Good luck at Math Kangaroo today!

[SeaConquest]

This will be Sacha's first MK. Good luck to all the participants!

[desertflower]

Good luck to you too!  Let us know how it goes.  :) 

[Syllieann]

Good luck to you too! Ds did his first MK test today. This was really his first test of any kind. Lots of careless errors, but good spirits and no tears, so I'm calling it a success.

[Dmmetler]

GL to everyone! This is the first year in quite awhile that DD isn't participating (cheer practice is on Thursdays, and she doesn't want to miss cheer, even for math). I kind of miss it.

[debi21]

Good luck everyone. Ours starts in two hours. It's my DS's first MK also. I am hoping for good spirits and no tears too. I told him my advice was to read each question multiple times and that my goal for him was to not flip out and get upset. I took him out to lunch and we're now at a park playing to relax and hopefully make him remember it as a fun day to look forward to. I was surprised when I realized it was on St. Patrick's Day.

[Lilaclady]

We had fun at MK today. The kids thought it was tough but not too tough.

[Black-eyed Suzan]

Just got home. He was happy with this year's shirt and the puzzle.

 

I hope it went well for everyone!

[SeaConquest]

Sacha loved getting the loot after the test. He seemed really proud of himself. I am thrilled that he enjoyed it. We went out for ice cream to celebrate. :)

[Farrar]

We also went out for ice cream after with some kids we ran into.

 

Okay, admit it. Who else is sitting with the test in front of them working the answers?  :tongue_smilie:

[Syllieann]

We went out for ice cream too. Guess that was popular.

 

I'm not working out the answers right now because I did it while I was eating my ice cream, lol.

Edited March 18, 2016 by Syllieann

[debi21]

I took mine for sushi. I am grateful because he came out happy. He even asked if he could take it again next year. He likes the puzzle and the t-shirt and asked to laminate the participation certificate. On the flip side, he was the very first one out of the testing room and it was about the twenty minute mark. I don't think there's any way he could have gotten many right - he just didn't spend long enough on it. I worked so hard to minimize/downplay it beforehand so there would be no pressure; I might have done the job a little too well. I am intentionally not looking at the test booklet and trying to focus on my gratitude that it hasn't put him off of math at age 6. He did the test alone and without freaking out. Learning to work carefully and persevere through problems he doesn't understand right away can come in time.

[OlgaLA]

We finished at 8pm tonight. My DS seemed happy, DD showed no emotions at all. Honestly, I only took her because DS felt more comfortable going with her. It is so interesting how different their personalities are. He neatly marked all his answers in the booklet, and asked to check "how many stupid mistakes he made". DD didn't mark them, just shrugged and said she remembers most of them anyway. Overall, it was a good experience, plus I got to just walk around a nice neighborhood with DH for an hour :)

[4KookieKids]

So if we don't have a center near us (didn't see one listed in the entire state of Nebraska) how would you all recommend I go about getting one set up? Try it myself through their teacher registration, work with a local school, try to get the university to host it (they're already relatively involved in the community so it might be right up their ally, but also just be too much to add to their posts right now), or something else?

Edited March 18, 2016 by deanna1ynne

[La Condessa]

My dd7 said she enjoyed it. She seemed to take a lot longer than most of the other younger kids. The lady hosting it invited us to come join her math circle (even though they normally start at third grade). I wish! We won't drive that far again; next year I'll just host my own location.

[Arcadia]

On the flip side, he was the very first one out of the testing room and it was about the twenty minute mark. .

My kids did last year but didn't like it so we did the AMCs instead. Mine were 9 & 10 so on the older end. My slower speed kid finish on time while my speedster said he was basically "swatting flies" because the invigilator doesn't let anyone out early. Both of mine did well. So don't worry about the speed.

 

As for checking, my speedster tend to score almost perfect if it is computation heavy and with lots of time to spare. It would be very unlikely that he wpuld be able to spot his own careless mistake for that one or two question that prevent a perfect score. It is even harder to spot mistakes when there are many questions in a short period of time, everything starts looking the same. It is easier when there are fewer but harder questions in a longer period of time.

[4KookieKids]

I have another question about this, since we're on the AL board- do you actually sign the kids up based on age/grade, or do you sign them up based on something else (say the grade level they most recently finished in their math curriculum)? One is certainly more likely to get them an award, of course, but might be sad if they just have to sit there bored at the end...

[Arcadia]

I have another question about this, since we're on the AL board- do you actually sign the kids up based on age/grade, or do you sign them up based on something else (say the grade level they most recently finished in their math curriculum)?

I asked the franchise owner of the center we signed up at. It is the grade they would be in public school for homeschoolers.

 

It is the same for the AMC8/10/12, color the bubble in the answer sheet for what the homeschooler would be if in public school.

 

I did grade skip my DS10 to 5th at his request but he missed state cutoff by 3 days. So he is insignificantly younger than local public school 5th graders.

[Farrar]

I have another question about this, since we're on the AL board- do you actually sign the kids up based on age/grade, or do you sign them up based on something else (say the grade level they most recently finished in their math curriculum)? One is certainly more likely to get them an award, of course, but might be sad if they just have to sit there bored at the end...

 

At least in our group, there was at least one homeschooler taking the test above her level at her request. So I think you can have an option there.

[4KookieKids]

I did grade skip my DS10 to 5th at his request but he missed state cutoff by 3 days. So he is insignificantly younger than local public school 5th graders.

Yeah, this is something I'm always unsure about anyway, since three of my kiddos have fall bdays (2 in Aug and 1 in Sept) where our cut off is the end of July. Maturity wise, I know it's best to keep them at current grade level for team activities and such, because they're not much more mature than other kiddos their age. But Iworry that it somehow seems like stacking the deck in their favor or even cheating to let them compete at a grade far below their current level in a subject. Maybe just because I'd feel like *I* were cheating somehow if I took a test at the same level as others who were behind me, in a sense.

Edited March 18, 2016 by deanna1ynne

[Arcadia]

But it somehow seems like stacking the deck in their favor or even cheating to let them compete at a grade far below their current level in a subject.

If it is far below, I would move on to AMC8. My kids did average for AMC8 but they won't bored. My oldest was doing algebra 1 in 4th, it would likely be unusual for him to take the 7th or 8th grade MK paper as a young 4th grader.

 

California cutoff was Dec 2nd. Mine are both born in December.

[4KookieKids]

If it is far below, I would move on to AMC8. My kids did average for AMC8 but they won't bored. My oldest was doing algebra 1 in 4th, it would likely be unusual for him to take the 7th or 8th grade MK paper as a young 4th grader.

 

California cutoff was Dec 2nd. Mine are both born in December.

Oh goodness! Iam so sick today that I was only thinking about our situation and didn't even realize how my post might sound like I was critical of what others were doing! Oops! I'm really sorry if I offended anyone! My brain just isn't firing on all cylinders today...

 

Thank you for your thoughts and advice!

Edited March 18, 2016 by deanna1ynne

[Arcadia]

Maybe just because I'd feel like *I* were cheating somehow if I took a test at the same level as others who were behind me, in a sense.

There will always be age peers ahead and behind you. I see MK the same way I see PSAT scores for NMS. California has a higher score compared to other states for MK and PSAT when you are looking at the top percentile.

 

Are all 11th graders taking the PSAT at the same academic level? Obviously not because the two high schools in my district aren't equally academic. It is hard to be fair.

 

I don't think it is cheating to enter a competition where you know you are way ahead of the pack. However it is a hollow victory.

 

MK is a no stakes friendly competition. If a child is redshirted in school and goes by that grade, I still won't think that is cheating.

 

Even for a high stakes competition like gymnastics because many teen gymnasts locally managed to get college scholarships. If a child compete at the correct category, no one would think the child is cheating just because he/she has innate talent.

[SoCal_Bear]

I was proctoring last night. We were in a college classroom with rolling/spinning chairs. You can imagine how that went. I had two kids that fell off during the test. Two more kids where I had to tell them that they were starting with the end of the test booklet and bubbling in reverse order on their answer sheet. I hope it was ok that I did that since I wasn't helping with a math problem. I had one girl finish in 10 minutes. I glanced at her test sheet and, yup, there was no way that could be possible without a lot of errors.

 

I scored the kiddo's booklet when we got home. If the scores are spread the way they were in previous years, I think he just missed making the ranking nationally.

 

 

Edited March 18, 2016 by calbear

[mathnerd]

I have another question about this, since we're on the AL board- do you actually sign the kids up based on age/grade, or do you sign them up based on something else (say the grade level they most recently finished in their math curriculum)? One is certainly more likely to get them an award, of course, but might be sad if they just have to sit there bored at the end...

I think that the rules state that they should be signed up for the actual grade in school that they might be in (for e.g. if they are in 4th grade, but doing 10th grade math, it would still mean that they should be signed up as 4th graders).

 

ETA: NM. Others have provide better answers to this question.

Edited March 18, 2016 by mathnerd

[Arcadia]

We were in a college classroom with rolling/spinning chairs. You can imagine how that went. I had two kids that fell off during the test.

Those chairs cost a lot. We were checking out the price as DS10 was interested.

 

Link is to the $499 one that he liked which has the tablet stand and cup holder

http://store.steelcase.com/seating/guest-chairs/node

[daijobu]

... how would you all recommend I go about getting one set up? 

 

MK is very friendly to homeschoolers.  Check back with the website later this year, and email Maria about setting up a new site.  They'll be thrilled to have you because you'll be allowing more students to participate.  

 

My kids have been doing MK for years.  Even my 9th grader still enjoys it, though not so much with the loud t-shirts that are designed for boys.  (Why don't these programs ever give out t shirts for girls?)  

 

If you need more info about setting up a site, I'm also happy to help.  I'd wait a few weeks because they are just receiving their scantron cards and will be busy with grading exams and everything else.  

[JohannaM]

So if we don't have a center near us (didn't see one listed in the entire state of Nebraska) how would you all recommend I go about getting one set up? Try it myself through their teacher registration, work with a local school, try to get the university to host it (they're already relatively involved in the community so it might be right up their ally, but also just be too much to add to their posts right now), or something else?

 

 

MK is very friendly to homeschoolers.  Check back with the website later this year, and email Maria about setting up a new site.  They'll be thrilled to have you because you'll be allowing more students to participate.  

 

 

Yes, just contact Maria, maybe in Aug, when they are renewing test centers and getting ready for registration in the fall.  In the meantime, check with local libraries or other places (like the university you mentioned) that might let you use a room!

[4KookieKids]

Excellent. I shot an email to the math ed guy I know at the university to discuss it. Fingers crossed! I brought it up to my husband (who never did anything like this) and he stared at me blankly and said something to the effect of "But only pushy, competitive, overbearing parents put their kids in academic competitions like that." (and the only purpose is to one-up other parents by showing your kid is smarter)... and "isn't it hurtful to the kid to kind of have it be shoved in your face that all these other kids are smarter than you?" .... So clearly there's another discussion that I need to be having with him while I wait for the other stuff at MK to settle down... :)

[Arcadia]

"isn't it hurtful to the kid to kind of have it be shoved in your face that all these other kids are smarter than you?"

I don't know how old or how many children you have (other than at least 3 kids). However the hurt is real when a sibling is more talented than another.

 

Pushy, competitive, overbearing and boastful parents are a dime a dozen here. My extended family is used to acting dumb when the need arise. My hubby has learnt that too the hard way.

 

The competition is fierce among parents for AMC10/12 because of AIME qualifiers and because some prestigious colleges are interested in those scores. The same parents are relaxed at AMC8 because it is a fun thing and not a qualifier.

 

ETA:

In case anyone is wondering, my kids took all the competitions with mostly afterschoolers. For AMC10/12, the child need to show photo ID so I could see which school each child is from while waiting in line with my kids passports.

Edited March 21, 2016 by Arcadia

[4KookieKids]

I don't know how old or how many children you have (other than at least 3 kids). However the hurt is real when a sibling is more talented than another.

 

Pushy, competitive, overbearing and boastful parents are a dime a dozen here. My extended family is used to acting dumb when the need arise. My hubby has learnt that too the hard way.

 

The competition is fierce among parents for AMC10/12 because of AIME qualifiers and because some prestigious colleges are interested in those scores. The same parents are relaxed at AMC8 because it is a fun thing and not a qualifier.

 

Ah three so much I don't know, I guess! I only did math contests in college for fun- never knew about them before that. But I hate edgy competitiveness... it's one of the main reason I decided to go into math even though I had a music scholarship offered to me...

 

My kids are 6, 4, 2, and 10 months so still very young. I just thought this sounded like fun for next year!

[daijobu]

 "But only pushy, competitive, overbearing parents put their kids in academic competitions like that." (and the only purpose is to one-up other parents by showing your kid is smarter)... and "isn't it hurtful to the kid to kind of have it be shoved in your face that all these other kids are smarter than you?" 

 

Would he say the same of kids who play football?  Audition for roles in the school musical?  Run for student government?

 

Wouldn't the students who don't make the team, don't get a big role, don't get enough votes have it shoved in their faces?  

 

Sorry, but this attitude really gets my goat.   :glare:

 

I think even students who don't necessarily score highly still benefit from the process.  Dd14 was keen to be an AIME qualifier this year, but didn't after 2 attempts.  But I'm glad she made the attempts, because the effort she puts in makes her a stronger student.  

[Dmmetler]

FWIW, my DD loved MK and similar things for years because it was a chance to be with other kids who loved math. She gets the "you're weird" stuff a lot in other settings, and to be in a place where math was valued...ah, it was awesome. She didn't care if she won, just wanted to be there.

 

She's gone away from it in order to focus on her science /herpetology stuff, in large part because 6th grade is where it starts getting more competitive-schools start having teams, and in order to be competitive, you really have to work hard, and if she's going to spend that time, she'd rather spend it counting tadpoles or lecturing about snake conservation-and she finds her like-minded folks at those conferences.

[Arcadia]

My kids are 6, 4, 2, and 10 months so still very young. I just thought this sounded like fun for next year!

Too young for your husband to worry about pushy parents :)

 

Here at 3, the pushy parents push reading because that is what the preschools brag about. I did have a neighbor brag about her son knowing his multiplication tables by heart before K started :lol:

 

My kids were hoping for the kangaroo soft toy that they gave out many years back but they didn't give any soft toy last year. They didn't have problem coloring bubbles because state test were coloring bubbles before common core.

[Arcadia]

Dd14 was keen to be an AIME qualifier this year, but didn't after 2 attempts. But I'm glad she made the attempts, because the effort she puts in makes her a stronger student.

There is next year :)

 

Did you stay around when your daughter was doing the AMC10/12? The parents gossip was entertaining in english and you know which other language. Lots of gossip about Ivy admissions. Much more entertaining then for the AMC8 at the same university.

[mathnerd]

I brought it up to my husband (who never did anything like this) and he stared at me blankly and said something to the effect of "But only pushy, competitive, overbearing parents put their kids in academic competitions like that." (and the only purpose is to one-up other parents by showing your kid is smarter)... and "isn't it hurtful to the kid to kind of have it be shoved in your face that all these other kids are smarter than you?" 

MK is a "fun" competition for math awareness and for math oriented kids to have a non-competitive outlet - it embodies the opposite of edgy competitiveness. The kids participate in the competition, get a goody bag and leave. The questions are appropriate for the age of the competitiors and a lot of them are like puzzles. The kids need not know what their scores are if the parents decide to not tell them. There is no opportunity to "one-up" other parents. If your husband has no objections to things like spelling bee, robotics competitions, science fair, music festivals, this is a lot like that, with the aim of improving the kid's ability, only it is written on paper and the results are emailed 2 months later to the parent.

Edited March 19, 2016 by mathnerd

[Arcadia]

The kids need not know what their scores are if the parents decide to not tell them. There is no opportunity to "one-up" other parents.

My kids scores for 2015 are on the MK results website with their full name. No login required. There was one upmanship among a few parents during the award ceremony in east bay but that was easy to ignore.

 

ETA:

Also if the host center is a tuition center, they may put your child's results up on their website. So your friends and neighbors may end up knowing your kids results.

E.g. http://www.mathseed.org/competition-results/2015-results

http://www.russianschool.com/2015-award-winners

 

ETA:

OT-a San Jose girl won Intel Science Talent Search.

Edited March 19, 2016 by Arcadia

[4KookieKids]

Would he say the same of kids who play football? Audition for roles in the school musical? Run for student government?

 

Wouldn't the students who don't make the team, don't get a big role, don't get enough votes have it shoved in their faces?

 

Sorry, but this attitude really gets my goat. :glare:

 

I think even students who don't necessarily score highly still benefit from the process. Dd14 was keen to be an AIME qualifier this year, but didn't after 2 attempts. But I'm glad she made the attempts, because the effort she puts in makes her a stronger student.

I generally agree! I think somehow he views it as more detrimental to their well being to somehow be told they are intellectually inferior than physically inferior. But there is a guy who never did any academic competitions at all - no music festivals, science fairs, spelling bee, etc. And he's also super competitive, so I'm wondering if staying away from academic competitions is a way for him to keep his distance so he's less likely to go papa bear crazy on other competitive parents. :)

[daijobu]

I generally agree! I think somehow he views it as more detrimental to their well being to somehow be told they are intellectually inferior than physically inferior. 

 

Okay, I'll back off.  I think you're correct that it's more embarrassing to be considered "dumb" than to be "not good enough for the varsity team."  

[Arcadia]

I think somehow he views it as more detrimental to their well being to somehow be told they are intellectually inferior than physically inferior

Could be the mindset regarding intellectually and physical talents.

 

My region is filled with hyper competitive parents. What we found after trying out all the math comps that was easy to register for fun was

 

Mathnasium Trimathalon (elementary school level) - very friendly, award on same day for the center. Parents friendly

 

Math Kangaroo - friendly on test day, some nastry parents on award ceremony day. You can skip the award ceremony and just collect the cert and prize after

 

RSM Olympiad - friendly on test day, some parents checking out on kids that won awards to see what school they attend, interrogating but not mean. The center we went was near a top school district. We had parents push our kids away to let their kids jump the line at the game booth before the ceremony started :(

 

AMC8 - like a party, no stakes. Treated as a practice round for AMC10/12

 

AMC10/12 - met a few curious parents before starting. Stayed around because of rain and heard lots of nasty stuff from parents who talk loud enough for others 3m-5m away to hear.

 

We didn't try CML.

[4KookieKids]

Could be the mindset regarding intellectually and physical talents.

 

My region is filled with hyper competitive parents. What we found after trying out all the math comps that was easy to register for fun was

 

Mathnasium Trimathalon (elementary school level) - very friendly, award on same day for the center. Parents friendly

 

Math Kangaroo - friendly on test day, some nastry parents on award ceremony day. You can skip the award ceremony and just collect the cert and prize after

 

RSM Olympiad - friendly on test day, some parents checking out on kids that won awards to see what school they attend, interrogating but not mean. The center we went was near a top school district. We had parents push our kids away to let their kids jump the line at the game booth before the ceremony started :(

 

AMC8 - like a party, no stakes. Treated as a practice round for AMC10/12

 

AMC10/12 - met a few curious parents before starting. Stayed around because of rain and heard lots of nasty stuff from parents who talk loud enough for others 3m-5m away to hear.

 

We didn't try CML.

Good to know and thanks for the summary. I don't think our area has hyper competitive parents among its homeschoolers. Most folks I know IRL homeschool primarily for religious reasons and don't spend a ton of time on anything that'd be considered advanced or accelerates I don't think. But I also mostly hang with the younger homeschooling crowd since that's where my kids are right now. Maybe it's different with older kids, but that's not really the impression I have of this area. :) Edited March 19, 2016 by deanna1ynne

[Dmmetler]

CML is something you can do at home. Every "School", including homeschoolers, gets a medal for each grade level, so if you only have one child in your "school" at a grade level, they automatically are a "school" winner (homeschoolers are listed as "lastname Homeschool" by default). Certificates are provided for all participants.  That makes it a good competition test for younger kids or less math secure ones, even though getting a medal is about the same level of achievement as getting the toy at the end of the Math Kangaroo exam.

 

 

Starting at 4th grade,there are two levels of problems, one that is a little more difficult (usually more wordy) and one which is more straight forward. What I do in my math club is that everyone tests at their registered grade level, which is usually age/grade (my DD is accelerated by local standards, so she tests at one year above her age/grade), but if you're doing a math book higher than that grade level, you are in the pythagorean division, and if you're in a grade level or lower than grade level math book, you take the Euclidean division test. Both require mathematical reasoning beyond most school programs, similar to what you'd see in Beast Academy at the elementary level, or MathCounts/AMC 8 at the middle school levels. Tests are only 6 questions, with 30 minutes to take them.  There are three rounds taken one month apart in grades 2-3, 6 in grades 4+. Kids can test above their age/grade level, but can only take a given level once. It goes through middle school, and then has a calculus exam.

 

Kids are on the website by school name and first name/last initial, so if you're in a competitive area, it's fairly easy for parents to figure out who is who, at least for their own school, and for homeschoolers, since your last name is part of the school name, it's an open book. We found out DD was a national winner the first year she did CML because a parent at MK congratulated me. I hadn't known it was up on the website,but apparently she had checked it to see how her child did, and noticed her child's competition. (I'm sure she was relieved-my DD rushed through the MK test that year because she wanted to go play on the playground with the waiting siblings. Lots of silly mistakes...). National and state awards are mailed to the school to distribute-there is no regional awards ceremony or anything like that. Before we started doing the club stuff, I'd usually take DD to a restaurant and give her awards there at the end of the school year-somewhere that they make a big deal of birthdays, where at least the waitstaff would applaud :). Now we have an end of year picnic where I give out CML, National Mythology exam, and parents can bring in any other awards their child has earned for the group to applaud, which has included things like passing dance exams or piano levels, earning a belt in karate, learning all their multiplication tables, or finally mastering shoe tying :).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Arcadia]

. I don't think our area has hyper competitive parents among its homeschoolers.

My kids took with kids from B&M private and public schools, some Stanford OHS kids as well as a few homeschoolers. So not a homeschooling group of test takers. Should have stated that upthread :)

[JoanHomeEd]

Dd14 was keen to be an AIME qualifier this year, but didn't after 2 attempts.  But I'm glad she made the attempts, because the effort she puts in makes her a stronger student.  

 

Are the AMC scores close to qualifying for the AIME?

 

If so, there's Math Prize for Girls?

Saturday, September 10, 2016 at MIT 

 

http://mathprize.atfoundation.org/faq/index

What is the AMC score cutoff?

The cutoff scores will change each year. In general, they will be close to the scores needed to qualify for the AIME exam, or a little above.

 

Edited March 21, 2016 by JoanHomeEd

[TerriM]

I think it's easy to get stressed out about academics in Silicon Valley, Arcadia.  I mean, you can't even buy a nice house now on the peninsula without having two working parents who both have Ivy league degrees.  If that's what it takes to make ends meet here, is it a surprise that everyone's trying to do better.....than two Ivy League degrees?  Next competition?  Teenage tech startup grants?  

 

I hope the rest of the US is a bit saner..... in theory an Ivy League education is supposed to be a ticket to success, not a million dollar fixer....

[Arcadia]

Next competition? Teenage tech startup grants?

Sadly that may come true.

 

"Now 13 years old and a Santa Clara, California high school freshman, Banerjee is the inventor of Braigo, a groundbreaking low-cost Braille printer-embosser"

 

"The young inventor even brought in venture capital to ensure the success of his creation. Intel Capital, the VC arm of the technology giant, awarded Braigo an undisclosed amount of funding—enough to hire engineers to keep working on the prototype. "

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/meet-13-year-old-who-invented-low-cost-braille-printer-180956659/

 

ETA:

I'm happy a local kid create something very useful out of Legos to help lower the cost of braille printers. Sad that parents may use that as the next "battlefield".

Edited March 21, 2016 by Arcadia

[TerriM]

Sadly that may come true.

 

"Now 13 years old and a Santa Clara, California high school freshman, Banerjee is the inventor of Braigo, a groundbreaking low-cost Braille printer-embosser"

 

"The young inventor even brought in venture capital to ensure the success of his creation. Intel Capital, the VC arm of the technology giant, awarded Braigo an undisclosed amount of funding—enough to hire engineers to keep working on the prototype. "

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/meet-13-year-old-who-invented-low-cost-braille-printer-180956659/

 

HA!

 

This place is really stressing me out :(

Edited March 21, 2016 by tiuzzol2

[Arcadia]

This place is really stressing me out :(

:grouphug:

I'm totally uncompetitive :lol: i just enjoy listening to "competitive" gossips by parents in multiple languages.

 

Anyway MK is a nice friendly competition. Just skip the award ceremony part if your child medalled.

[Dmmetler]

In some ways, after hearing my mom's stories of NOVA science fair/JSHS competition and parents, I'm kind of glad that DD's mentors have largely had her skip that stage and move on to the professional research one. It's pretty cut-throat. Of course, I may regret that or change my mind when she gets into high school, because some of those contests have hefty scholarships, and the typical conference grant given to a student presentation winner may, barely, have covered the cost in getting to the conference in the first place.

[mathnerd]

In some ways, after hearing my mom's stories of NOVA science fair/JSHS competition and parents, I'm kind of glad that DD's mentors have largely had her skip that stage and move on to the professional research one. It's pretty cut-throat. Of course, I may regret that or change my mind when she gets into high school, because some of those contests have hefty scholarships, and the typical conference grant given to a student presentation winner may, barely, have covered the cost in getting to the conference in the first place.

Totally OT, after seeing yet another local teen win the Intel Science Talent Search prize ($150 K), I am wondering if your daughter or any other ALs on this board are thinking of giving it a shot.

[Dmmetler]

In DD's case, the kind of research she is most interested in just usually isn't competitive, and sometimes isn't allowed at all, so we're not really expecting that route to be worth spending the time on. Having said that, she's done all the paperwork and gone through the live animal use committee and permitting processes such that she CAN submit her research to conferences and journals, and, because of that, would have little trouble establishing the paperwork for ISEF or ISTS.

 

I suspect a big part of this is who is funding the awards. Unfortunately, frogs can't afford to fund scholarship, and amphibian research often has the side effect of limiting the companies who can afford to do so.

 

 

Edited March 21, 2016 by dmmetler