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Hazelwood West Middle School Students Compete at TOYchallenge
Hazelwood West Middle School sixth grade students, from left, Emma Bamert, Jacqueline Pelletier and Roxane Dennis, with a mock-up of their game, “The Mathters of Magic.” The trio will travel to Alexandria, VA to compete in the Sally Ride TOYchallengeâ„¢ Nationals. If they win, the Hasbro Toy Company will mass-produce their game. Behind them are art teacher and team sponsor, Elaine Eversgerd, left, and Dennis’ mother, Monette Dennis.
A team of Hazelwood West Middle School sixth grade students, Roxane Dennis, Emma Bamert and Jacqueline Pelletier, advanced to the 2009 Sally Ride TOYchallengeâ„¢ Nationals in Alexandria, VA, May 15-17. They were one of 70 school teams nationwide to advance.
“It’s a nationwide competition,” said art teacher and team sponsor, Elaine Eversgerd. “If our team wins at nationals, the Hasbro Toy Company will mass-produce their game.”
Founded by former astronaut Sally Ride as part of Sally Ride Scienceâ„¢, the TOYchallengeâ„¢ is a contest that allows children to show off their creativity by letting them design their dream toy. Ride sought to support girls who are or might become interested in science, math and technology.
“We wanted to go for something educational but we wanted something that would catch your eye,” said Pelletier.
Their game is called “The Mathters of Magic.” The game’s object is to create a more eco-friendly world by saving all parts of nature. Players answer math problems after a roll of the dice. An example question: If you recycle 20 bags of cans at 25 cents a bag, how much money do you earn?
There are six wizards – Foster, Shadow, Lilly, Ember, Ray and Aquarius – who represent elements of nature and who control different territories on the game board. In the center, a face or a mask with eyes that light up is set into the board. This is AKORN, or All-Knowing Orb of Resources in Nature. AKORN is similar to Mother Nature and helps with answers. The girls are still working on ways to make her talk.
“AKORN is my favorite character because she is awesome and you get to poke the eyes when she lights up,” Dennis said.
Mathters is not a traditional board game – in fact it would have no board at all. It would use a mat made of grass or turf that players remove from a recycled bag and unroll to use. The girls also specified recycled materials for the game pieces.
Players travel along paths, such as the Valley of Piece. In this case, ‘piece’ is a play on words and a math term. The first player to the reach the end of the path wins by creating an eco-friendly world. Game questions match each area and relate to ways to save that part of the world.
If you are not willing to be a part of our team, “Subtract Yourself or we will divide you.”
“We want to make connections with art and math with this game and we want to point out that by making connections in nature, we can save the Earth and live in a world that shares the same “values” – another math term,” Eversgerd added.
As a twist, the girls assigned the stronger powers to the female wizards. “Boys always get the cool stuff,” Pelletier said.
The TOYchallengeâ„¢ is especially designed for middle school girls to inspire them to pursue careers in science and engineering.
