Changing focus: our journey in realigning priorities

[lewelma]

I thought that some of you might appreciate our hearing about our saga this year.  I have posted intermittently over the year, but it all came together today.  Here is the story of my older son's switch in focus from music to math.

 

It all began this time last November when my son was preparing for the ABRSM grade 5 exam (this is approximately a 10th grade exam and he was in 6th grade then). We had just switched teachers (again) and begun with the concert master of the NZ symphony orchestra. My son was in a audition-only chamber group sponsored by the local university, and we decided to use the tutor (a pianist) as the accompanist for the ABRSM exam.  After they had practiced, the accompanist ( who is very accomplished and regularly features as the pianist with the symphony) asked my son about his goals. He said he wanted to be a mathematician.  And she was *shocked*.  I was there, and she was really shocked!  She turned to me and said, "but you are doing all the right things to have a career in music!?!?" 

 

I went home and really thought about this response.  I talked to my dh, and we realized that we had been spending all our extra time and money improving his musical skill, and no time or money improving his math skill.  And he wants to be a mathematician.  I posted here at that time, and Kathy in Richmond suggested the NZ math olympiad summer camp.  I talked to my son and he was keen.  He had been self-teaching AoPS for many years and had finished the Algebra book and was a quarter through the geometry book. 

 

We spent much of the summer holidays in January sitting in cafe's and trying to solve the summer camp entrance problems.  Together, we could solve about 3 out of 12 for each year going back in time.  But this wet his appetite for more.  It was also at this time that dh and I decided to find ds a math mentor.  He loved (and loves) talking about math, and he needed someone more skilled than I.  So we started hunting.

 

Finding a math mentor of a high level is much harder than finding a violin tutor at a high level.  Don't ask me why, but it is true.  We decided to start at the university and my ds interviewed with a computer scientist, physicist, and mathematician.  Only the mathematican was interested but he was busy until at least September because he was the deputy leader of the IMO team. However, the 2 hour interview motivated my ds, and he and I agreed on a study plan for the next 6 months (until the IMO camp selection problems were released).  The team leader had told us that the

 selection committee was particularly interested in young students because it gave them more time to bring them up for the IMO.  We decided that this was the year.  He was only a 7th grader, and the camp was for 8th grade and up.  Any rising 8th grader would be taking the exam as an intermediate student so would likely not have access to good high school level teaching.  We thought the competition would be lighter than for any other year.

 

So we decided to abandon both science and English composition to make room for math.  We designed his schedule so that he could spend 4 hours per day on math, and he promised that after 6 months he would resume a more balanced study. We laid out a schedule for him to complete the Counting/Probability book, the Number Theory book and diophantine equations from Problem Solving Vol 1, finish the Geometry book, and study both investigation and proof writing methods using The Art and Craft of Problem Solving (thanks Kathy!).   Yes, he did all of this in 7 months (and so did I, God help me! :eek: )

 

The exam started in September.  Instead of 6 Junior problems (for rising 8th, 9th, and 10th graders) and 6 Senior problems (for rising 11th and 12th graders) to be completely in 3 weeks, they surprised us and assigned 12 problems to be completed in 6 weeks with no indication of which were which (if there were any differentiation).  My ds started the night the problems were released and worked for 4 hours per day for 3 weeks.  Really, I could not believe his persistance, drive, and determintation.  It was a joy to see.

 

In 40 hours of hard work, he solved 8!  Then, he started number 9.  After 16 hours, he believed he had an answer and a proof.  But the next day he awoke to tell me it was all wrong, but he was glad because he did not like the answer.  :huh:  Now it was school holidays, so I suggested he take a week off. Well, he started back today, and solved the 9th problem in 2 hours!  I was amazed!!!  I guess some time off did him well. By the time he finishes writing the proof, he will be at 19 hours for the 9th problem!  But then he dropped a bombshell tonight at the BBQ.  Apparently, he has been thinking about this problem for the last 10 DAYS -- trying this, trying that, so that finally by the time he started again today, he knew an approach he wanted to try. Wow.  19 hours + 10 days of ruminating for *one* problem. I simply can't get my head around it. :blink:

 

We will submit his answers tomorrow.  He has completed all 6 junior problems (he thinks he knows which are which), and 3 of the 6 senior problems.  I asked him if he thought they were correct, and he said "well of course, I *proved* them."  He will be submitting 27 pages of proofs!

And now we wait.  Selection to the camp will be announced in late November.  Only 24 high school students are chosen from the entire country.  We hope it will be our son.

 

What I really want others to see from this year long saga is that it is never too late to switch focus.  That you should think where your money and time are being spent and compare it to your child's interests.  I am so very pleased that we made the switch this year; my son is such a happy boy.  He still loves his violin, but math will always be his passion.

 

Ruth in NZ

 

 

 

Oh, for those interested, here is the 9th problem:

 

In a sequence of positive integers, an inversion is a pair of positions such that the element in the position to the left is greater than the element in the position to the right. For instance the sequence 2,5,3,1,3 has five inversions, between the first and fourth positions, the second and all later positions, and between the third and fourth positions. What is the largest possible number of inversions in a  sequence of positive integers whose sum is 2014?

 

He has a 2 page proof demonstrating the answer is 507,024.  I don't even care if he is right (so don't tell me if he is not).  I am just so proud!

 

[Angie in VA]

Well, as the mother of two violinists, I was sad when I started reading your post, but then all I could think of was Corraleno's ds and how her change of methods made his life what it is today. :)

 

I'm so excited for your ds and wow. Just WOW!!! Congratulations to him and to you. And please let us know as soon as you know. (Would subscribing to this thread work for updates? Yes, I'll try that.)

 

And you know, he might just have some big revelation regarding a math problem (in life, not just for this endeavor) while he is playing the violin. Mindless scales? Ah, but the brain is at work (as evidenced by his awaking and saying that one answer was wrong!) Fiocco Allegro for umpteenth time? Maybe while he plows through that, he'll solve some big problem. May he always play the violin in some capacity. Always!

 

Angie

whose dd loves, just adores, how much math and music go together

 

ETA: I only saw it b/c it was a recent topic and therefore on the main page. I don't hang out here much. I hope it's OK that I read and posted here!

 

 

[mathmarm]

Fantastic job, mom.

 

I hope that your son gets in, but regardless of the results, this year will be an unimaginable benefit to him. I think that he spent a decent amount of time on each problem. Yes, the "behind the scene" thinking on a proof is often under rated. It isn't unheard of to have as few as 15 problems assigned in some math courses/seminar because each one can easily take a weeks worth of work.

 

 

Would you mind sharing what you used for his math education throughout? I love reading about math education and kids.

 

 

 

[Uff Da!]

Thank you for posting this Ruth.  I have been trying to explain to Dh my vision for middle school should the kids get passionate about anything and how we could support those passions.  I've struggled illustrating what that would look like because the culture here is to "do everything and run them ragged".  I had him read your post.  

 

Thank you,

Winter

[maize]

Wow Ruth, that was an inspiring post! Kudos to you for facilitating such an amazing education for your son.

[Dmmetler]

First of all, great job!

 

Second, I have to wonder...what is wrong with a world where a 12 yr old is seen as already being too far along on a given path to easily change gears? I understand exactly what you're saying, and I see it with DD as well (although her piano teacher has been great at realizing that for DD piano is a combination of stress relief and fun with theory and composition-but that she has NO desire to major in music or be a composer)-but somehow, it seems like 12 is, if anything, early to decide for sure what you want to be and focus on it, not late, and that it's not a change in gears.

 

I also admit-I'm having a bit of a wrenching feeling because my DD just told me that she'd rather just do AOPS and drop the rest of math. She doesn't plan to drop doing contests, but I don't think she really plans to prep for them, just do them "for fun"-because she's having so much more fun and enjoying spending so much time on science. And I'm really not involved on the science side, while I am on the math side, because she's found other mentors in that area. It's a little unnerving at times.

 

 

 

 

 

[Miss Mousie]

That's terrific, Ruth!  Best wishes to your son for camp admission ... but even if he isn't selected this year, he has already achieved so much. 

 

Well done!

[quark]

I realized sometime last year that math is going to take a lot more time here than what I have been used to. But it's a good thing. I have been conditioned into thinking that 45-60 minutes a day should be enough for one lesson. And that if DS takes 2 hours he must be slow. But that's not how mathematicians work in real life (or so DS's mentor says) and thinking and taking time can be a very good thing because it shows patience and persistence and tenacity...qualities that his mentor says are much more valuable than just winning competitions. I can't believe how easy it is for me to think this way now after one year of consoling and teaching myselt to accept it. But for 30+ years, my mindset was so very different and I am sometimes ashamed of how I used to think.

 

I am so proud of your DS. I have a feeling he is going to do very well but even if he doesn't, all that he is doing right now points in the direction of a very fulfilling mathematical career. An amazing young man. Definitely cheering and rooting for him and hoping to hear how it goes!

[JennW in SoCal]

What a terrific story, Ruth!  And congratulations to your son and to you for seeing the fruit of all your love and support.

 

Please share with him that a fellow violinist (me) enjoyed his recital video.  There is a large and vibrant community of excellent amateur string players who get together to play string quartets and other chamber music. I was not a music major but am nevertheless a busy musician and, unlike my friends who wound up with symphony and other professional music jobs, I get to play for fun.  The violin can always be a fulfilling part of his life.

 

 

Second, I have to wonder...what is wrong with a world where a 12 yr old is seen as already being too far along on a given path to easily change gears? [snip]....somehow, it seems like 12 is, if anything, early to decide for sure what you want to be and focus on it, not late, and that it's not a change in gears.

 

No kidding.  It is really unusual for a 12yo to KNOW what they want, and it shouldn't be expected. I had one who knew by age 12 exactly what he wanted to do with his life.  On the one hand it was a gift.  Friends whose kids slouched through high school and floundered around the first years of college often told me how lucky I am to have such a focused and driven child.  On the other hand, as a typical worry-wart homeschool mom it was worrisome that my ds wouldn't be well rounded, and more recently we worried that he was narrowing his job prospects too much.  

 

My youngest son didn't settle on anything til college.  He never showed any special aptitude for or interest in math and yet he is minoring in it and easily getting A's.  It clearly wasn't too late at the tender age of 17 to discover and get excited about calculus.  

[lewelma]

So, you ditched English composition and science for more math? What happened on the music front?

Yes. He did do a science fair project for 7 weeks, and he did continue his literature and listen to a lovely lecture series on literary analysis from TTC, but besides that -- no science and no English. We laughed that he would do the 3 Ms - music, math, and mandarin. He has continued with the concertmaster, and is currently preparing for the grade 5 (10th grade) ABRSM theory exam.

 

 

In my area the path for music excellence is much easier to see in the forest than that for math.  So many more helpful people and opportunities.  Glad yours has worked out for you.

Well, not quite yet worked out. I am still looking for a mentor/coach/tutor. I think that the one I thought I had lined up from the university really wants to see how well ds does on the exam before putting time into him. And I have found a homeschool dad who is a computer scientist who loves math and is just so passionate about it and is willing to be a tutor -- but he doesn't do proofs. So I am not quite sure if that is going to work.

 

Half of the students who get into the camp are provided with math mentors/IMO coaches. Not sure if ds would be in the running for one of these, but he could be. His proofs are compelling and incredibly well written. Good enough that we feel obligated to write a cover letter describing his education and reiterating that we did not help (and could not have helped even if we had wanted to). Honestly, to my eye it does look suspicious. I simply cannot believe that he could come up with these proofs on his own at his age. But he did. Last year only 120 students in the country could actually meet the cut off for consideration by completing 5 problems (the problems are hard!).

[lewelma]

Second, I have to wonder...what is wrong with a world where a 12 yr old is seen as already being too far along on a given path to easily change gears?

 

I hear you, but sometimes things just get set in motion and you go with the flow. DYKWIM? His violin teacher is so helpful and encouraging and my ds wants to please him. We found out his plans were for ds to work towards the NZ youth orchestra. 3 of his other students are already in it (so in the whole country he has 3 of the 20 violinist). DS had rehearsals, recitals, concerts, basically something additional a few times every week. It was exciting but exhausting, and honestly it left less time for math, he was just too tired.

 

So if he had continued on the violin path, he still could definitely be a math major, definitely. But his chances of getting into the IMO camp, and perhaps even one day going to the IMO would be seriously reduced if he did not focus either this year or next year. The competition is just too fierce and he has an advantage with his young age.

 

So who really cares about a math camp or a competition? Well, it is really about meeting people in your field of interest. Before we started down this path, he did not know anyone who was a mathematician, he did not have any friends anywhere close to his level. He loved math, but could not see where it was heading. In contrast, hanging out with musicians meant that he got free tickets to the symphony, to special visiting musicians at the university. He has now worked directly with 5 of the symphony members. It is just so much more real than a math career. He needs the camp for the human aspect. He needs to know kids like him. When he plays the violin for people they are so positive and wonderful; when he talks about a math problem that took him 19 hours, people just throw up their hands and tell him they don't have a clue what he is talking about, and honestly they don't even want to listen. :crying: This affects a child's sense of self. How could it not? He *needs* to know and interact with others with his passion for math.

 

So although I do understand what you are saying, I also think that kids like ours start seeing the world in a certain way from a young age. And without this major change in focus, perhaps he would have been a musician just because the path was clearer. Funny how life is like that.

[lewelma]

Well, as the mother of two violinists, I was sad when I started reading your post, but then all I could think of was Corraleno's ds and how her change of methods made his life what it is today. :)

 

I'm so excited for your ds and wow. Just WOW!!! Congratulations to him and to you. And please let us know as soon as you know. (Would subscribing to this thread work for updates? Yes, I'll try that.)

 

And you know, he might just have some big revelation regarding a math problem (in life, not just for this endeavor) while he is playing the violin. Mindless scales? Ah, but the brain is at work (as evidenced by his awaking and saying that one answer was wrong!) Fiocco Allegro for umpteenth time? Maybe while he plows through that, he'll solve some big problem. May he always play the violin in some capacity. Always!

 

Angie

whose dd loves, just adores, how much math and music go together

 

ETA: I only saw it b/c it was a recent topic and therefore on the main page. I don't hang out here much. I hope it's OK that I read and posted here!

Of course I am happy to have you post here! It sounds like you did not see my son's performance that I posted last week. Here is the link. (removed)

 

Don't quote me as I will take it down again.

 

I absolutely know you are right, my ds will always love his violin.

[lewelma]

Would you mind sharing what you used for his math education throughout? I love reading about math education and kids.

Singapore, then AoPS. He began AoPS intro algebra at age 9 and it took him almost 3 years to finish the book. He did every single challenger. I think that this incredibly so pace was key to his rock solid foundation and intense problem solving skill.

 

To learn investigation skills and proof writing techniques, we used Kathy in Richmond's suggestion of The Art and Craft of Problem Solving. This is a university math majors textbook and is seriously hard. Seriously.

 

I also thought that you would be interested in *how* I worked through this book with him. This is an x-post from a thread about our studies back in April. It is so good to see how far we have come. I think this board is like my diary! : http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/468033-a-small-math-success-but-huge-for-us/

 

 

 

Yes, that is the book. My son is 12. We are currently able to understand only 30% of it. It is a University math majors textbook. The author states that you should read each chapter until you don't understand, then move to the next chapter. When you finish the first pass of the book, you start again. This approach allows you to work at your personal level in each topic, and allows your ability in all topics and problem solving to be increased concurrently.

 

There is NO way that my son could work with this book independently. We work on each problem together and then read through the proofs together. If the problem is easier, we each separately investigate it and write up a formal proof and then compare. My goal is to find ideas in each problem that will be generalizable to other problems. We keep a list, and I quiz him every day about the different generalizable skills we have learned. For example, what kinds of problems are would likely be helped by the extreme principal? or what kind of problems suggest a proof by induction? How can you recognize parity in geometry problems? These types of questions are not directly answered in the text -- they are more of a way for us to really internalize what we are reading and categorize all the ideas. Plus, it helps us review esoteric ideas by recalling specific problems that reflect them. We've decided that if there are 20 different tactics that are possible, and we can recognize that 4 are good candidates for a certain problem, we can try those four. If one works, great, if none work, then at least we have gotten our hands dirty and have a much better understanding of the problem and can go from there.

 

To help in proof writing, I drill him on specific phrases like "This specific case is generalizable because the only special feature of 11 that we used is that it is odd." (yes, I am memorizing all this too, so that just popped out of my brain). This drill has really helped him not only with the language of math, but also helped him realize different approaches he could use to prove a conjecture. For example, the above case showed us that you can use an example as your proof in many cases of parity. This is very important to know, because most proofs do not allow this. Our overall goal is to get as many tools in our tool box as we can, and then remember what tools we have in there!

 

All this is really working. I cannot believe how far we have come in 2 months.

 

I told someone last week that I could only go through this process once because what I am giving my son is not a knowledgeable tutor, but rather a skilled learner who is at his exact level in math. If I ever go through this material again with a student, I would be much much more knowledgeable and I would loose the confusion that has been so critical in helping him battle through this material. What I am finding is that because I don't know the answers and I cannot teach him how to do it, I am instead teaching him how to learn problem solving -- what questions to ask, what answer to hunt for, how to compare problems, how to really interact with this material. No tutor who knows the material well could do this as well as I can, because once you have the knowledge, it would be virtually impossible to relive the confusion.

 

But then I realized that because my memory is so shaky, I could probably do it one more time. :001_smile:

 

Ruth in NZ

[Angie in VA]

Of course I am happy to have you post here! It sounds like you did not see my son's performance that I posted last week.

 

I absolutely know you are right, my ds will always love his violin.

I did miss that post and link. I am mooching free wifi (we are allowed!) at a public school where ds is in orchestra rehearsal, so I hope the link is still up when I get back to my computer at home. ;)

[Dmmetler]

Yes. He did do a science fair project for 7 weeks, and he did continue his literature and listen to a lovely lecture series on literary analysis from TTC, but besides that -- no science and no English. We laughed that he would do the 3 Ms - music, math, and mandarin. He has continued with the concertmaster, and is currently preparing for the grade 5 (10th grade) ABRSM theory exam.

 

Well, not quite yet worked out. I am still looking for a mentor/coach/tutor. I think that the one I thought I had lined up from the university really wants to see how well ds does on the exam before putting time into him. And I have found a homeschool dad who is a computer scientist who loves math and is just so passionate about it and is willing to be a tutor -- but he doesn't do proofs. So I am not quite sure if that is going to work.

 

Half of the students who get into the camp are provided with math mentors/IMO coaches. Not sure if ds would be in the running for one of these, but he could be. His proofs are compelling and incredibly well written. Good enough that we feel obligated to write a cover letter describing his education and reiterating that we did not help (and could not have helped even if we had wanted to). Honestly, to my eye it does look suspicious. I simply cannot believe that he could come up with these proofs on his own at his age. But he did. Last year only 120 students in the country could actually meet the cut off for consideration by completing 5 problems (the problems are hard!).

Hopefully you'll find something. It does seem like once one door opens and a child has a chance to show what they do, other doors start opening as well and mentors get easier to find. Hopefully, this will work that way for your son.

 

And I have to say, I kind of WISH DD was focusing on math...it doesn't have venomous fangs (we're in the process of setting up a trip in November to visit a research facility that focuses on snake venom and has many live venomous species. DD is thrilled-it's the perfect birthday present in her book. I'm hoping that this is one experience that's NOT hands on....)

[Donna]

Hopefully you'll find something. It does seem like once one door opens and a child has a chance to show what they do, other doors start opening as well and mentors get easier to find. Hopefully, this will work that way for your son.

 

And I have to say, I kind of WISH DD was focusing on math...it doesn't have venomous fangs (we're in the process of setting up a trip in November to visit a research facility that focuses on snake venom and has many live venomous species. DD is thrilled-it's the perfect birthday present in her book. I'm hoping that this is one experience that's NOT hands on....)

 

I love reading the posts on this board of how other parents are finding "outside the box" ways to nurture their children's passions and interests.

 

lewelma, I think it is wonderful the way you really listened to your son and were willing and able to find a way to actively change direction in his life. Sometimes as parents we do find ourselves going with the flow and have to really step back to look at the big picture to figure out what the advantages and disadvantages are of following the current course of action.

 

We are currently involved in music in a similar way and I know how difficult it would be if dd decided she wanted to go a different direction...so many resources and so much effort put into this one area. We'd do it, of course, but it wouldn't be easy. Sometimes even small changes like changing a teacher or dropping involvement with a certain group are difficult because there are positives and negatives involved and it is difficult to decide which side tips the balance.

 

I hope your ds gets accepted into the camp. It sounds like a wonderful opportunity but, even if he doesn't, you have given him an amazing gift.

[lewelma]

We just heard.  DS got into the NZ math olympiad summer camp! 

 

 

[kiwik]

Happy dance. I didn't even know there was such a thing until your posts - guess it can't compete with rugby.

[lewelma]

He has just gone through the solutions, and it looks like he got all 9 proofs correct!  They are having him take the British Math Olympiad in 2 weeks. Given that it took him 60 hours for the NZ math olympiad, he is running a bit scared about 3.5 hours for the British MO! Here's to hoping that they are a different style of problem!

[freerange]

Woooooooohooooooooooooo!

 

Congratulations to BOTH of you!

[Tress]

Congratulations!

[Luckymama]

:party:

[8filltheheart]

YAY!!!! Congratulations to your ds! His hard work sure paid off.

:party:

[Kathy in Richmond]

  :party: :party: :party:

 

Woohoo Ruth & son!! Big time congratulations!!  I'm not surprised in the least!!

[Dmmetler]

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!

 

:hurray: :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: :hurray: :party: :party: :party:

[Uff Da!]

WOOOOOOOOOOOO   HOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! :willy_nilly: 

[MinivanMom]

Congratulations!

[ErinE]

We just heard. DS got into the NZ math olympiad summer camp!

Congratulations! I hope he meets many kids there who share his interests and many adults who can help him pursue his goals!

[maize]

Congratulations!!!!

[Tattarrattat]

:thumbup: Yay! Congratulations! :thumbup:

[Chrysalis Academy]

Wow, Ruth, that's amazing!!! Congratulations to you both!!

 

:hurray:  :hurray:  :hurray:

[trulycrabby]

Wow, congratulations!!! Having read this thread describing the work he put into the problems, I am not in the least surprised!!!! :)

[Arcadia]

He has just gone through the solutions, and it looks like he got all 9 proofs correct!  They are having him take the British Math Olympiad in 2 weeks. Given that it took him 60 hours for the NZ math olympiad, he is running a bit scared about 3.5 hours for the British MO! Here's to hoping that they are a different style of problem!

 

Have fun with the past year BMO papers and congrats :)

 

http://www.bmoc.maths.org/home/bmo.shtml

[Mrs.Mom]

Oh Ruth, that story is so inspiring! What an amazing kiddo you have. You must be so incredibly proud. :D

[prairiewindmomma]

super congrats! I am so happy for you both!

[MASHomeschooler]

Congratulations! Very exciting and inspiring!

[quark]

  :party: :party: :party:

 

Woohoo Ruth & son!! Big time congratulations!!  I'm not surprised in the least!!

 

Exactly! I didn't doubt it for a second lol. Fantastic news Ruth! Many congrats to him and you too.

[avilma]

Congratulations! That's great news. I remember thinking when I first read about this that I was sure he would get in but I haven't written it, so here is a new prediction: By the third year of high school he will get at least a silver medal at the IMO. The only reason I see for this not happening is if he burns out and stops participating but judging by the dynamic of your duo there is little chance of burnout happening.

[Eagle]

Congratulations! He must be so excited!

 

And kudos to you for guiding him so well on his chosen path. It sounds exhausting! (But worth it)

[lewelma]

Thanks everyone!  The first thing he said when I handed him my phone with the e-mail on it was "Now I can look at the solutions."  They had come out 2 weeks earlier, and he had refused to even see if he was right.  The strangest thing from my point of view is that he proved one problem with number theory and the official solution used algebra.  :blink:  His proofs were also MUCH longer than theirs, but he told me "I did not know how much I needed to explain, so I wrote them for the laymen."  Um, ok, sounds like English class to me - with my teacher stressing how important your audience is to how you write.  Perhaps we did not take 8 months off of composition after all.

 

What was particularly interesting to me was later that night when his brother had gone to bed, it came out that he was very concerned about how this would affect his younger brother.  Would he feel the need to follow in older's footsteps?  Would he have equal success one day? How would he feel right now?  etc.  So we had a long talk, and I was really pleased to see this side of my boy.

 

So today, he will be looking at the British MO previous exams.  He has never done math under time pressure so I'm not sure how he will find it.  Unfortunately, it looks like I have to buy the answers and they will take 4 weeks to get here.  So if anyone knows where I can get answers faster than that I love to hear about it!

 

Thanks again for everyone's kind words,

 

Ruth in NZ

 

eeek.  Just looked at the entrance criteria for the BMO and it is a test given to 16-19 year olds.  Um, ds is 13.

[freerange]

So today, he will be looking at the British MO previous exams.  He has never done math under time pressure so I'm not sure how he will find it.  Unfortunately, it looks like I have to buy the answers and they will take 4 weeks to get here.  So if anyone knows where I can get answers faster than that I love to hear about it!

 

Thanks again for everyone's kind words,

 

Ruth in NZ

 

eeek.  Just looked at the entrance criteria for the BMO and it is a test given to 16-19 year olds.  Um, ds is 13.

 

I'd be  :willy_nilly: and  :unsure: , not to mention needing a very large mug of coffee & a chocolate biscuit!  Could they perhaps mean the Intermediate Olympiad?  If not, contact the UKMT to see if they could send you a pdf, or suggest alternative resources you could use.

 

Oh, this might be useful - intermediate mentoring

[Julie of KY]

Congratulations. He's got to be thrilled.

[lewelma]

I'd be  :willy_nilly: and  :unsure: , not to mention needing a very large mug of coffee & a chocolate biscuit!  Could they perhaps mean the Intermediate Olympiad?  If not, contact the UKMT to see if they could send you a pdf, or suggest alternative resources you could use.

 

That is about the way I am feeling.  It is definitely the BMO.  The NZMO committee just told us that they are able to send out solutions to 2 of the previous BMOs and will do so in a week after the kids have a chance to try them.  So ds does have something to work with.  Round 1 of the BMO is definitely easier than the NZ camp selection problems, but of course the BMO is a 3.5 hours exam, instead of a take-home open-book exam.

 

I think ds is already feeling good about being e-mailed by a mathematician and being a part of the 'camp invitees'.  Right now he is using my dh's e-mail, but I think it would be a good idea to get him his own address so it will feel like they are contacting *him* directly.  We are quite new to this, but it looks like over the next few months they will be sending him assignments and checking on his progress.  This is what we were after!

 

I also have realized in the past 2 days, that my role is not over.  Somehow I had started to think that once I got him into the camp, they would take over.  They are and they're not.  Yes, they are going to start mentoring/training him, but I am still going to be the teacher on the ground.  He still wants to share a great solution he found for a cool problem, and he still wants to bounce ideas off of me to see if I think they would work.  But as he get further along, I am going to become more and more shallow in my understanding because I am not going to try to keep up any more.  Also, because he is 13 and not a super organized kid, I will still need to be involved in making sure he gets to these assignments, turns in what he needs to turn in, signs up for on-line classes, optimizes the order he studies the different math subjects, balances learning new material with reviewing what he knows,  etc.  I definitely still feel a sense of being in over my head.   I picture some other kid with a great math teacher who has done this many times before, who has all the review sheets made out, who knows the best olympiad resources, etc.  There is just so much *more* I need to do for ds, and I had just kind of started to think that my role was over.  I know, silly me, but there it is.

[kiwik]

I don't think your son would find something aimed at kids his age very challenging though, would he. 16 to 19 seems about right although it would be aimed at the more advanced kids in that age range.

[lewelma]

I don't think your son would find something aimed at kids his age very challenging though, would he. 16 to 19 seems about right although it would be aimed at the more advanced kids in that age range.

 

Not at this level.  No way.  The kids taking the USAMO and the BMO are awesome, amazing mathematicians, who have already been winnowed down to just the best through previous exams.  DS might have had a good showing in the intermediate exam, but he will get his butt kicked in the BMO.  He's ok with that and so am I, and it is kind of nice that there is not time to really prepare so that takes the pressure off.  He thinks it's just kind of cool that he has been invited to take it at all. 

[lewelma]

 The only reason I see for this not happening is if he burns out.

 

Trouble in paradise. He is burned out. 

 

I suggested he go over some of the previous BMO exams, and he is just exhausted.  After 2 hours working on the first exam, he asked me "can I just do a standard week?  I am tired of all of these exams!"  I was pretty shocked because he just loves math, but perhaps I should not be.  Looks like my evolving role will also include making sure that he is not pushed into more than he can handle.

[kiwik]

Too much of a good thing?

[quark]

You'll figure it out Ruth. And perhaps he just needs a rest. Always inspired by you guys. Good luck!

[8filltheheart]

Trouble in paradise. He is burned out.

 

I suggested he go over some of the previous BMO exams, and he is just exhausted. After 2 hours working on the first exam, he asked me "can I just do a standard week? I am tired of all of these exams!" I was pretty shocked because he just loves math, but perhaps I should not be. Looks like my evolving role will also include making sure that he is not pushed into more than he can handle.

Ruth,

 

I don't know why, but I thought your ds was younger. Anyway, when our ds was 13-14 he had a huge (and I do mean huge) mental explosion. It seemed like all of a sudden he was understanding a ton more and was processing info like crazy and was functioning on a completely different level.

 

I literally had to put on the brakes. (Strongly applied! ;) ). Bc he just wanted to do more and more and more and I could see massive burn-out looming if he didn't just cut back and be a kid, too. He resisted, but I am glad I did it. Your ds just prbably needs a break and time to mentally regroup. Time to sit back and have fun and rejuvenate.

[avilma]

I am sorry to hear about the temporary burnout but it is really to be expected. I remember before I took my calculus exam in college we had one week to prepare. After that exam we had 3 more at one week intervals. The professor told us: "This is what is going to happen. You are going to study this week like you have never studied in your life. Also after the exam is over you will think that you would be able to keep studying like this for the other exams". She added: "Forget about the second. I don't know anybody who has been able to even start reading for the next exam without a 2 day vacation".

 

Compare our one week to the long period of hard work that he has endured and then the joy of learning he got in. That joy is like a drug high from which he needs a long time to recuperate. If I were you I would not worry if he doesn't study at all for BMO1. I am sure he will study and do well on BMO2.