Spontaneous

One of the biggest mistakes a new coach (or even a seasoned one) can make is to get so caught up in the Long-Term problem that training for Spontaneous gets short shrift. At competition, too many teams have learned the hard way that their Spontaneous score can make 'em or break 'em. Placing first in Long-Term and Style but dead last in Spontaneous likely means you'll watch as another team advances to the next level of competition. Team members who practice Spontaneous regularly vastly improve their chances of walking out of the awards ceremony with shiny medals around their necks.

Here's how a tournament typically goes:
  • Your first stop is the sign-in table, where the volunteers will provide you with next-step instructions.
  • Next, one coach will join the team in the holding room. Holding rooms are a great place to shake out the nerves. Depending on the setting and its proximity to the competition rooms, you might find a quiet room or find yourself in the midst of a dance party. You might want to clap for teams as they're called back to their competition room.
  • When your team gets called back to a competition room, all of your team members will follow the volunteer, while the coach exits the building to await the team's arrival.
  • In the competition room, all seven team members are allowed to participate in the spontaneous problem.
  • When the team is done competing, they'll be led to the exit doors, where the coach and parents will be waiting to cheer for them. It is important that the team not disclose the problem to anyone — not a coach, not a parent, not a friend on another team, not some followers on Twitter. Coaches and parents, don't ask them to tell you. Anyone who reveals a Spontaneous problem to others is subject to disqualification and/or disciplinary action taken against the entire team. It's not worth the risk.
Spontaneous Workshops

Spontaneous workshops help your team improve at solving problems on the fly and learn from the successes of other attending teams. Magic Center has scheduled the following spontaneous workshops. Go to the Dates page to see when workshops are scheduled and for information about how to register and pay.
Spontaneous Practice Problems
If you're in a hurry and don't have time to explore these resources, check out the Spontaneous Problem Builder to quickly put together a DIY Hands-on or Verbal/Hands-on problem with materials you have on hand.
Spontaneous Tips and Tactics
  • Read the Program Guide.
  • Attend a Spontaneous Workshop (or several).
  • Practice a variety of Spontaneous problems at every team meeting. There are three general types: verbal, hands-on, and verbal/hands-on.
  • Debrief after each problem. Talk positively and constructively about what went well, and discuss ways the team might be able to improve on things that didn't go well. Get feedback from team members too.
  • If the team members travel together to meetings, have them run through funny or light-hearted verbal problems in the car.
  • Practice tactics to help team members when they’re stuck in a verbal problem. For instance, they might have a go-to category (e.g., food, sports, animals) from which to pull answers when nothing else is working. For example, if the problem is to name things that are red, they could answer “Twizzlers” (food), “the laces on a baseball” (sports) or “a lizard’s puffed-out throat” (animals).
  • Don't fret if the team makes mistakes. They'll often learn more from them than their successes.
  • Train the team to LISTEN as the problem is being read and to ask questions after the judge has finished reading the full problem.
  • Train the team not to touch any of the materials until the judge gives them permission.
  • Train the team to use thinking or practice time wisely. Tell them to re-read the problem to determine what they can or can't do — overlooking one rule can ruin an otherwise good solution — and where the points are coming from. Come up with responses. Practice and test a structure, if the problem allows.
  • Train the team to speak loudly and clearly. Unintelligible answers cost the team time — and often points too!
  • Train the team to treat each other respectfully. The judges will notice a team that doesn't work together well.
  • Encourage the team to come up with a quick song or cheer to greet the judges when they enter the competition room.
  • Have the team designate one or two team members whose responsibility is to re-read the problem and quickly determine a strategy to maximize points. The team should focus on how to get the most points, and it's not always as obvious as it may seem.
  • Tell the team it’s OK to ask the judges whether they can stand instead of sit. Often, they’ll be more expressive — and more creative — if they’re on their feet.
  • When conferring on possible solutions, teams should talk loudly enough that the judges can hear them. The judges are looking for how well you work together, and the more they can hear, the more likely you'll get teamwork and even creativity points.
  • Urge them to ask the judges questions. If they're building a structure that will be scored for height, may they suspend it from the bottom of a table? Can they build multiple structures and get scored on them collectively? They might just get the answer that will give them an edge.
  • Encourage them to act out their verbal or verbal/hands-on responses. Sometimes the right amount of acting or humor can take a common response to the creative level.
  • Does your team have a great singer? Clever wordsmiths? A budding poet laureate? Have them explore ways to work those talents into a hands-on solution. For example, if they're making a chain out of paper, the singer could pipe up with "Back on the Chain Gang"; the wordsmiths could throw in references to "the weakest link," "chain of command" or "pulling someone's chain"; and the poet can let loose with on-the-fly rhyming couplets.