Spontaneous Problems

Spontaneous problems are an integral part of Odyssey of the Mind. At the competition, each team is presented with a spontaneous problem and is allotted a short period of time, generally no more than a few minutes, to come up with creative solutions. It is essential that teams practice for this portion of the competition, for although the spontaneous problem takes very little time in comparison to the long-term problem, which the team works on for several months, the spontaneous problem is worth one-half the point value of the long-term problem.

Spontaneous problems include verbal, hands-on, and verbal-hands-on problems. A verbal problem generally involves a prompt to which team members take turns giving responses. Creative responses are awarded more points than common responses. For example, if the prompt states, "Name things that are blue," and a student responds, "The sky is blue," the response would be marked as common. However, if the student responds, "When I am sick, I'm feeling blue," the response would be marked as creative. This tests the students' ability to think creatively in a short period of time. Hands-on problems generally involve the construction of a device or structure to complete a task, and verbal-hands-on problems are a combination of the two. On many occasions, the spontaneous problem is the deciding factor for a team's overall performance.

For practice on spontaneous problems, visit the official Odyssey of the Mind webpage at http://www.odysseyofthemind.com/practice/default_cat.php?Id=2.