SarahW Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 Tell me more.... Now that CP is in 2nd he can start the Continental Mathematics League et.al. I'm looking at just the math and science tests. This looks like a rather low-key way to dip our toes in competition math and science. But I'm curious, anyone have any BTDT advice about how this has gone over with other 7/8 year-olds competing as individuals? Is the promise of a ribbon a good “carrot?†I'll admit, I look at these tests and my eyeballs start bleeding with boredom. I'm trying to make a valiant effort to not let any of my own negativity seep in, but I don't know how well I can act out “Wow, look at all these really cool questions!!†:001_unsure: (Why does my kid's interests have to be the exact opposite of mine?) :willy_nilly: + Are the math practice books they sell worth getting? Just from looking at the samples, the questions look a lot like what we are already doing in BA and the “puzzle corner†of MM. I have also been planning some more basic logic/problem solving things for this year, Building Thinking Skills 1 and the like. I don't want to pile something else on just for the heck of it unless it would be actually useful. The practice books would be useful for next year as well, though, yes? There's no practice books for science. He watches Bill Nye, PMK, Wild Kratts, Cosmos, and lots of other things for fun. From looking at the sample, the only thing he may be really iffy on is the botany questions, he's just not that interested in plants. Is there any particular science book/documentary series that might be helpful to throw his way this year? On the one hand, I'm considering signing him up just because of his own interest. On the other hand, I don't want test day to be a day of “waaaahhhhh! I don't know anything!!!!!!! wwwaaaaaahhhhhhhhh†drama. He can get rather emotional. Practically, I understand that as a homeschooler I pay $15 per test. But the sign up form doesn't include a place for homeschoolers. Do I just write a letter with my info, include a check of $30, and mail it to them? And I still grade the exams myself before sending them back? They, uh, include an answer key, right? :blushing: :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 It's $20/test starting this year. My DD has done the CML twice and the LA and Science each once. SHE's gotten national medals in science and both times in math and missed one in LA by one question. She's done the Pythagorean division in math, and it's been largely algebraic thinking, similar to some of the AOPS PA problems, but not usually going beyond grade level math, so a 5th grade math test would have decimals, Percents, fractions, and earlier skills, but not anything requiring algebra. A lot of the questions are logic based. Yes, there is a key, and in some cases, fully worked solutions. You grade the test and submit the scores online. I've always saved the tests and scratch paper so I could send them in if needed, but it's never been requested. She found the science trivial, and. I tend to agree with her-the elementary science level she did was about like standardized test science-a miss-mash of topics (DD argued with a few of the questions, but did apparently manage to pick the answer they wanted). Unlike the math, the science and LA are pure multiple choice tests, similar to the NME. I may order the biology for my DD as a way of seeing if she's left any major holes. It's a nice enough competition, and they're very homeschool friendly. I just wish they would finally get set up to take credit cards online. They post results and send awards very quickly. the first year my DD did CML, I hadn't realized just how fast they did that until another parent congratulated DD on winning a national medal at Math. Kangaroo, maybe a week after the final CML score cutoff date. It was posted on the website, but I hadn't realized it would be up so soon, so hadn't checked. Sure enough, her medal was in the mailbox when we got home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SarahW Posted August 1, 2014 Author Share Posted August 1, 2014 Thanks for the info! But the FAQ is saying $15 for homeschoolers. Where do they say $20? I get a bit lost circling around their website. And, sigh, I drool over the NME. Maybe next year CP will share a bit of my enthusiasm, but I've resigned myself to not holding my breath for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 They had it on the registration forms mailed out this year. I don't think they're tech savvy at all, so they may not even realize that they didn't change the FAQ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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