Getting Involved - Parents

Tournament of Minds (TOM) is a problem solving program for multi-aged teams of students who work together to solve a demanding, open-ended Long-Term Challenge. The Long Term Challenges will be made available through your facilitator. The team is made up of seven team members from multiple year levels. They will decide which of the four challenges offered they will attempt to solve.

The team must also participate in an unseen Spontaneous Challenge® on Tournament Day. The program has Primary and Secondary divisions. Tournament of Minds’ aim is to enhance the potential of our youth by developing diverse skills, enterprise, time management, and the discipline to work collaboratively within a challenging and competitive environment.

The best way you can help is to support the commitment of your child to the TOM program. This means assisting your child to attend training and preparation sessions and most importantly being available on Tournament Day.

For the TOM experience to be the best for your child and their team, it's important that the solutions and presentations for the challenges are all created by the team members themselves. It's all about showing confidence in your child's abilities! All team members and their facilitator need to sign a form confirming they're following this rule. If you're interested, you can contact your child's school and offer to help as a team facilitator.

Or, if you're up for it, you could consider becoming a TOM Judge. TOM values having judges from different age groups, industries, and backgrounds. Don't worry, you won't be judging your child's school. If this sounds interesting, check out your Branch's page on the TOM website for more details.