Some Westport Elementary School students with most healthy imaginations have made it their business to help provide hospitalized youngsters with fun ways to pass the time.

They call themselves ‘The Peculiar Peeps,’ and they are their school’s Destination Imagination team.

Destination Imagination is a project-based learning program that each year offers seven new academic challenges in the fields of STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), fine arts, service learning, and early learning).

The Westport team is participating in the Project Outreach category and so far things are going well.

On March 11 they won the regional title at Dennis-Yarmouth on Saturday, March 11. On April 2 they finished second at the states.

The Peculiar Peeps are now the first Westport team ever to be invited to Globals which will be held in Knoxville, Tennessee from May 24 to May 27.

“Today I could tell that Mr. Gastall was really proud that a team from his school is going to globals,” said team member Alia Davis after that win. He was walking around smiling all day.

"It's cool that we started as a little tiny group and now we are this big,” said Lily Duclos …Gryffin MacDonald finished that thought with — "sensation!"

Added Brooke Potter, “I am so excited to go to Tennessee for "Westport. I want to bring a trophy home for them.”

For their project, The Peculiar Peeps decided collect coloring books and crayons to donate to the Southcoast Hospitals Group.

“The team believes that children can be scared, lonely, and bored in a hospital and they wanted to help the sick children pass the time. The school community collected over 100 coloring books and boxes of crayons.”

Accomplishing that required getting the word out and they devised a skit titled “Ready, Willing and Fable.”

“The plot centers on a very grumpy Jeffrey the Turtle who visits his grandmother in the hospital where he sees some very sad sick kids,” Ms. Potter said.  After leaving the hospital he is visited by a ghost of the past, ghost of the present and ghost of the future who collectively convince Jeffrey to change his ways.  He returns with gifts of coloring books and crayons for the kids and even some natural cures for the children.

The seven Peculiar Peeps are Avery Avila, Alia Davis, Shannon Denis, Lily Duclos, Emma Hathaway, Gryffin MacDonald and Brooke Potter.

Their success has handed the team a new challenge — raising money for their trip south.

They are working to raise money to register the seven students and team manager $750 per person), and for transportation, donations may be sent to Westport Elementary School, C/O Melissa Avila, 380 Old County Road, Westport, MA  02790

Checks should be made to Team Manager Karen Davis.