GREENVILLE, Texas, Oct. 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The call is going out to parents all over Texas: sign up your kids for the Destination ImagiNation program! By participating in the team-based competitive program, children can achieve lifelong benefits, improve self confidence, and learn creative problem solving and critical thinking.

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Destination ImagiNation is an after-school program that is easy and fun, and it teaches children the creative process through its hands-on educational challenges. The DI program teaches teamwork, problem solving, and critical and creative thinking. Teaching students these skills is currently being promoted as a strategy for schools to reduce bullying, intimidation and harassment.

In the program, children experience the thrill of applying their creativity to solve problems. They also work with team members to gain knowledge and experience in a wide variety of subjects. Destination ImagiNation participants learn to be innovative, creative, self-confident and collaborative -- traits that employers say they are looking for in the workforce of the future.

Texas had more than 3,000 K-12 youth teams compete for world honors in Destination ImagiNation last year. "We want to double that number to 6,000 teams for the coming Challenge year!" declared Sue Shanks, Destination ImagiNation Director for Texas. "The program teaches 21st century skills, and it is the only extra-curricular program that ties back directly to the classroom."

Parents, educators, scout leaders, youth club administrators, church members, business executives and others who want to help young people develop their creative and critical thinking skills can visit www.startateam.org to get started today.

Destination ImagiNation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that involves more than 125,000 youth on 15,000 teams in the U.S., Canada and 16 countries around the world annually. Its critical thinking and creative problem solving tournaments culminate in the annual Global Finals each May. All Destination ImagiNation Challenges connect to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) and National Educational Standards.

For more information, please visit www.idodi.org.

SOURCE Destination ImagiNation

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