Become A Team Manager And Make A New Team Possible
A Destination Imagination Team Manager is a volunteer parent who facilitates team activity through the season. Typically teams have one or two team managers, or a team manager and an assistant team manager. We can only have as many teams as we have team managers to support them so team managers are a vital part of the program!
What does a team manager do?
As a team manager you organize and host your team meetings.
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Guide the process by fostering creative discussions.
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Help the team stay on task and on time.
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Help students share ideas and collaborate inclusively.
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Resolve differences in a respectful, productive way.
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Teach general skills such as using a sewing machine, basic craft skills, telling a story, or using a power tool.
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Gather supplies for props
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Communicate meeting logistics to parents
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Try to keep chaos to a minimum, though some of that is just part of the process!
Most of all, you help each student express their creativity and problem-solving skills while having fun along the way.
What does a team manager NOT do?
When coaching a sports team you spend a lot of time telling kids what to do. In DI, that’s called “interference”. Interference is not allowed because the goal is to foster problem solving skills through independent trial and error. This means you cannot:
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Contribute ideas toward a solution no matter how good you think your idea is or how bad or ineffective the team idea is.
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Make suggestions about how to do something even though you think it might help.
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Help construct props
For many, avoiding interference is the hardest part (because DI is fun!) but by letting students find their own way you let students have the most amazing and unexpected breakthroughs on their own!
Am I qualified to be a team manager?
Well, let's see.
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Do you like working with kids?
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Are you relatively patient?
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Are you willing to let kids make mistakes and learn by doing so?
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Would you get satisfaction from seeing your son or daughter be part of a team that learns to work together to grow and overcome challenges?
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Are you willing to open your home to a group of energetic kids?
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Can you commit to the idea of "non-interference"?
If you answered “Yes” to these questions then you are qualified.
Bedford Team Managers meet periodically through the season to share stories and share advice about working with their teams. There are also team manager workshops offered by Massachusetts Destination Imagination (MADIKids.org) at the beginning of each season to help Team Managers with guiding teams to get the most of their DI experience.
Thousands of parents have managed a DI team and so can you!
How are teams formed?
Teams can have two to seven members and are grouped by elementary, middle, and high school levels. Students usually come back year after year to their teams, but not always, so existing teams sometimes have openings for new members.
New teams may be created from a group of friends or from a group of individuals looking to join any team. We consider age, proximity, personality, and affinity as best we can, but in the end we ultimately look to place everyone on a team. The only real limit is having enough team managers for the number of students who want to participate.
How often do teams meet? When, where?
Teams typically meet once a week after school or on the weekend at a Team Manager's house. Meetings vary in length from 1-3 hours depending on the team, age of participants, and what they want to get done.
It's flexible and up to the team manager to decide with their team what works for them. We suggest sticking to a (mostly) regular meeting schedule so parents and students can plan around it from week to week.
