For the past three years, Junction School in Palo Cedro, California, has competed in Odyssey of the Mind with a team made up primarily of students enrolled in special education classes. Not only have they competed, they’ve also been the recipients of several awards.

    These kids don't have to think out-side the box because they are already “outside the box.” From the time they were born their brains functioned in a different way from most of the rest of us. For some, not being able to write long-winded explanations or sentences led to writing terse, concise statements that get right to the point. For others, not being able to read well led to a greater under-standing and appreciation of what was said, read or lectured. A poor understanding of math concepts was compensated for by a greater appreciation of numeration or practical math. Above all, every one of them has a “SENSE OF HUMOR.” What is a sense of humor but a way to put a different spin on things? It doesn't matter that they originally developed this sense of humor as a way to deflect teasing or criticism. It now allows them to see the absurd and the illogical in most situations and to exploit that to solve problems.

   They function well as a team because, with a little work, they have learned to compensate for each other's weaknesses. The students who don't speak clearly have more of an “action” part in a performance. The stronger members of the team direct the students with less of a sense of organization. The quick thinkers are the ones who solve the spontaneous problems. Does all this sound familiar? Isn't this what any well-rounded team does? Sure, some weaknesses are more profound than in an ordinary team, but good teams learn to use their strengths, not their weaknesses.

   When I sat down to write this article, the original idea was to write a guideline on how to include special education students on Odyssey of the Mind teams, but I realized that no guideline is needed. Special education students are a “natural” for Odyssey of the Mind.