MathCounts Workshop

Ross Nelson29 October 2004

Topics

PracticesChoosing a teamSprint RoundTarget RoundTeam RoundCountdown RoundState and Beyond

Practice Tips

It’s not a math classTips for faster, more reliable mathPut them in the situations they’ll face during competition Sprint, power, team, countdown, master rounds

Encourage discussion among the studentsProvide resources to support questions Encourage research

Make it fun – competition, rewards

Often-Overlooked Useful Skills

Estimation When to use it, how to do it Draw it

Verification Solve it differently Perform the computations in a

different order

Team Selection

Don’t choose the team until you have to!Use objective criteria for selection – keeps the parents and kids happyLet the kids know what the criteria are – allows them to work towards the objective, rewards hard workMake it fun for everyone, even those who don’t compete… pizza party, mini school competition

Sprint Round

To maximize points, the goal is to find quick, correct answersRead them all in order, but only answer the ones at first that you know how to do for sure, get your brain working on the restFlag the problems that need to be reworked for sureDouble check the easiest ones – need those points

Sprint Practice Ideas

Develop speed and reliabilityDo lots of problems, under a very tight time limit, tracks scores and improvementEncourage questions between teammatesDo single problems, or small groups of problems, and time the studentsPost scores to encourage FRIENDLY competition?

Target Round

Tests depth of knowledge and solving multi-step problemsRead the two problems quickly, start with the easiest and work it to completionAlways attempt both problemsWork them both in different ways if time permits

Target Round Practice

Develop DEPTH of knowledgeHave students run “seminars” on different areasDo lots of difficult problems, with no time limitsDiscussion is a MUST

Team Round

Use the first few minutes to divide and conquer – equal but independent answers without influence are strong answersDiscuss difficult problems for quick questions, rarely spend all 4 people’s time working one hard problemSome team members can help verify and look for math mistakesStay Quiet!

Team Round Practice

Try many strategies, ie two person teams, everybody for themselves, all togetherUse scaled down tests; iteration is the keyLISTEN CAREFULLY to be able to analyze the teamwork after they finishHighlight missed questions, discuss why it was wrong, what could have corrected it, analyze decision making skills of teamTeam building exercises

Countdown Round

Timing is everything – learn to know WHEN you will know the answer?What can you figure out in 5 seconds?Buzz in only when you absolutely WILL know the answer

Countdown Round Practice

5 second drills – answers in 5 secondsFor-sure drills – state in 5 seconds whether you can answer the question, then calculate the answer at your leisureTRACK results, help to improveRun competitions often with groups of 2-4

Parents

Watch out for the craziesObjective criteria for team selection is critical – CYA principle appliesTie breaker method is important Countdown or Master Round Attendance Task completion

Have parents attend the selection?

Competition Day

Extra calculators, pens, pencils, paperRemind them about the rules before each roundGo over the tips and tricks checklist you built during your practice sessionsKeep it fun