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May
2003
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Gathering
of teens is victory in the making |
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James
Pankratz
Special to Parenting |
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It was a cold morning in
fall when the team piled into the van. We had to get an
early start. The eyes of the five teen-agers were not
fully open, when the van pulled out of the parking lot
at 6:30 a.m. The tournament was scheduled to start at
9 a.m. at Northwestern University.
As we navigated toward Evanston, Ill., I heard the team
thawing. My older son was on board along with four of
his high school classmates. They started to get psyched
because they had not one, but seven matches ahead of them
that day.
“Name the two vice presidents of Thomas Jefferson.”
“Who wrote The Prince and the Pauper?”
They were warming up for a Quiz Bowl competition. Their
high school was the only one from Wisconsin. Most of their
competition involved high schools from Illinois, with
one significant and ominous exception.
I was the parent coach for this trip, which meant that
I had very little to do, other than say encouraging things
like “You can do it” and “You can really
do it.”
The team took their seats at the front of the classroom.
In front of each player was a box with a button connected
to a light. If you manage to jump in and hit the button
before the other team, you have a few seconds to give
the correct answer. If you fail, it’s the other
team’s chance. Points are awarded for each correct
answer. Bonus questions net 30 points. You win through
a combination of lightning-fast responses and, of course,
accuracy.
The other team filed in, took their seats, and sized up
their opponents as they were being sized up. The moderator
took his seat at the front of the classroom. Eight sweaty
fingers were poised on the buttons.
“Who said ‘History is more or less bunk?’
”
Buzzer. Light.
“Henry Ford.”
“Correct.”
Relief. We were rolling.
“Who were the two participants in a duel held in
Weehaken, New...” Buzzer. Light. “Aaron Burr
and Alexander Hamilton.” “Correct.”
The other team had done their homework, too.
Our team was balanced. Each member had a specialty: history,
English, science, or math. When the moderator said “Take
out paper and pencil,” that was the cue that a brain-buster
was on the way.
“The area of one face of a cube is 16 square centimeters.
What is the length of the edge of the cube? What is the
total surface area of the cube? What is the volume of
the cube?”
“What is for lunch?” I wondered, while the
pencils were scratching. As noon approached, our team
seemed unstoppable. Then a court jester led his team into
the room. He wore a multi-colored court jester cap with
a bell on each floppy end. The rest of the team, although
hatless, looked like they had been cruising all morning,
too.
“We’re St. Andrews,” said the coach
as he extended his hand. “How are you doing?”
I gulped. “Clean sweep so far,” he answered.
They looked good.
They were good.
As we ate our burgers and fries in the school cafeteria,
our team put its only loss of the morning behind them.
The match was close. A couple points made all the difference
... and knowing who was the Greek goddess of flax. My
son resolved to bone up on his mythology.
After lunch, another three rounds.
“In what three states are the Ozark Mountains principally
located?”
“Into what two regions is the body of a crayfish
divided?”
The science and math questions were tough. Guilford handed
our guys their second loss. The team tried to shake off
the after-lunch malaise. I offered encouraging words:
“You can still do it!” They were ready.
What! St. Andrews again! “Where are you guys from?”
I asked.
“Mississippi. We’re flying out to Stanford
for a meet in a couple of weeks.”
Please, no mythology. St. Andrews was real good at mythology.
St. Andrews handed them another loss and went on to snag
the tournament championship, but our team came back for
another win to claim third place for the tournament.
Actually, there were no losers at the tournament. Any
time a group of teen-agers get together to be supercharged
about learning, a victory is in the making.
Oh, I didn’t bother to include all of the answers
to the questions in this article, since I know all of
you parents have already graduated from high school. Now,
if I could only recall ... who is the Greek god of the
sea, earthquakes and horses?
(Pankratz is a marriage and family therapist at Catholic
Charities Milwaukee regional office.) |
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