The students--Samantha Ellis, Lyssa Samuel, Stephanie McDonald, Karen Orcutt, Mary Plavec and Alex Kurtz, collectively known as Them Stumpy Chickens--are traveling to Knoxville to compete in the Destination ImagiNation global finals. There, they will display the creative problem-solving skills they've polished by participating in the program.

The competition, which runs May 25-26, consists of two components: a "Sudden Serendipity" theatrical challenge and an improvisational "Instant Challenge." For the theatrical challenge, students create a skit in which they must show an invention that serendipitously morphs into another invention. The skit must be relayed in narrative form and last eight minutes.

After countless hours of brainstorming and head scratching, Them Stumpy Chickens conjured up an idea they think will wow the judges. They begin with a "blend-a-wave," an amalgam of a blender and a microwave oven. Then a bird serendipitously falls into the appliance, transforming it into a time-space continuum module. The bird and the inventors are transported to an alternate universe. The machine breaks, and the inventors must go on a quest in order to return home.

The team started working on the challenge at the beginning of the school year and say they have put "hundreds of hours" into the project. Their financial contribution has been much smaller; teams must stick to a $175 budget. Them Stumpy Chickens kept its spending to a mere $125, thanks to their creative and cheap costume materials such as playing cards and duct tape.

In addition to creating a skit, the team must perform an "Instant Challenge," which requires contenders to work together to build a structure with random objects.

"It shows how well you can think on your feet, how well the team works together and your creativity," 10th-grader Samantha says.

The team knows what they will have to build but cannot reveal it to outsiders. They take a vow of secrecy before the competition so potential competitors don't know what to expect. Loose-lipped teams are disqualified.

Teams will also be disqualified if they receive outside input. Each team has an adult manager, who Mary says is to provide food and supervision. However, adult assistance can't go beyond providing transportation, protection and the occasional snack.

The emphasis on students' independence is what Them Stumpy Chickens says they like best about the program.

"This is something you don't get in school," ninth-grader Karen notes. "In school, it's, 'This is this, and follow the rules.' If you don't understand something, they help you. In Destination ImagiNation, you can't get outside help."

Most of the team members have participated in Destination ImagiNation before. All of them have performing arts experience.

"We are a multitalented group," 10th-grader Mary says. "Alex is the script writer, Karen is the mechanic and Lyssa handles public relations."

Karen says the different personalities are really helpful. If someone is weak in one area, someone else helps. She says this accounts for their high performance in the regional and state competitions.

All this time together has yielded more than a winning team.

"You spend so much time with your group that you develop a bond that most friends don't get," Samantha says. "We are a tight-knit group."

For more information about Destination ImagiNation, visit www.destinationimagination.org.