Anyone have experience with First Lego League, Math and Science Olympiad?

[LNC]

My son is a rising 5th grader with a love for tech/building. He has type 1 diabetes, and want to major in bioengineering and probably go on to med school for ped endo :)

 

I have spent a ton of time looking for homeschool math and science teams for homeschoolers this summer.

 

1. I found a local math professor who has a math club that prepares for MOEMS. I think that is Olympiad? They meet at a private school but he welcomed my son to join. They meet for two hours a month. We have to drive 50 min, but he said people drive from adjoining states!

 

2. I found a new homeschooled Science Olympiad div B group for both my son and daughter to attend together. There is an experienced homeschool group that won state awards, but they aren't accepting members. I'm sure the new group will be good as well...

 

3.FLL is soooo hard to find! I've only come across groups at the elite private schools and g/t magnet schools. The state director told me to start a group. I would have NO IDEA how to get sponsers or organize it.

 

Does everyone have such trouble finding groups for these math/science contests?? We live in large southern city with lots of homeschoolers.

Edited July 2, 2011 by LNC

[brownie]

I am running my own fll team. We started by sending the kids to camp last summer to learn nxt for a week. They were excited so we bought the kit and spent the year learning a bit about it and having a robotics club in our house. Now we're going to bite the bullet and give it a try this coming year. Brownie

[mamato4]

It boils down to how much time are you willing to sacrifice for either of the choices. My ds has been in FLL for 4 years. This year, their team finally made it to the Open Championship in CA, and they did win a trophy. BUT it was a brutal year in terms of how much time they had to spend preparing, researching, and going to way too many various events in the name of outreach. The other parents and I feel that FLL and FIRST is changing in a way that if the team does not do enough outreach (read: promoting FLL and FIRST) it becomes a huge strike against the team. But that's MY opinion.

 

FLL is also not everyone's cup of tea. My dd only lasted one year, while ds just loves it.

 

Can you try out the MOEMS and Science Olympiad for a few meetings? Then your ds and dd can also see if those are a good fit for them.

[abbeyej]

Math Olympiad is awesome. Not sure how that group works. Are they doing practice problems and the test on the same day once a month? Our group met weekly for practice sessions, and the problems and discussions were fantastic.

 

We also did FLL. It was a matter of finding one family willing to host, and several families willing to split the cost. We found 5 kids on a team was about perfect -- 3 seemed like a minimum (but if you start the year with 5, you might be down to 3 by competition time) and more than 6-8 seemed to create nothing buy chaos. We didn't have sponsors or anything. We met weekly for about 2 hours each time and roughly daily for the week or so before competing. Our boys were very, very young for the competition at the time, but they did extremely well. We had friends who went to the world level 2-3 years running -- they put in several hours at a time several days a week.

 

Ultimately, after 3 years, all of the families were burned out and ready to do something else. But it was a good experience while the kids did it. Our frustrations had to do with the project/presentation (which you must do in addition to all of the programing to solve the task problems) and some judging inconsistencies. But overall, it was positive.

 

No experience with Science Olympiad. Looked at it briefly and thought it seemed cool, but there just wasn't enough time to add that in as well. :)

[LNC]

That sounds time consuming for FLL! I'm so bummed! I don't think I have the time to coach FLL. I know no one has "time to spare and don't mean to offend, but we have many serious medical issues in our family. I also don't have a science/tech/math background and don't have contacts with sponsers if that is necessary. I hoped to get him into it young so he can move up through the program - I didn't realize the offerings for homeschoolers would be so rare.

 

One more question - where does he go after 6th grade for Math? What kind of other contests are out there to research for homeschoolers? Here is the info about the club we are trying this coming year.

Math Club

Recommended Books:

Creative Problem Solving in School Mathematics

by Dr. George Lenchner

Over 400 thought-provoking problems that extend elementary and middle school mathematics into such topics as sequences, series, principles of divisibility, geometric configurations, and logic. It is the foundation of the MOEMS program, based upon the author's popular course, The Art of Problem-Solving.

 

 

Math Olympiad Contest Problems for Elementary and Middle Schools

by Dr. G. Lenchner

16 years worth of challenging problems and ingenious solutions from the MOEMS. The book is aimed at young students, teachers, and parents. It contains an unusual variety of problems, a section of hints, and seven unique appendices.

 

Books can be purchased at the MOEMS website.

 

 

The math club faq :

Frequently Asked Questions

 

What do I have to do to join?

Just show up.

 

Are there any dues?

No, the program is free to all students in ________and nearby Counties in grades four through six.

 

Can I help by bringing refreshments?

Yes, an offer to bring juice or cookies is greatly appreciated. Contact ___ or ___.

 

What if my son or daughter can’t make it to a meeting?

That’s okay – come as often as you can. If your son or daughter is very serious about the Olympiad (MOEMS), it is possible that arrangements can be made to make up a missed contest.

 

May I bring an interested third grader?

It’s definitely possible. Call ___or ____ to discuss your particular situation.

 

What do you do at MMC?

We take the MOEMS. We work on interesting problems and problem solving techniques, sometimes in small groups and sometimes in a lecture format.

 

Can my child do MOEMS at MMC and also at his school?

The short answer is No. If your child’s school participates, your child’s score must count toward the school score. Students cannot participate more than once in each month’s contest. However, if a child has already taken MOEMS at his school, we will find some problems for him to work on while the others are taking the contest.

 

Do students enjoy it?

Many children who enjoy doing mathematics love coming to our club. An added benefit is that students make great strides in their problem solving abilities. We prefer that parents not coerce their child into participating.

Edited July 2, 2011 by LNC

[abbeyej]

Yeah, with FLL *somebody* ends up putting in a fair amount of time. I was grateful to have friends who were committed to providing the opportunity for their son and that allowed others of us to piggyback. ;) It would have been too much for my family, and we don't have the challenges yours has.

 

The MOEMS sounds like a great option though. Math Olympiad *does* have a middle school component for 7th and 8th graders, and it's a much less overwhelming thing to host, if you end up wanting to continue a small group in your home once he's past the elementary level.

 

Here's a brief article on math competitions for older kids along with links to two of the biggest: http://www.artofproblemsolving.com/Resources/articles.php?page=pc_competitions

[EmilyGF]

With Science Olympiad, good teams often have pretty strong competition to get in. A less-competitive one could be a stepping stone to a more competitive one if one is excited and works hard. FWIW, my hubby loved SO and did it from jr. high through high school, went to multiple national competitions, and credits it with turning him into a scientist. The types of competitions are really varied and teach all sorts of good stuff. I love write-it-do-it - one student writes instructions for the second student to do something the first one saw demonstrated. This is so important in science and life!

 

Emily