Resources by Challenge (2023-2024)
Technical Challenge - Pinball Heroes
TECHNICAL CHALLENGE
The Technical Challenge prompts students to complete tasks by using engineering, research, strategic planning, and related skills.
Action, adventure, challenges to overcome! See the lights flashing and listen to the buzzers and bells as your team brings a pinball game to life! Hone your pinball skills and aim for the high score when you try this year’s Technical Challenge!
- Design and build a pinball system through which a pinball moves and interacts with 3 machine modules.
- During the Presentation, move the pinball through the pinball system for as long as possible.
- Create and present an action/adventure story about a hero who goes on an extraordinary mission.
- Create and present two Team Choice Elements that show off the team’s interests, skills, areas of strength, and talents.
Contact Your Challenge Masters:
Team Manager Training
Scientific Challenge - Blast From The Past
SCIENTIFIC CHALLENGE
Our Scientific Challenge blends the curiosity of scientific research with the creative expression of performance art.
A broken jar, a bit of stone—the remains of the past are all around us. Have you ever wondered what those things might have been used for or what they meant to the people who made them? What archaeological mysteries will be revealed in this year’s Scientific Challenge?
- Create and present a story about a character whose discovery of an artifact leads to a finding.
- Include an archaeological investigation that contributes to the finding.
- Design and create a puppet that will portray a character from the past.
- Create and present two Team Choice Elements that show off the team’s interests, skills, areas of strength, and talents.
Contact Your Challenge Masters:
Team Manager Training
Engineering Challenge - Going The Distance
ENGINEERING CHALLENGE
Our Engineering Challenge asks students to explore and apply engineering skills and tools to design and build solutions to specific applications.
It’s a bird, it’s a plane…no…it’s a beanbag! Who can predict how far the beanbag will fly or where it will come to rest? In this season’s Engineering Challenge, you will test your accuracy as you launch beanbags using a launching device and tell a story about what happens when things do not go exactly as planned.
- Design and build a modular device that will be assembled and then tested in two different configurations during the Presentation.
- Complete launch tests to test how far and how accurately your modular device can launch a bean bag in each configuration.
- Transform the modular device from one configuration to the other.
- Create and present a story in which everything is going according to plan until a catalyst occurs.
- Create and present two Team Choice Elements that show off the team’s interests, skills, areas of strength, and talents.
Contact your Challenge Masters:
Fine Arts Challenge - In Motion
FINE ARTS
Our Fine Arts Challenge helps students develop acting and creative skills through artistic media, theater arts, scriptwriting, and prop design.
Art has the power to move us or stop us in our tracks. In this year’s Fine Arts Challenge, you will bring a work of visual art to life and create your very own piece of kinetic art. What work of art will inspire you?
- Create and present a story inspired by a work of visual art.
- Include a static character and a dynamic character in the story.
- Reimagine the work of visual art as performance art and include the reimagined art in the Presentation.
- Design and create one piece of kinetic art that uses technical methods to create movement.
- Create and present two Team Choice Elements that show off the team’s interests, skills, areas of strength, and talents.
Contact your Challenge Masters:
Improvisational Challenge - So Extra
IMPROVISATIONAL
Our Improvisational Challenge is all about research, spontaneity, and storytelling. Teams receive topics and quickly produce skits.
Sometimes less is more, or more is less…Your team will use your improv skills to create a 2-act skit, complete with a costume created on the spot! An intensifier will tell your team whether you’ll maximize or minimize elements of your skit in the second act. Find out how things will change with the toss of a coin in this year’s Improvisational Challenge!
- Create and present a 2-act improvisational skit based on a scenario.
- Incorporate a stock character into the skit.
- Research costume design and use a costume design kit to create a costume.
- Use an intensifier to minimize or maximize the scenario, stock character, and costume.
Contact your Challenge Masters:
Service Learning Challenge - Uncharted
SERVICE LEARNING
Our Service Learning Challenge is designed to engage students in public service that addresses real-life community issues.
Your team will dive into a world of fantasy in this year’s Service Learning Challenge. Use a map to guide you on your quest, but beware of the danger that awaits! What will you seek? Fame? Fortune? Or to make the world a better place? The quest is about to begin!
- Identify, design, carry out, and evaluate a project that addresses a need in a real community.
- Create and present a fantasy story about a character who goes on a quest.
- Design and create a fantasy map that uses technical methods to represent location information from the story.
- Create and present two Team Choice Elements that show off the team’s interests, skills, areas of strength, and talents.
Contact your Challenge Masters:
Team Manager Training
Rising Stars Challenge - Making A Splash
EARLY LEARNING
Our Rising Stars for Early Learners Challenge offers simple experiences with the creative process, and it gives young kids (preschool through 2nd grade) a place to work together and make new friends.
From the busy coral reef, to the inky depths of the midnight zone, to the shallows of a lake bed, there are lots of amazing underwater habitats to visit. Where might underwater creatures go for a vacation? Come explore life under the sea in this season’s Early Learning Challenge!
- Research underwater habitats.
- Create and present a play about a group of underwater creatures who go on vacation to an underwater habitat.
- Design and build a model of a landmark the underwater creatures visit.
- Create scenery to show the underwater habitat.
- Create and present one Team Choice Element that shows off the team’s interests, skills, areas of strength, and talents.
Contact your Challenge Master:
Team Manager Training
Link to Material
Instant Challenge
INSTANT CHALLENGE
All teams will have the opportunity to solve an Instant Challenge. These challenges require teams to engage in quick, creative and critical thinking.
In a world with growing cultural connections, increased levels and types of communication, and a new need for real-time teamwork and problem-solving, the ability to solve problems quickly is becoming increasingly critical.
Each team will be asked to solve an Instant Challenge for their DI tournament. The team must think on their feet by applying appropriate skills to produce a solution in a short period of time.
Instant Challenges are performance-based, task-based, or a combination of the two. Although each Instant Challenge has different requirements, all Instant Challenges reward teams for their teamwork. Instant Challenges are kept confidential until it is time for teams to solve them.
General Team Manager Information
Team Manager Trainings
DI Colorado provides trainings for both our new and “seasoned” Team Managers.
Our 2023-2024 Team Manager Trainings will be offered in several ways:
- In person evening training opportunities for new Team Managers and those Team Managers needing a refresher class. These will be offered monthly in the Metro area and also available on the Western Slope.
- Training Recording
- Zoom training opportunities for new Team Managers and those Team Managers needing a refresher class. These will not be recorded.
- DI Learn Management Classes: These classes are asynchronous, self-paced learning with MANY topics!!! If you can’t make the Live or Webinar training sessions, this is the place for you.
- Challenge specific training will be available for all Team Managers either live or through the Adobe Captivate Learning Management Classes.
- All Team Managers that attend one or more of these training opportunities will receive a special Team Manager T-shirt.
- There is no charge for trainings. It’s included as part of your fees when you purchase your National Membership.
INSTANT CHALLENGE
All teams will have the opportunity to solve an Instant Challenge. These challenges require teams to engage in quick, creative and critical thinking.
In a world with growing cultural connections, increased levels and types of communication, and a new need for real-time teamwork and problem-solving, the ability to solve problems quickly is becoming increasingly critical.
Each team will be asked to solve an Instant Challenge for their DI tournament. The team must think on their feet by applying appropriate skills to produce a solution in a short period of time.
Instant Challenges are performance-based, task-based, or a combination of the two. Although each Instant Challenge has different requirements, all Instant Challenges reward teams for their teamwork. Instant Challenges are kept confidential until it is time for teams to solve them.
Why become a Team Manager
Becoming a DI Team Manager can be one of the most rewarding experiences you will have as an adult volunteer. You get to witness the growth of your team and the amazing solutions they develop, firsthand. Along the way, you learn how to build teams, teach creative problem solving, and form lasting relationships with your team members and other adult volunteers.
“Unlike any other organization I’ve come across, I see that DI teaches extremely valuable real-world skills that will give my kids, and the kids on my team, a major head-start in life. They don’t get these valuable skills in school and very few other organizations are as effective at teaching and encouraging them. More than ever, the engine of our economy is ‘American Ingenuity’ and I want my kids to enter the working world with strong skills in this area. Being part of DI is very satisfying – and worth my time. I’ve developed a much deeper and meaningful relationship with my kids (and other DI team members) through DI. DI has prompted some great ‘kitchen table’ discussions with my kids on very practical real-world issues. It’s also allowed me to play a major increased role in their lives and in their development that I know they value.”-Scott Dalgleish
How To Become The Team Manager of Record
By now, your team has most likely read through all of the exciting Challenges of the 2019-20 season. If you’ve chosen your Challenge, you may have even started working on its solution already! Each year, our Challenge Writers work hard to make sure they develop fun and engaging academic Challenges for all of our participants. Knowing which Challenge your team is participating in this season helps us identify the most popular Challenges, as well as better gauge the number of teams that are competing worldwide.
We need you to take a few minutes to enter your team’s information – including your Team Name, Team Challenge, and Challenge Level – in our Resource Area.
If this is your first time accessing the Resource Area, this portal will allow you to download documents, such as practice Instant Challenges, as well as ask Team Clarifications. So please go ahead and dig around while you’re in there!
HOW TO ENTER YOUR TEAM’S INFORMATION:
- If you don’t have a DI account, create one now by going to: https://resources.destinationimagination.org/shop.php/auth/account/create_new_account and entering your information.
- Once you have an account, go to the Resource Area here: https://resources.destinationimagination.org/resources.php.
- Make sure to view and accept the code of conduct!
- Highlight the Teams tab and then select My Teams.
- Click on Add Team, and then enter either the Team Number and order number (this information will come from the person who purchased the team number) OR the Team Number and the postal code.
- If you have multiple teams, repeat Step 5 to claim all of your teams.
- Click on the pencil icon to the left of your Team Number, and then add/edit your organization name, team name, and the Challenge/Level your team will be participating in this season. Remember, you can change the Challenge if your team decides to make a switch from their original plan. However, once you’ve competed in your first tournament, you cannot change your Challenge.
Important: Because our scoring program is tied to the information you provide, please make sure everything is accurate!
Getting Ready for Tournament
Background Checks
In order to provide the highest level of after school activities for our participants, Destination Imagination requires Team Managers to have a background check. Destination Imagination will be administering background checks through the Destination Imagination store.
Check out Destination Imagination’s Youth Protection Policy here.
Background Checks
In order to provide the highest level of after school activities for our participants, DI Colorado requires all team managers to have background checks. Please review our detailed Youth Protection Policy here.
New for 2022-2023. Background checks are being administered and processed through DIHQ.
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- You can purchase a background check at Background Checks.
- You can either purchase a background check with your team number or you can purchase a team number independently.
- You will not be able to access team challenges and other resources until you have cleared your background check.
- If you have a LEVEL 2 background check from Sterling Volunteers due to volunteer work with a different non-profit, church, or school, you may share it with Destination Imagination. NOT Destination Imagination Colorado. Again, Destination Imagination.
- Please contact Kate if you would like your school to fill out a waiver if you have a school background check.
Clarifications
PUBLISHED CLARIFICATIONS
- When there is an issue in a Team Challenge or Rules of the Road that all teams should know about, a Published Clarification will be posted.
- A Published Clarification supersedes Rules of the Road and the Team Challenge, as well as a Team Clarification.
- Every team is expected to know the Published Clarifications for their Challenge.
TEAM CLARIFICATIONS
- Before your team asks for a Team Clarification, please read all the Published Clarifications for your Challenge.
- Your team may ask up to 10 questions for your Team Challenge.
- Teams may only ask ONE question per Clarification request.
- We will answer your team’s questions and send the answers directly back to you.
- The question and answer will not be shared with any other team.
- Team Clarifications should be submitted by the Team Manager.
The deadline to ask for Team Clarifications is January 31, 2024, at 11:59 pm Pacific Time.
To ask for a team clarification click here: Team Clarification
Forms
Riding the Creative Wave - One Alumni's Experience
Hi, my name is Riley Morgenthaler, DI Alumna and creator of this website.
After watching my sisters do DI for seven long years, I was overjoyed when, in the sixth grade, it was finally my turn to join a team. Head buzzing with all of the ideas I had been formulating since I was three years old, I eagerly threw off my cheerleader sash to join the ranks of the competitors. I was sure that all of my best laid plans and dreams would pan out perfectly as I embarked on my long-awaited DI journey. Luckily for me, they didn’t, and DI became the biggest learning experience of my life as I navigated teamwork, self-doubt, disappointment and success.
Throughout my six years as a DI team member I became well acquainted with the ups-and-downs of the Creative Process, and I am happy to be able to share my knowledge and experience of the various stages with other DI kids. Each part of the process might not be fun, but it is the struggle that makes the success worthwhile.
Riding the Creative Wave
Words Of Wisdom From Team Managers
Team Manager Guide: Here is a wonderful guide to help a first year Team Manager. It was written in 2015 by a Team Manager who has managed DI teams for each of his three children. This is his perspective.
Appendices To New Team Manager Guide
Advice from a Team Manager to New Team Managers.
Experiences as a DI Team Manager and how they are real-world, adult experiences.
Experiences As A DI Team Manager
The top 10 Team Manager duties from an experienced Team Manager.
Become A Team Manager Mentor
Guide For Manager Mentors
If you are an experienced Team Manager, please consider acting as a mentor for a new Team Manager. DI can be an overwhelming program to jump right into. As a new Team Manager, having a person to talk with, run ideas past, etc. is so helpful. By providing this small service, you will truly be able to make a big difference for another Destination Imagination team.
If you are interested in becoming a mentor, contact Tina Morgenthaler.
Manager Mentor Duties:
- Check in with your Mentee at least once a week.
- Answer any questions your Mentee has, and remember how confused you were when you first started.
- Provide insight and tips to help these new Team Managers be successful.
- Act as an inspiration and example to follow.
- Be supportive, and remember that you are doing something amazing to help others!
Things New Team Managers need the most help with:
- how to lead a productive meeting
- how to get the team focused and moving in the same direction
- how to understand the Challenge
- how to interpret scoring
- what the final product will look like
- how to deal with team conflict
- how to build teamwork
- how to establish continuity from one year to the next
- general information about how this all works
Other Ways You Can Help:
Depending on your availability, resources, and Mentee’s requests, these are some potential ideas of ways you can help these new teams be successful.
- Invite them to one of your team’s meetings and/or attend one of their team’s meetings.
- If you are putting together an Instant Challenge for your team, and have extra materials, put together a kit to give to your Mentee’s team.
- Share your stash of Instant Challenges.
- Have your teams meet, so that your team members can do their own “mini mentoring” for new participants.
- Have an Instant Challenge party for both of your teams.
- Share pictures and/or videos of your team’s past solutions.
- Check if your Mentee’s team needs help getting to tournaments.
- If you’re taking your team on a field trip, if possible, take the other team along.
- Check in with your Mentee as the tournament approaches.
- Just be supportive!
Additional Resources - Videos, DIHQ Resource Page, FAQ
Colorado YouTube Channel: YouTube Colorado
Watch Colorado team solution videos and Colorado training webinars.
DIHQ YouTube Channel: DI Nationals YouTube
Watch teams’ final solutions, hear what DI Alum and Sponsors have to say, and watch last year’s Global Finals ceremonies.
2 Minute Team Videos YouTube Channel: 2 Minute Team Videos
Lots of videos by kids for kids about the Destination Imagination process.
DIHQ Resources page: Resources
Here you’ll find Instant Challenges, team building activities, as well as exploring and understanding properties of materials.
Destination Imagination Colorado FAQ page: Frequently Asked Questions
You’ll find additional answers to questions such as How To Form A Team and What’s The Time Commitment here.
All Other Resources
- Get new Instant Challenges (ICs).
- Learn how to teach skills through IC.
- Find new places to get IC materials.
- Learn about what is and isn’t Interference.
- Teach your team family members about Interference.
- Develop strategies to avoid Interference.