A team of five sixth graders from Battle Rock Charter School will compete at the Destination Imagination Global Finals in Kansas City after exemplary performances in regional and state competitions.
The team, known as the Cactus Wranglers, showcases creativity, teamwork and STEAM-based know-how in this program, which is designed to help inspire innovative problem solving in students. The team is made up of students Angel, Fynn, Josalyn, Ryel and Brenna. They are coached by Battle Rock teachers Paula Fury and Joe Magie.
STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, arts and math.
Students who participate in Destination Imagination are encouraged to undergo challenges that require them to solve open-ended problems without the help of adults, teaching them how to develop original solutions and rise to the challenges presented to them.
The Cactus Wranglers took part in the “High Wire” engineering challenge this year, designing a transporter to carry weights across a wire while creating a contemporary circus-themed story. This project was complete with a daring display and ensemble.
Team members responded to questions from The Journal and answered via email with the help of Fury.
“We had to design a transporter that could move across a wire while carrying weight, and that’s just the beginning,” members of the Cactus Wranglers said. “We also had to create a whole story and performance using a contemporary circus theme, including a daring display and spectacle. It had to be fun, creative and technically impressive, all at the same time.”
The team also faced tasks that tested their quick response.
“We also do something called an Instant Challenge, where we’re given a surprise task and only about seven minutes to plan and solve it together, the team said. “It’s all about teamwork, quick thinking and creativity.”
Though the team is only required to meet once a week, the students have been meeting outside that time to perfect their project.
“We meet once a week officially, but honestly, we work on it all the time, even during recess,” the students said. “It takes a lot of dedication, but it’s also a lot of fun.”
Some of the members have been part of DI for three years, and membership was open to all interested students.
The Cactus Wrangler’s journey to the Global Finals began with a first-place finish at the regional competition in Durango, which qualified them for the state tournament. A regional win was required for the team to go to state, per Battle Rock’s policy, and this accomplishment was noted as a major milestone for the team.
At the state level, the team secured second place, earning an invitation to the Global Finals in May. After reviewing scores from other states to confirm their competitiveness, the team committed to the international stage.
“At the state competition, we placed second, but that was enough to qualify for Globals/ Before we decided to go though, we looked at scores from other states and to make sure we would be competitive with the other winning teams. We were,” the team said. “That gave us the confidence to go for it.”
At competitions, the Cactus Wranglers compete against other teams in the middle school, “High Wire” engineering challenge before a panel of judges.
“We perform our team challenge in front of an audience and a panel of judges called appraisers. Everything has to follow strict rules. We have to get all our materials and measurements checked before our performance,” the team said. “After that, the appraisers ask us questions about how we built our transporter, created our story and worked through problems. It’s exciting, nerve-wracking and really rewarding all at once.”
The Cactus Wranglers are preparing for the Global Finals by refining their transporter, enhancing their story and adding creative elements to their performance while preserving its core strengths.
Qualifying for the Global Finals is a dream come true for the team and something the school is very proud of.
‘We’re so proud to be going to Globals, it feels like a huge dream coming true,” the Cactus Wranglers said. “We’ve put in so much work and it is amazing to see how far we have come. Competing against much bigger schools with more resources and still qualifying shows us what’s possible when you work hard and believe in your ideas. We’re also really thankful for our community. Everyone has been so supportive, and we want to represent our school and our town in the best way we can. This opportunity means the world to us.”
Now, the team is also seeking support to fund their trip to Kansas City, and the team hopes to perform the challenge for the community before they head to the Global Finals, which is set to take place Thursday, May 22 through Sunday, May 25. This competition will bring teams from around the world.
“We would love to perform our challenge for the community to say thank you and show what we’ve been working on,” the team said. “We’ve learned so much, not just about building things or writing stories, but about teamwork, problem solving and sticking with something even when it gets really tough. Sometimes things go wrong or don’t work the way we planned but we find a way through it together. DI has taught us that hard work, dedication and big dreams can take you places, like Globals.”
Donations can be made to Battle Rock Charter School, with “DI” noted, or through the team’s GoFundMe page which can be found online at www.gofundme.com/f/help-the-cactus-wranglers-reach-global-finals.
