My ds(14) needs to raise $2000

[lewelma]

To go on the IMO trip to Thailand, ds is supposed to raise $2000, and I need some ideas.  Busking with his violin would be *the* best hourly wage -- likely $40 an hour, but ds does *not* want to do this. I think he sees it as begging.  So we have suggested:

 

1) Violin tutoring (we might be able to get his teacher to act as a reference and given that he is the assoc concert master of the NZSO it  might go a long way)

2) Math tutoring (I'm not sure he can do this, but he could try)

For either tutoring option, he could greatly undercut the going rate to gain some business)

3) See if his connection with the NZ symphony could get him some work seating people or something.

4) grants? (no idea here)

5) A job of some sort.  But at his age it would have to be a 'who you know' sort of thing

 

He is not very keen to do any of this.  Although we can pay, the way they have worded the letter is very helpful.  "xxxx is expected to raise $2000."   So we think it would be good for a lot of reasons to get him to do this. If he does not get onto the team this year, he is likely to make it next year.  So we have told him that the $2000 goal would be over 16 months.  If he gets on the team this year, we would pay the difference from what he has raised.

 

I am very open to ideas.  The letter to the school (which we also received as we are the school) recommended running a 'mufty day' to raise money.  This is where uniform schools charge a $2 gold coin for the privilege of wearing street clothes on a certain day.  1500 students easily raise $2000!  We might have some trouble with this one as we have a school of 2! :huh:

 

Ruth in NZ

[1053]

.

[lewelma]

I commented in the other thread http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/528435-the-big-day-is-tomorrow/page-2?do=findComment&comment=6137697

That said, the NZ government actually does have some generous grants (for their research). I wonder if they have some funds that could be used for this purpose.

 

 

It is the NZ way for kids to pay for their own school trips, and this one is no different apparently.  The main difference is that he only has 5 months to raise the money instead of a year, and that there is not a *school* effort to help out.  There is a sense here that kids should pay their own way, and I don't want ds to feel some sort of entitlement.  We are originally from America, so we do struggle at times to work within the cultural expectations, and I am aware of it.

 

I will look into the grants for ds.  I'm guessing I need to do the leg work, and he can help fill in the paperwork.  Just not sure what grant to go for.  Also, ds is the only one from our town, so possibly a city grant could be considered.

 

ETA: I think I should apply to the homeschool association!!  Forgot about them.  We often have too much money, and no where to spend it.  Will talk to the coordinator who is a good friend of mine. 

 

ETA #2:  there is a gifted association here.  I wonder if they have grants. 

 

I think ds would be willing to write grant applications, and we could just use it for his English credit instead of literary analysis. :001_smile:

[Grover]

Try your local Lions or Rotary too, or Probus.  They might ask him to talk to them about what he does.  Busking would totally be the way to go though... would he see it less as begging if he had to apply for a permit, and set himself up properly with a spot?  Also, would he be willing to play for schools and kindys, etc... they may be willing to do a gld coin donation per child or a koha for the group as a whole to have him play for them, maybe tell them a litle about the violin.  Berry and fruit picking at this time of year, but that's hard work for little return. 

 

If he's willing to set up a stall at a local market there are some ideas here for things he could sell http://www.fundraisingideas.org.nz/products.aspx

 

good luck!

[Kerileanne99]

What about his own benefit concert? Whatever scale is appropriate. Advertise the fundraising purpose, it could even be a dinner/concert type thing with a set ticket price where he played as entertainment. He may even be able to solicit help from friends to join the entertainment lineup or through his symphony contacts? Venue could be as simple as a nice restaurant with decent acoustics or a hotel conference room possibly.

Of course, some people would love to make donations as well during the course of the evening.

Maybe even add in a silent auction type thing to bid on a service he could do such as tutoring or lessons?

[EndOfOrdinary]

He could always crowdsource. IndieGoGo, Kickstarter, GoFundMe. These are the sorts of things people like to give small bits of money to. It makes people feel like they are contributing to making a positive difference in people's lives.

[Donna]

We view busking as providing a service…music and people are free to pay what they feel that service is worth. 

[snowbeltmom]

It is the NZ way for kids to pay for their own school trips, and this one is no different apparently.  The main difference is that he only has 5 months to raise the money instead of a year, and that there is not a *school* effort to help out.  There is a sense here that kids should pay their own way, and I don't want ds to feel some sort of entitlement.  We are originally from America, so we do struggle at times to work within the cultural expectations, and I am aware of it.

 

 

I don't understand the mindset where having a day at school where kids don't have to wear their uniforms if they pay a fee is considered "kids paying for their own trips."  The recipient of the money raised didn't do any actual work - the students at his school simply financed his trip for him.  If it were my son, I would pay the fee for him and not give it a second thought.

 

Congratulations again to your son!

 

[Dmmetler]

Are there local chapters of professional organizations or companies that use math extensively that might be approached for a small grant/donation? I'm thinking computer software firms, actuarial groups, accounting firms, etc? I know when my DH's company was still locally held that the company owner would sometimes give school teams small grants to do math or programming competitions, and I can't imagine that he wouldn't have been more than willing to donate to an IMO candidate, and I think DH's company now (NCR) has a program by which similar grants can be given-but I'm sure there is more red tape than there was when it was a small, local software firm.

 

Another thing-I don't know how they have it set up, but could your son ask for donations of air miles? That's a big way that DD's program supports students-air miles are donated (and in most cases, the research grant paid for the original travel), which are then transferred to students so that they can make it to the meetings. There are a lot of people who have a domestic flight or two a year who never build up enough miles themselves to get a free ticket, but when donated and pooled with everyone else's free miles, can cover travel costs for quite a few students. And if you can find someone who travels internationally (in the Herpetology world, there are quite a few people who's research grants take them to Africa or Asia on a regular basis) who is willing to donate miles, they can easily cover the entire airfare pretty quickly, at no cost to them (and, in the US at least, a tax write-off).

 

 

[lewelma]

Wow!  You guys are great!  What a lot of very original ideas. :001_smile:   I'm going to wait a week (or more) and run some things by him.

[lewelma]

I don't understand the mindset where having a day at school where kids don't have to wear their uniforms if they pay a fee is considered "kids paying for their own trips."  The recipient of the money raised didn't do any actual work - the students at his school simply financed his trip for him.  If it were my son, I would pay the fee for him and not give it a second thought.

 

Congratulations again to your son!

 

 

I've been thinking about this for a while today.  In ds's packet for parents we also received all the school information because obviously we are the school also.  On the school letters it asked for the school to contact the Math Olympiad committee in confidence if they thought that the family would be embarrassed by the financial commitment, so I am guessing that there is a fund for the needy.  The school letters also suggested ways to help the kids raise the money, the mufty day being one of them, but there was still a very clear sense that the student needed to take responsibility for $2000.  This is not the entire cost, only the student share.  I have to pay for internal travel (they tour while there), passports, insurance, etc.  It is just pretty expensive to go to another country for 2+ weeks. I think there is a disconnect because ds is the first homeschooler to get into the camp or squad. 

 

So I'm thinking that perhaps we as a family can act as a supportive school -- that we all try to do our part to raise the student share.  We could get a big jar and start filling it with money earned or saved.  So younger ds could go busking for older and donate the money to the IMO fund.  I can go to the vegetable market on Sundays which would save $20 per week and then put $20 in the jar.  DS could cook indian food instead of us going out to eat once a fortnight, and we could put in the difference which could be $60.  DH could work extra hours, etc.

 

My thought is to still require him to do what all the other kids in NZ do for class trips, but to do it in a homeschool way.

[kiana]

I don't know if your son would be vigorously against it, but a gofundme posted here might very well be helpful. I don't look at it as begging -- to me it is contributing to the future of the profession.

[lewelma]

I don't know if your son would be vigorously against it, but a gofundme posted here might very well be helpful. I don't look at it as begging -- to me it is contributing to the future of the profession.

 

Aw, thanks kiana. 

[Cosmos]

So I'm thinking that perhaps we as a family can act as a supportive school -- that we all try to do our part to raise the student share.  We could get a big jar and start filling it with money earned or saved.  So younger ds could go busking for older and donate the money to the IMO fund.  I can go to the vegetable market on Sundays which would save $20 per week and then put $20 in the jar.  DS could cook indian food instead of us going out to eat once a fortnight, and we could put in the difference which could be $60.  DH could work extra hours, etc.

 

My thought is to still require him to do what all the other kids in NZ do for class trips, but to do it in a homeschool way.

 

I was going to suggest this idea. Most students would have a math team, a math class, and a whole school supporting them and wanting to help. You may not have that, but you have family, friends, and a neighborhood and town. All of whom will be thrilled to see "one of their own" make it to the top. I don't think the student raising the money means they do it all on their own.

 

Another idea to consider is local sponsors. Has that been mentioned already? He could approach local businesses (engineering? science labs?) and ask them to donate. Also, how about getting some publicity? If you have a local paper or radio station, they might do a piece on him and mention his fundraising activities.

[lewelma]

Another idea to consider is local sponsors. Has that been mentioned already? He could approach local businesses (engineering? science labs?) and ask them to donate. Also, how about getting some publicity? If you have a local paper or radio station, they might do a piece on him and mention his fundraising activities.

 

Just been reading through all the material and this was of interest:

 

"A letter explaining the situation will be sent on selection and this may be used in approaches to your local service groups for sponsorship."  I'm not sure who are the 'local groups for sponsorship', but I might do the leg work now in case the unexpected happens and he gets on the team in April.  The problem I'm having is I really don't think he will make the team, so I'm feeling frazzled trying to sort out his schedule and fund-raising for a 'small chance event.' I also don't want to discourage him, but we have already planned a trip to America at the *exact* same time as the IMO.

 

Also, he is going to have to work his little tutsie off in the NZ term 1 from now to Easter.  He has 2 AoPS classes running for three weeks, and then just one.  But when he has only 1 class, my parents are coming and we are supposed to go travelling.  He has 15 hours of exams as a part of the squad and then four 40-hour assignments.  I'm just like :blink:  I think I am going to have to throw physics out the window for this term.

 

[1053]

.

[lewelma]

 

I'm wondering about the material the olympiad committee's sent you. Are they saying that even if parents can easily pay, or if they are willing to pay, that they are nevertheless expected to engage in fundraising activities? Is it supposed to be a character building exercise? Is it meant as some sort of equalizer? Personally, I think it places a burden on the child that could hurt performance in the competiton. Anyway, you don't need to, and can't, fundraise until you know the final selection.

 

Don't quote this:

 

to us:

 

"You will bee pleased to hear that we have some sponsorship for the travel costs - but not nearly enough to cover the whole package.  At this stage we request that xxx raise approximately $2000 towards the cost of overseas travel.  A letter explaining the situation will be sent on selection and this may be used in approaches to your local service groups fro sponsorship.  We will also send a letter to the principal of his school, as the school may be able to help in this area." 

 

to the school:

"Although some sponsorship has been obtained for travel, each student will be required to pay $2000 toward this plus purchase a team uniform. There will be other expenses such as passport, internal travel and personal spending.  As we do not know the individual backgrounds of our students we would like to hear from you in confidence if the family is likely to be embarrassed by this situation.  xxx will be given a letter seeking support in raising the funds.  If your school can help in any way such as holding a 'mufti' day etc, we would appreciate your support. "

 

+++++

 

It is definitely a NZ cultural thing that students are expected to raise funds for their class trips.  All kids do it.  The problem lies with the homeschooling situation, as school kids raising funds often do it as a shared effort - selling candy, car wash, fund-raising night.  So to have all the kids, except mine, need to have put forth some effort to raise the money, sets up a strange entitlement ethos, which my ds already has a bit of.  I think that it would be good for him to make the effort to raise some money.  I think that he is a bit of an ivory tower type, and needs some down to earth experience.  It seems that there is always more math to do and it always takes away from life skills or other academic skills. And at some point I need to hold the line.  This may not be the time.  But knowing that the best 4 kids are graduating this year, means that there is even a higher chance of getting in next year.  I'm thinking that we tell him if he gets in unexpectedly this year, we will be happy to pay.  But that we would like to start raising the money for next year or the year after that.  Then we can work on it when there is less stress and pressure associated with the squad selection process over the next 3 months. 

 

 I appreciate you helping me think through all the different aspects of this issue!

 

 

[chiguirre]

Are you a member of any organization where you can sell pi (either little pies or cookies with a pi symbol in the frosting)? I think you'd need at least 100 people in a group for this to work, but if you have something like that it raise a nice bit of dough.

[EndOfOrdinary]

Oh, I also remembered the penny jar. The student writes a blub about themselves and what they are doing on fliers. They decorate a jar with a coin slot in the lid. Then they go to grocery stores, businesses, coffee houses, restraints, whatever and ask to put the jar on the counter. Do not make the slot larger than a coin. Many food service employees rely on tips. You are not asking for that money. You are asking for change. I was dumb founded how much people will donate with change! Our church youth group raised $1500 in a month in our small town from people's change. The kids bought a set of bees and some goats for a couple families through Heifer.

 

Other option: make a list of every friend, church associate, homeschool groups, family members, cousin's twice removed, step mother in-law, old Foriegn exchange student, ex-tutors, etc. Count them all and divide 2000 by that number. If you know 200 people, each one only has to give 10 dollars. By putting it out there as 10 dollars your likelihood of getting a good response is much larger. Environmental organizations use this tactic a lot for legal fees. It also allows for your son to alert stacks of people that he has this opportunity. Who knows, someone might know someone who knows someone that can give lodging, grants, scholastic help. I have been overwhelmed numerous times by the amount of support and bizarre connections that have happened with Ds' nonprofit stuff.

[Grover]

Just another thought... this time last year I advertised in my local home schooling community for some teens to do labouring for me - clearing out a garden and loading up a skip with construction waste.  I was inundated with replies.  Perhaps you could do the same but in reverse - he could advertise services he's willing to offer in your local community and see what comes up?

[kiwik]

If he were in Nelson he could tutor ds7. I must admit I have become a bit jaundiced about being constantly asked for money for things I consider frivolous but this doesn't fall in that category. A lady at work did unofficial raffles (as in unpermitted) for home baking to fundrdaise for her daughter's trip. If your dh works somewhere big that might work. Or you could auction a private concert. Or you could pay him to cook and do housework.

 

I don't think crowd sourcing or a donation jar fit the intent but neighter does a mufti day.

[Woodland Mist Academy]

I would think about goals and priorities. Time and money both have value. What exactly are you trying to teach him? Personally, if we could afford to pay, I would have my child *earn* his way by his continued hard work and perhaps extra help around the house with special projects. I'm not sure I understand what you are trying to teach him. Spend time trying to *raise* money you don't need to raise when the time could be spent in other pursuits? Perhaps raising money to sponsor someone who truly does need help with raising funds would be a better lesson...

[Woodland Mist Academy]

I think writing a check has its place, though. For example, my child volunteers many hours of her time. If we were to require her to pay for more things, she wouldn't be able to volunteer. She does, however, know the expectations. A good attitude, help around the house, studying, and hours of academic volunteering are her jobs right now. I think age matters, too.

 

Nothing in life is free. Hard work is important. There are many ways to get the message across.

[Woodland Mist Academy]

I agree for small things. For ex, ds has at times had to pay $25 for food for a weekend camping trip with the youth group....I dont charge for food at my house, so I pay that. Large extras though, like a camping trip out of state or country though, are on him the group to plan ahead and fundraise.they have all realized that min wage jobs arent going to get them to the goal, and moved on to business ideas. If I wrote that large check, or they begged, they would be much older before they gained that insight.

As with all things, I'm sure it depends on many factors. Some people never gain that insight. Others gain it from different life experiences. I'm not convinced there is only one right answer.

[chiguirre]

It's the International Math Olympiad!!!

 

I'd totally write the check if he couldn't raise enough money in the next few months. It's tough luck that he can't do a school fundraiser like the $2 to wear street clothes, but I wouldn't deny him the chance to go to such a milestone event because he can't sell enough cookies to his homeschool friends to fund it.

 

[Dmmetler]

What about something like a Pi day class/party, where your son comes up with activities and HS parents bring their kids for a few hours of activities supervised by your son (and you) and either pay a fixed amount or donate towards your son's IMO efforts?

 

DD does several of these a year-in her case, they're fundraising for research programs for the specific animal, and they're well attended and usually raise several hundred dollars for a single event. A lot of parents of K-3 age kids want educational activities for their child to do, and are more than willing to bring their child, sit back, and drink coffee/chat while DD teaches the kids about the frog life cycle and does activities with them. I do front some money for these events, but so far, she's always made a significant profit to go to the organization.

 

The other thing that DH and I have done for things that we fund is have DD go through the same sort of process that she'd go through for outside agencies. So, for her current research project, we had her go through a grant proposal and come up with a budget and do the same sort of stuff she'd have to do to apply for outside funding.  It's not a huge amount (around $100), and she could have raised it by doing chores, but we felt it was more applicable to what she was actually working on to have to write a grant proposal, do updates and reports, etc, and that she'd probably learn more from that process than by adding more chores to her list.

 

 

[Woodland Mist Academy]

The other thing that DH and I have done for things that we fund is have DD go through the same sort of process that she'd go through for outside agencies. So, for her current research project, we had her go through a grant proposal and come up with a budget and do the same sort of stuff she'd have to do to apply for outside funding. It's not a huge amount (around $100), and she could have raised it by doing chores, but we felt it was more applicable to what she was actually working on to have to write a grant proposal, do updates and reports, etc, and that she'd probably learn more from that process than by adding more chores to her list.

I like this example. I think what matters is that you are thinking through the reasons behind the actions. Weighing the costs and benefits of both time and money are important. What is the ultimately being gained and lost?

[Woodland Mist Academy]

I am not either. It is very much dependent on culture. The culture here is for the entitled male to party on the parents dime when not making grades. Around the age of 25, Daddy retires or gets tired of the consequences of the partying, and the funding is cut off. Sonny then moves in with gp or gal and lives off them, until a bigger ship comes in. Ymmv as always.

 

The IMO is a big thing. Keeping the community in the dark about having someone attending is an interesting decision. Things like this generate tremendous support around here....wouldnt be unusual to raise all the funding in 2 days with a show or a cookout.

Vastly different cultures, yes. That does make a difference.

 

I'm not sure I understand the second comment. I've made no mention of keeping the community in the dark.

 

I've mentioned time, money, values, and prioritites. That's all. :)

[Vida Winter]

$2000 is a lot for a 14yo to raise. I would have him raise some of it himself (many good ideas listed on this thread) and give him the opportunity to earn the rest at home through extra chores and projects. For example, you may not need your car detailed but paying him to do it is a win-win for both of you. Don't use only one money-making strategy. Think of multiple streams of income. Grandparents are often happy to contribute.

[lewelma]

WMA, I hear you.  I do.  I will spend some time talking to my dh about what exactly we want ds to learn from this experience.  It has become clear from my rejig of the annual planning that he will have not a single moment of extra time to do anything in the next 3 months.  And my goal will be to protect him from burnout and exhaustion.  The squad work is going to take a huge amount of time.  And we have already talked about how the family will pull together and help him out.  We will do his chores, and bring him lunch, and anything else we can do while he has this massive work load.  I have already told him that he will have to write his AoPS teacher and tell him that he cannot finish the class, but ds is very resistant to this proposal. 

 

If he gets onto the team come April, at that point the workload will be substantially reduced and we can talk about raising money.  I'm thinking that he would find running a  'math day' for homeschoolers to be a worthwhile thing to do and might raise $500.  This single event might be all we ask him to do.  It would only take a week to plan, and I can help him organise it.  It would give him some 'skin' in the game.

 

Please know, everyone, that we would not make it is some onerous burden to raise the money.  When the time comes, we will evaluate the situation and make a determination as to what is logical and fair.  If it comes to be that ds is exhausted, we will totally carry the full load and just pay the cash.  As you have said, WMA, it is a balancing act, and we need to wait to see what is the right choice when we get past this current situation.

 

I appreciate everyone's suggestions and thoughts on this situation.  I really do.  This is just very unexpected and we are all trying to come to terms with what it means and how we move forward. 

 

Ruth in NZ

[lewelma]

WMA, accidentally posted before I had finished, so you may want to read the rest. :001_smile:

[Grover]

The IMO is a big thing. Keeping the community in the dark about having someone attending is an interesting decision. Things like this generate tremendous support around here....wouldnt be unusual to raise all the funding in 2 days with a show or a cookout.

 

honestly, in this part of the world, if it's not sports, it's probably not going to get money from randoms

[1053]

.

[maize]

I recently saw a fundraising flier for a kid doing some kind of competition (can't remember what, but is was just for one teenager) inviting people to mention his name at a particular restaurant on x day and 5% of the price of their meal would go to the student. Don't know if that would be a an option in your area? I have seen restaurants contribute to similar fundraisers in the past around here.

[Laura Corin]

I don't understand the mindset where having a day at school where kids don't have to wear their uniforms if they pay a fee is considered "kids paying for their own trips."  The recipient of the money raised didn't do any actual work - the students at his school simply financed his trip for him. 

 

In similar situations in the UK, the child needing sponsorship would arrange the day with the school, create flyers and posters, draft and send communication to parents, arrange for the collection and banking of the coins.....

 

L

[Dmmetler]

In my area, what would make the difference is media attention. Which still requires work to get, because someone has to write the press release and send it out, and managing media is a whole job in and of itself. 

 

 

[lewelma]

Don't cancel an AoPS class. Just explain to the instructor the time crunch if some work is to be submitted late, but definitely finish the class. (AoPS will be used to these situations.)

 

The other contestants will be going to school full time and they'll manage.

 

 

1053, it is not that he is going to have too much work to do, it is that he will have too much *math* to do.  For the next 3 weeks he has *each* week:

 

25 hours - AoPS Olympiad geometry

10 hours - AoPS precalc

15 hours - squad training

5 hours - MO exams - he takes the BMO2 and the AMO (this is 8 hours over 2 days)

? prep time for these MOs.  He wanted to go over some previous problems to get a feel for the different exams.

 

So we are talking 55+ hours per week of math during these 3 weeks until Geometry ends. I personally think that this is unrealistic.  If he was doing the squad work on top of English, Mandarin, Violin, and Physics, that would be a different story. We already knew the double math class for 3 weeks was going to be full on, now it is just nuts.

 

And asking for an extension for Olympiad Geometry will not help him much because the week that the class ends, my parents show up and he has not seen them for a year and we are going to do some travelling.

 

So, I've told ds that we will contact his AoPS teacher and figure out what would be the best plan.

 

[kiana]

If the instructor/AOPS are willing, this situation seems reasonable for an incomplete. He should at least ask as the request is not unreasonable and the worst that can happen is they say no.

 

As an instructor, I had a highly talented student receive an offer to do research as an undergraduate which is normally restricted to graduate students and involved travel abroad. I was happy to work out a way for this student to complete the class.

[kiwik]

No one eats street food?

We have quite strict rules. Schools have an exemption for fundraising but otherwise you really have to get one of the official sausage sizzle things which would only work if there were other team members present. Some places use a commercial kitchen to make food to distribute but it is a big job for a kid with no spare time.

 

In the circumstances I might lend him the money and work out how he can pay some of it back later. Four months is not really long enough with all the study required. Also aren't the other team members a bit older and able to get proper jobs? He has plenty of skills he could use to earn money once the pressure is off.

[lewelma]

In the circumstances I might lend him the money and work out how he can pay some of it back later. Four months is not really long enough with all the study required. Also aren't the other team members a bit older and able to get proper jobs? He has plenty of skills he could use to earn money once the pressure is off.

 

I agree.  I told him tonight to just not worry about it.  If (and this is a big if) he gets onto the team in April, I told him we would work together as a team to raise at least some of the money but that he would not be responsible for it on his own.

[Grover]

personally, if my kiddo qualified for something like that, his share of the work to "earn" the money would be studying for the competition... like, if the kid were not working for it, I'd tell 'em to earn it themselves, but if they were working hard, I'd pay up. 

 

Bunnings Sausage sizzle?  Do they have them up your way?  Or Mad Butcher?  No idea how much they raise.

[Tsutsie]

Do a webcast on math olympiad or competition test taking strategies for younger children. We'll sign right up and will pay good $$ for it and the notes that go with it. Since it is for younger children, it does not have to be complicated or long. Simple things like to "work backward" or "substitute possible answers." I'm sure there will be a couple of people around here who will participate. I'd say for the Gr. 3 - 6 set, Math Kangaroo style. 

 

Or put the video on gofundme and have people contribute what they think it is worth.

 

 

In the past, I have paid an advanced 14 year old good money to teach ensemble/orchestra pieces to my son. He was a pure Suzuki kid and his playing by ear capabilities were way ahead of note reading. Still, he wanted to participate in ensembles/orchestra and this was our way of making it happen for him. (Because of his participation in these, he is now a competent note-reader.)

 

The older boy actually ended up having fun. A few weeks later they busked together and did very well. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[raptor_dad]

Designing and selling an artifact like a t-shirt might feel less like begging but still allow the Hive and others to show their appreciation... Check out http://teespring.com/or http://www.cafepress.com/+tfund+gifts for a couple of ideas. I don't see any big benefit of this over a crowd funding approach but the psych benefit might be huge. And who knows it might go viral... geek culture is hot right now.

 

PS: If he takes this approach, please have kid sizes. I still have all the t-shirts I need from 90's dot.com vendors or races but DS's love geeky shirts from Woot or where ever...

 

 

ETA: Or even better combine this and crowdfunding... I would love to be able to kick in an arbitrary amount and have an award level of $20-$50 dollars get me a t-shirt... just find a platform where most of the money pass through without the 30% overhead and I'm in...

[Tsutsie]

Ruth, you contribute so much to this community. Please let us support you and your son also in whichever way you find appropriate.

 

 

[mathnerd]

personally, if my kiddo qualified for something like that, his share of the work to "earn" the money would be studying for the competition... 

This is how I feel as well. I think that expecting a young child to earn a big sum of money in addition to preparing for a competition of this level and keep up on his music, language and school work etc will place a big burden on him emotionally and affect his performance and preparation. You could tell him that you will lend him the full amount of money and that he can work for it and repay it later on.

 

If he wants to publish an ebook on how to prepare for the olympiads or other math contests, I would gladly purchase it (or his mom could publish one too!).

[raptor_dad]

So I was thinking more about artifacts and crowd funding rewards... I was thinking of knitted Klein bottles or various knitted hyperbolic planes a la Daina Taimina[1] ... probably not your DS's speed but that made me think of oragami(which I have seen mentioned)... either trad or more involved Erik Demaine type stuff... Is there something he could do either using crowd funding or Etsy that involves high end oragami? No real idea but something to consider....

 

[1] http://www.math.cornell.edu/~dtaimina/

[lewelma]

personally, if my kiddo qualified for something like that, his share of the work to "earn" the money would be studying for the competition... like, if the kid were not working for it, I'd tell 'em to earn it themselves, but if they were working hard, I'd pay up. 

 

Thanks Grover, I appreciate this especially coming from a NZer.  Even though I have been here for 18 years, I still don't always understand the culture.  And there is definitely a culture of raising money for trips, which is why I assume that the letters posted to us/school asked the kids to raise the money rather than just say 'the cost will be $2000'.

 

My thought at this point is for him to write the letter to the sponsors, and I will walk it around. That gets him involved but just with a 2 hour commitment.  In addition, we have talked about 2 ways to get the money - to raise it and to spend less.  Because he doesn't have time this term for Mandarin, we will save $500 by not having a tutor.   I don't think it is a bad thing for him to think about the money, but I completely agree that I'm not going to stress him out in any fashion.  I have already told him that we might as well look for sponsors if he makes the team, but that if we don't meet the goal, we will just pay the remainder.  No big deal at all.  So, Mathnerd, no loan.  We will happily pay.

 

He is working incredibly hard right now, and I am working hard to manage for burnout.  I have *required* him to write his math teachers/coaches and explain the serious scheduling problem he has.  For example, next week he has 20 hours of AoPS geometry, 10 hours of AoPS precalc, 8 hours for the Australian Math Olympiad, and the first 40 hour squad assignment is due on Sunday (it is graded and is a part of the selection process).  Plus, the IMO team leader just sent out previous exams for the AMO for him to practice for Tuesday and sent out the next 40 hour squad assignment due in 2 weeks.  Obviously, this is not possible. :( To top it off, my parents arrive on Friday from America for a 2 week visit.  :huh:  

 

What this does tell me is if he has a serious chance at the team next year (2016), we should possibly not have him take his first University class Feb to June as planned, because it will overlap with all this squad work and exams for team selection.  The WOOT would be running concurrently and that may be *enough!*

 

Things are getting pretty real.  They just asked for a photocopy of ds's passport to verify he can get into Thailand.

 

 

 

Ruth, you contribute so much to this community. Please let us support you and your son also in whichever way you find appropriate.

 

Wow. Thanks for this.

 

[lewelma]

Do a webcast on math olympiad or competition test taking strategies for younger children. We'll sign right up and will pay good $$ for it and the notes that go with it. Since it is for younger children, it does not have to be complicated or long. Simple things like to "work backward" or "substitute possible answers." I'm sure there will be a couple of people around here who will participate. I'd say for the Gr. 3 - 6 set, Math Kangaroo style. 

 

Or put the video on gofundme and have people contribute what they think it is worth.

 

 

In the past, I have paid an advanced 14 year old good money to teach ensemble/orchestra pieces to my son. He was a pure Suzuki kid and his playing by ear capabilities were way ahead of note reading. Still, he wanted to participate in ensembles/orchestra and this was our way of making it happen for him. (Because of his participation in these, he is now a competent note-reader.)

 

The older boy actually ended up having fun. A few weeks later they busked together and did very well. 

 

 

 

 

Designing and selling an artifact like a t-shirt might feel less like begging but still allow the Hive and others to show their appreciation... Check out http://teespring.com/or http://www.cafepress.com/+tfund+gifts for a couple of ideas. I don't see any big benefit of this over a crowd funding approach but the psych benefit might be huge. And who knows it might go viral... geek culture is hot right now.

 

PS: If he takes this approach, please have kid sizes. I still have all the t-shirts I need from 90's dot.com vendors or races but DS's love geeky shirts from Woot or where ever...

 

 

ETA: Or even better combine this and crowdfunding... I would love to be able to kick in an arbitrary amount and have an award level of $20-$50 dollars get me a t-shirt... just find a platform where most of the money pass through without the 30% overhead and I'm in...

 

 

All of this is just awesome.  What is funny, is that my younger boy would *love* to try to do this kind of thing, it is just so much his personality.  I have kicked around the idea of having the younger do the 'business/IT' side of the fundraising for his older brother as an awesome learning experience.  But I'm not sure if it would be good for his psyche -- always being outshown by his older brother and then doing all the fundraising for him.  Not sure.  But then I think about the Wright Brothers - one engineer + one business man = an awesome team!

[Grover]

 

  And there is definitely a culture of raising money for trips, which is why I assume that the letters posted to us/school asked the kids to raise the money rather than just say 'the cost will be $2000'.

hmmm... I'm gonna guess that that's one way of getting out of saying "we need this much money, had it over" kiwis don't like asking for $$, or having to say they don't have the $$ for something.  This way they're giving parents and schools an out to fundraise for it.