scheduled for Saturday, March 8, 2008 at IndependenceHigh School in San Jose. Regional champions will be invited to the California Creativity State Tournament which will be held on Saturday, April 5, 2008 in Elk Grove (Sacramento). This will have a separate state tournament fee of $100. Also, all teams going to the state tournament must provide a trained, experienced appraiser and a state tournament volunteer. The 2008 Destination Imagination Global Finals Tournament will be held, May 21-25, 2008 at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. Details and fee information will be provided to those who qualify.
Team Manager Training
Team Manager training for New Team Managers will be provided in two installments. The first session “Getting Started and Introduction to Instant Challenges” is designed to get you up and running with your team. The second session “Solving the Central Challenge” will delve into the details of solving the challenge: how to move the kids along without interfering. This will not go into challenge specifics but, rather, general techniques that apply to solving any central challenge. If you have questions about any of our trainings you can contact our Training Coordinator, John Cardosi, at cardosi1@comcast.net or 408-738-4471. Also, if you would like to host a training session at your school, please contact John.
“Getting Started and Introduction to Instant Challenges” will be held on Thursday, October 18, 2007, at 7:00PM to 9:00PM at CupertinoMiddle School. This training will be repeated Wednesday, November 7, 2007 at a site TBD. Please check the calendar later for the location.“Solving the Central Challenge will be held on Wednesday, October 25, at CupertinoMiddle School from 7:00PM to 9:00PM. If possible, please print out and bring with you a copy of a central challenge. This training will be repeated Wednesday, November 14, at a site TBD. Please check the calendar later for the location.
We Need Help!
Organizing a program like Destination Imagination takes a lot of time and effort. Each year a group of dedicated volunteers puts together everything to provide team manager training, communications, instant challenge festival, tournaments, and more, so that all of our kids can have a wonderful season of creative problem solving. You will find our contact list with the names and jobs of our hard-working volunteers posted on our website. But some jobs are still unfilled, and we can always use more help to lighten the load. We need people to help organize food for the Team Manager Walkthrough and Appraiser trainings, people with experience in marketing to help spread the word about DI to the community and people willing to join the operating committee (we meet the first Thursday evening of each month) in planning and supporting DI in the six counties of the Silicon Valley region. Contact John Cardosi if you can help. Please join us in keeping Destination Imagination growing and thriving in the Silicon Valley Region.
What’s Happening?
Our calendar is constantly being updated as we confirm new dates and sites. You can access our calendar at http://www.caldi.org/calendar/sv . Check back often.
For more information go to:
www.idodi.org for national DI news and general information
www.californiacreativity.org for California DI specifics
www.californiacreativity.org/region/sv for regional DI news and events
If you would like to be added to our Silicon Valley Region e-mailing list or if your email address has changed from last year, please go to http://www.californiacreativity.org/region/sv , click on the name Lauren Bird-Wiser and send her an email with the subject “DI email.”
The National Dairy Council is a National Sponsor of Destination ImagiNation®