Help from Art of Problem Solving users?

[angela in ohio]

How does the Classic series fit into the Introduction/Intermediate structure? I don't see the Classic series on the recommendations page. I'm getting ready to order a few Intro books, and I'm wondering if the Classics books would be beneficial, too, or if there would be overlap.

 

TIA!

[Handmaiden]

Kathy in Richmond is our resident AoPS expert, so hopefully she'll chime in.

 

The "Classic" Problem Solving Series (AoPS volumes 1 & 2) is not part of a normal curriculum scope and sequence; it's designed to help students who are preparing to enter math competitions such as the AMC 10/12.

 

Here's more about the problem solving series.

 

Here are their recommendation for homeschooled students.

 

HTH!

[C_l_e_0..Q_c]

Here are their recommendation for homeschooled students.

 

HTH!

 

Ooh! thanks! I hadn't found that link yet!

[angela in ohio]

The "Classic" Problem Solving Series (AoPS volumes 1 & 2) is not part of a normal curriculum scope and sequence; it's designed to help students who are preparing to enter math competitions such as the AMC 10/12.

 

Thank you! That makes sense. :001_smile:

[MBM]

... I'm wondering if the Classics books would be beneficial, too, or if there would be overlap.

 

 

My son is working through them in order to beef up his problem-solving abilities and to prepare for the AMC 8 which he'll be taking in November.

 

Some colleges will ask for AMC/AIME scores if a student has taken the tests, so if your child does well, it could be a future feather in his or her cap.

 

Additionally, if a student scores high enough, s/he can automatically enroll in one of Math Zoom's summer camps at U of North Carolina, Charlotte or California's Harvey Mudd. (Admissions people from those and area universities sometimes make appearances, too. LOL.) The camps are a bit pricey, but Richard Rusczyk, Arthur Benjamin, and other wonderful professors and teachers have taught there. I would think these books could help a student do the problems for some of the other math summer camps, too. Kathy would probably know more about that.

 

AoPS also offers online classes that teach the books' problems. The advantage is that a teacher could help a student figure out difficult problems if the parent is unable.

 

We loooove the AoPS material. I guess you could say we're groupies! LOL.

 

HTH! :)

 

AMC info:

http://amc.maa.org/

 

Math Zoom:

http://www.mathzoom.org/

[angela in ohio]

My son is working through them in order to beef up his problem-solving abilities and to prepare for the AMC 8 which he'll be taking in November.

 

Some colleges will ask for AMC/AIME scores if a student has taken the tests, so if your child does well, it could be a future feather in his or her cap.

 

Additionally, if a student scores high enough, s/he can automatically enroll in one of Math Zoom's summer camps at U of North Carolina, Charlotte or California's Harvey Mudd. (Admissions people from those and area universities sometimes make appearances, too. LOL.) The camps are a bit pricey, but Richard Rusczyk, Arthur Benjamin, and other wonderful professors and teachers have taught there. I would think these books could help a student do the problems for some of the other math summer camps, too. Kathy would probably know more about that.

 

AoPS also offers online classes that teach the books' problems. The advantage is that a teacher could help a student figure out difficult problems if the parent is unable.

 

We loooove the AoPS material. I guess you could say we're groupies! LOL.

 

HTH! :)

 

AMC info:

http://amc.maa.org/

 

Math Zoom:

http://www.mathzoom.org/

 

We're new to the world of math competitions. I just leaned of MATHCOUNTS this past year. I don't know anything about the AMC contest, though. I looked around the link, but I can't find testing sites. Did you just call your local schools to see who offers it?

 

TIA!

[C_l_e_0..Q_c]

is AMC open to homeschoolers? They seem to be going through schools, and require school approval of some sort.

[MBM]

Homeschoolers can definitely take the AMCs and AIME. In fact, some of them have received perfect scores! (There are at least three from the following link.)

 

Joshua B. (top row, fourth from the left), homeschooler with a perfect AMC 8 score.

 

The website is a little confusing, but here are the rules for homeschooling families (I afterschool):

 

http://amc.maa.org/e-exams/e4-amc08/hsadmin8.shtml

 

You can also order previous tests and other study material from AMC. We've used the old tests as practice for our MathCounts team.

 

http://amc.maa.org/d-publication/publication.shtml

 

Here is the page that suggests what to use to study. AoPS is there.

 

http://amc.maa.org/a-activities/a4-for-students/s-index.shtml

 

HTH! Good luck to your kids!

Edited April 14, 2010 by MBM
added a sentence

[Kathy in Richmond]

Thank you, Handmaiden, for directing me to this thread.:)

 

We've used AoPS books and courses since they opened their internet school doors back around 2001, and we're certainly big fans/groupies here, too! My son had just made a perfect score on the AMC-8 that year, and even though I'm a mathematician by trade, I was new to the world of competition math. AoPS helped us a lot in getting started down that very fun and rewarding road! We've taken lots of their courses and the kids have happily participated in their forums over the years. Now, my kids are through their curriculum and both of them work for AoPS as graders/TA's.

 

As Handmaiden said, the AoPS Classics series was written to help kids learn very cool topics not covered in standard school texts in preparation for the AMC, ARML, Mandelbrot, and other math contests. Richard Rusczyk himself was an outstanding math student from Alabama who was captivated by this stuff and went on to become a USA Math Olympiad winner. He knows what he's talking about:001_smile:.

 

I would definitely recommend that you complete AoPS Introductory Algebra or its equivalent before starting on the Classics texts. I personally like to use Classics Vol 1 as a supplement alongside geometry and algebra 2, and Vol 2 alongside (or in place of!) precalculus. There is enough in Volume 2 to keep a student going for a long time. Even though I have a doctorate in math, I've learned a LOT of new material from this volume!

 

As MBM said, homeschoolers are certainly welcome to participate in the AMC-8,10,12, AIME, and USAMO contests. You can either take the exams at local schools ( call the AMC headquarters to get coordinators' contact info for schools near you) or you can register your homeschool as an AMC site (what I've done). You get your own school code and must arrange to take the exam in a public place with a non-related proctor. Schools like MIT and Caltech have places on their application materials for AMC and AIME level scores; while they're not required, good scores certainly can help.

 

If you're starting with the AMC-8, I usually recommend that you go the AMC website linked above and order several copies of old exams. They're inexpensive and come with complete solutions. You don't need anything fancier than basic algebra, geometry, number theory, and combinatorics to solve these problems, but the ways of thinking are clever and non-routine. MathCounts materials also are very helpful in preparing for AMC-8.

 

Re summer math camps: they have been the highlights of my kids' middle and high school years. We are very middle class, but I think that they were worth every single penny. Good AMC or MathCounts results can help in selective camp applications, but even more so, the learning that results from studying math this way will help the student solve the problems on the entrance quizzes for the camps. I personally have lots of experience with MathPath, Canada/USA Mathcamp, and Princeton Summer Workshop in Math, if anyone wants to know more about those.

 

Anyway, that's my quick summary! If you have any questions, please ask.:001_smile: I'll be traveling a bit over the next week, but I'll answer as soon as I can.

 

~Kathy

[Laura in CA]

I'm glad Kathy chimed in! She's been so helpful to us as my son started on the math contest road this year. And he's attending the Math Zoom camp this summer and can't wait! I can report back after he attends, if anyone has questions.

 

I just wanted to add that we had no problem finding a school for my sons to take the AMC 10 test this year. I just called or emailed local math teachers. Our local school district no longer offers the AMC 8 (don't get me started; we have a *national lab*, for crying out loud, and one of the highest concentrations of science PhDs in the country ...), but the next district over was *very* welcoming, and their junior-high honors math teacher gives not only the AMC 8 (and had several perfect scorers as well as the state MathCounts champion) but also the AMC 10.

 

This was also interesting -- I had arranged with the MAA to offer the AMC tests myself, as Kathy does, before I found this very helpful honors math teacher. I decided to go ahead and offer one of the AMC 10 tests myself to homeschoolers (there are two dates in Feb. for the AMC 10 and 12), and to my surprise, my son did 7 or 8 points higher on the test he took in the school setting -- the opposite of what I expected. He said he thought being surrounded by other studious kids made him focus more. Of course it could just be variation in the test or his energy that day, but it was interesting. So although it was pretty seamless to administer the test myself, we'll probably do it at the school again next year (which had the huge side benefit that my son made some contacts and new friends, which led to more math-contest fun, etc. :001_smile:)

 

~Laura

[Kathy in Richmond]

Our local school district no longer offers the AMC 8 (don't get me started; we have a *national lab*, for crying out loud, and one of the highest concentrations of science PhDs in the country ...)

 

Wow...I can't believe they don't have where you're at:glare:

 

This was also interesting -- I had arranged with the MAA to offer the AMC tests myself, as Kathy does, before I found this very helpful honors math teacher. I decided to go ahead and offer one of the AMC 10 tests myself to homeschoolers (there are two dates in Feb. for the AMC 10 and 12), and to my surprise, my son did 7 or 8 points higher on the test he took in the school setting -- the opposite of what I expected. He said he thought being surrounded by other studious kids made him focus more. Of course it could just be variation in the test or his energy that day, but it was interesting. So although it was pretty seamless to administer the test myself, we'll probably do it at the school again next year (which had the huge side benefit that my son made some contacts and new friends, which led to more math-contest fun, etc. :001_smile:)

 

~Laura

 

Well, to be completely honest, we've used the local schools for some contests over the years, in addition to running some of the contests as a homeschool. My kids particularly liked taking the AIME at the local math/science magnet, for the reasons Laura gave. It's lots of fun to meet the other math-loving test-takers at the end of that exam. My son's very best AMC contest result actually came when I took him up to Thomas Jefferson High School in Alexandria for the USAMO one year. He said the atmosphere there really helped him when he was solving the problems. So, same as Laura said! Either way works well.

 

Kathy

[MBM]

I'm glad Kathy chimed in! She's been so helpful to us as my son started on the math contest road this year.

 

I agree. I have printed out a number of her recommendations. Thank you for being so forthcoming, Kathy!

And he's attending the Math Zoom camp this summer and can't wait! I can report back after he attends, if anyone has questions.

 

I would love to hear a report about the Math Zoom camp. Is your son going to Harvey Mudd? That will be a fantastic experience, I'm sure. My son also got in, but I think we'd opt for North Carolina since it's just two weeks. He's been known to sleepwalk outdoors at night, and although he hasn't for about a year, I'm worried it could start up again. I don't think they would want to deal with that. LOL.

... to my surprise, my son did 7 or 8 points higher on the test he took in the school setting -- the opposite of what I expected. He said he thought being surrounded by other studious kids made him focus more. Of course it could just be variation in the test or his energy that day, but it was interesting. So although it was pretty seamless to administer the test myself, we'll probably do it at the school again next year (which had the huge side benefit that my son made some contacts and new friends, which led to more math-contest fun, etc. :001_smile:)

 

That's perfect -- easy to administer and your son scores better! My son seems to do better with a little competition, too. What's so nice is that so far it has also been friendly and fun. I think the kids are happy to be around others who are like-minded.

 

Congratulations to your son, Laura!

[MBM]

My son had just made a perfect score on the AMC-8 that year, and even though I'm a mathematician by trade, I was new to the world of competition math. AoPS helped us a lot in getting started down that very fun and rewarding road! We've taken lots of their courses and the kids have happily participated in their forums over the years. Now, my kids are through their curriculum and both of them work for AoPS as graders/TA's.

 

Outstanding! -- a perfect AMC score and your kids work for AoPS!

 

Even though I have a doctorate in math, I've learned a LOT of new material from this volume!

 

My husband has a PhD in statistics, and he says the same thing. His job involves complicated math, but some of the AoPS problems are real sticklers for him. They are surely good for the brain!

 

Re summer math camps: they have been the highlights of my kids' middle and high school years. We are very middle class, but I think that they were worth every single penny. Good AMC or MathCounts results can help in selective camp applications, but even more so, the learning that results from studying math this way will help the student solve the problems on the entrance quizzes for the camps. I personally have lots of experience with MathPath, Canada/USA Mathcamp, and Princeton Summer Workshop in Math, if anyone wants to know more about those.

 

My son finished five problems for MathPath (of the five, two seemed to be the type of solution they're seeking), but his Spanish teacher confiscated three of them, ripped them up and threw them away. He was devastated but learned not to work on math problems during Spanish class. LOL.

 

Do you know anything about Hampshire's summer camp, Kathy? It seems like it would be a good fit for my goofy (ahem, slightly immature) son, if he could get in. Although the site doesn't appear to be too serious, it seems they do offer a solid program.

 

Here is a link for anyone who might be interested:

 

Hampshire College Summer Studies for Mathematics

 

Thanks for all your help and advice, Kathy!

[Laura in CA]

Wow...I can't believe they don't have where you're at:glare:

 

Kathy -- I love the glare!! I wish I'd thought to put a 'glare' in my original post, heehee.

 

I would love to hear a report about the Math Zoom camp. Is your son going to Harvey Mudd? That will be a fantastic experience, I'm sure. My son also got in, but I think we'd opt for North Carolina since it's just two weeks. He's been known to sleepwalk outdoors at night, and although he hasn't for about a year, I'm worried it could start up again. I don't think they would want to deal with that. LOL.

 

 

Yes, Harvey Mudd. I didn't realize NC was two weeks. He didn't want to be away from home for three whole weeks, so he'll leave after two. I see that the third week is the "problem-solving" week -- we're a little afraid that the really cool guest speakers (I see they've had Richard Rusczyk and Art Benjamin in previous years) will come that week and he'll miss them ... we'll see!

 

Sleepwalking outdoors -- eek! My son's problem is he's absent-minded -- came home from last summer's one-week computer camp with NO clothes in his suitcase -- left them all stuffed in the drawer of the bureau (where they apparently resided the entire week ... :glare:). He *really* wanted to do MathPath, which Kathy highly recommended, and had fun with the application test (sounds like your son!), and one of the draws was that he was really, really eager to fly alone for the first time. We decided Minnesota was a bit far and that the two-week option at Harvey Mudd would be perfect -- and we'll let him fly there alone, but go pick him up (and check those drawers!!).

 

That's perfect -- easy to administer and your son scores better! My son seems to do better with a little competition, too. What's so nice is that so far it has also been friendly and fun. I think the kids are happy to be around others who are like-minded.

 

Congratulations to your son, Laura!

 

 

Thanks! Yes, it's a nice, nerdy bunch of kids. Even though the competition is serious and intense, it's mostly each kid against himself or herself, if you know what I mean, and there is a lot of camaraderie and a lot of math-nerd inside jokes at these events :001_smile:.