Hands-on math! About the Advanced Math Program
Objectives
Class Format
Washington State Math Olympiad
Homeschooling Information

ABOUT THE ADVANCED MATH PROGRAM

 The Advanced Math Program is a math enrichment program for students in grades 5 and 6. This program was developed by parent volunteers, working with educators, in the Highline School District #401, Seattle, WA. It began with 12 students in 1990 and has grown to include hundreds of students in public and private schools around Puget Sound and beyond. Each school has one or more volunteer coaches (parent or educator) using the materials provided at this site. The schedule serves as a template to deliver these concepts to any student in any school, including home-schools.

OBJECTIVES

 The objectives of our program are as follows: (in the order of importance)
  1. To interest students in math! (Most important!)
  2. To provide a positive experience that shows the student and family that math can be fun.
  3. To provide math enrichment for highly capable and highly motivated students. This includes kids of average ability that are willing to work at math. Your child doesn't have to be a 'math whiz' to succeed at this.
  4. To prepare elementary students for secondary school mathematics, science, and computer courses.
  5. To provide students an opportunity to compete well at the Washington State Math Council (WSMC) Math Olympiad, held in the spring of each year.

CLASS FORMAT

This course is designed to be taught in a one hour session once a week. Beginning with lesson #9, additional practice competition materials for a second hour long session are provided. The one hour lessons generally follow this format:
  1. (5 minutes) Mental math. 3 to 5 problems to get students warmed up.
  2. (5 minutes) Review two or three homework problems. Students solve problems on the board.
  3. (10 minutes) Explanation of new topic, with examples on the board and interaction with class.
  4. (40 minutes) Students work problems in class with coaches assistance. Homework is handed out when students successfully complete the in-class exercise.
Notice that only 10 minutes of the hour are devoted to "chalkboard lecture." For the largest part of the hour students are actively working independently or in groups. One of the main ways our program has improved over the years is to include more hands-on problem solving and less lecture. We have found that this format achieves better results.

The one hour practice competition offered in a second class session each week after lesson#9 consists of two quizzes in two selected Math Olympiad subjects and never covers new material. Students are organized into teams of three or four for these practice competitions. We hand out small prizes for high scoring teams. Students find these practice competitions to be enormously fun. They learn to work as teams and to allocate work among team members. Each team requires a captain to coordinate problem solutions.

WASHINGTON STATE MATH OLYMPIAD

The Washington State Math Olympiad covers mathematical material consistent with the standards published by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). Math Olympiad competition is open to fifth through eighth grades in a team-format competition. Teams consist of 3-4 students who compete in the following areas:
  1. Number Sense (arithmetic, number theory, fractions, decimals, percentages, basic logic, word-problem solution, negative numbers, prime numbers, factoring)
  2. Measurement (Systems of measurement, dimensions, approximation, areas, perimeters, and circumferences of 2-dimensional figures (triangles, quadrilaterals, circles) and volumes of 3-dimensional figures
  3. Geometry (geometric relationships and shapes, including properties of 3-dimensional solids, Pythagorean theorem)
  4. Probability and Statistics (simple probability, mean, mode, median, range, combinations, permutations)
  5. Algebra (expression evaluation, equation solution, word-problem solution, exponents)
  6. Problem Solving Students solve a written problem, showing how they solved it and communicating their understanding of the problem and its solution.
Each subject area test (algebra, probability and statistics, geometry, number sense and measurement) consists of five problems. Students are expected to assign problems among their team members based on individual abilities and time. This requires a fair amount of teamwork and organizational ability within the team, as one team member could not possibly solve all problems in 20 minutes. The team submits one paper for a team score. Identity of who solved which problem is known only among the team members themselves. This helps build teaming skills.

In addition, each team is required to solve a "significant problem" and to respond in a written paper that is scored with a scoring guide (rubric). The "significant problem" may involve several or all of the Essential Learnings, including logical reasoning, connecting math to applications, and communication of understanding. See our problems page for examples of these.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

With this brief historical sketch in mind, we make the following suggestions for any parent group contemplating a similar program:
  1. Meet with school administrators and teachers to get permission to present your Math Team program to incoming 5th graders. Generally, you should:
    • Use your own version of the Powerpoint presentation to make this presentation.
    • At the end of the spring semester, go into the 4th grade classes and recruit kids into Math Team! Bring a supply of Math Paks to hand out to prospective students to complete over the summer. Make it look like fun! (It will be!)
  2. Get a teacher sponsor. This smoothes communication with school administration. They can also find you facilities to use. If the teacher is present when you teach, they are experts at maintaining discipline in the classroom!
  3. Involve the community by soliciting parent support through the PTA. There are nominal costs of approximately $300-$400 for this program. These include purchase of notebooks, 4-function calculators, registration of teams, and T-shirts if you decide to go to the Olympiad. Your PTA may want to help out.
  4. Get the parents to help! Solicit help from the parents of your students. They are motivated to ensure that your program is a success. Some may volunteer to help as assistants. The completeness of materials in our program makes it easy to recruit new coaches, even coaches without STEM backgrounds!
  5. Start small:
    • Only one instructor?: One grade, 10 students max.
    • One instructor and a non-teaching helper?: One grade 14 students max.
    • 2 instructors?: One grade, 18 students max.
    • Two grades with 10 students each? You'll need at least 4 people (2 main instructors and 2 helpers).
    Lesson learned the hard way: Don't try to teach 20 kids with only one teacher! When you pass out in-class exercises and hands go up you won't be able to answer all questions in a timely manner.