Talk to me about math competition paths

[MeaganS]

DD10 does pretty well at math. Last year she did the Math Kangaroo competition and really enjoyed it and scored first in the state (tied 7th nationally). So she did pretty well for us having no idea what to expect. She really enjoyed the experience and is interested in working towards future math competitions more formally. So what is a good path for that? I literally have no idea about how any of that works. She's technically a 5th grader. I believe there are other math competitions available at her level, right? What would be some good math contests to sign her up for in the near future? 

[SDMomof3]

I would sign her up for AMC 8. 

[daijobu]

She can also prep for MathCounts, which she can participate officially starting in grade 6.  

[MeaganS]

On 9/3/2021 at 2:13 PM, SDMomof3 said:

I would sign her up for AMC 8. 

So I looked into and sent them an email. It seems homeschoolers can't sign up without going through a public school? Is that true? How do you manage that?

[SDMomof3]

Just now, MeaganS said:

So I looked into and sent them an email. It seems homeschoolers can't sign up without going through a public school? Is that true? How do you manage that?

We sign up through the local math circle. There are math circles, universities and learning centers( like AoPS Academy and Russian Math School, etc.) that administer the exams. You can search for the location near you on the AMC site. 
https://amc-reg.maa.org/amc_external/SchoolSearchByZipCode.aspx

[MeaganS]

7 minutes ago, SDMomof3 said:

We sign up through the local math circle. There are math circles, universities and learning centers( like AoPS Academy and Russian Math School, etc.) that administer the exams. You can search for the location near you on the AMC site. 
https://amc-reg.maa.org/amc_external/SchoolSearchByZipCode.aspx

Thanks for the link. So I looked and there's no one in a 25 mile radius (longest distance option). Maybe I'll have to take a road trip to a member of our family's house for this (not a huge deal, we like visiting). 

[daijobu]

@SDMomof3 is correct, you can't sign up individually.  Before the pandemic I used to help the community library host the AMC for local students, but now the MAA disallows libraries.  I'm not sure what drove the MAA to make access even more difficult, but there you go.    

 

Competition Administration:

The MAA AMC is hosted by math and education organizations including schools, colleges/universities, Math Circles, and learning/tutoring/enrichment centers. The competition is administered by a competition manager. This person must be affiliated with the host organization and needs to demonstrate this affiliation as well as the legitimacy of the organization during registration. Competition managers are adults who are not related to any of the participants. Under no circumstances may a parent or guardian of a student taking the AMC be involved in the administration of the competition. Home schools are not allowed to register to administer the competition. A fee for students taking the MAA AMC may be charged to cover the cost of administering the competition. Failure to follow MAA AMC registration policies will result in disqualification.

Registration Categories and Requirements

Schools and Colleges/Universities
Schools and colleges/universities should register under the appropriate institution categories (Elementary, Middle School, HS/JR, High School, College/University). Competition managers registering a school or college/university must register with a school email address and provide a link to the school website. The MAA AMC must be administered at the registered school or college/institution unless cleared by the MAA AMC Office or following the inclement weather and school cancelation policy.

Math Circle
Math Student Circles and Math Teachers’ Circles that are registered with the American Institute of Mathematics (AIM) and appear on the respective website may administer the MAA AMC. Materials for competition administration by a Math Circle cannot be mailed to a residential address and must be mailed to the location where the competition is to take place. Acceptable locations where the MAA AMC may be administered include schools, universities, libraries, or community centers. Competition managers registering a Math Circle must demonstrate that the Math Circle is registered with AIM, provide a link to the Math Circle website, and provide the email address of an individual associated with the competition location who will be responsible for receiving the competition materials.

Learning Centers
Learning/Tutoring/Enrichment Centers must be able to provide a link to the learning/tutoring/enrichment center website and provide a valid tax ID form upon registering. Materials for competitions administered by a learning/tutoring/enrichment center cannot be mailed to a residential address and must be accepted at the business address. The MAA AMC must be administered at the registered learning/tutoring/enrichment center.

[MeaganS]

I just found out (through lots of sleuthing) that University of Arkansas hosts the AMC8 for anyone. They even pay for those who sign up. They haven't registered yet, so it didn't show on the website, but I'm in contact with someone who said they are going to and have added me to their email list. Since that's about a half hour away from us, I'm pretty excited about that option! And dd10 thinks it sounds more interesting to take it somewhere that isn't at home. 🙂

[Not_a_Number]

On 9/8/2021 at 12:54 PM, MeaganS said:

I just found out (through lots of sleuthing) that University of Arkansas hosts the AMC8 for anyone. They even pay for those who sign up. They haven't registered yet, so it didn't show on the website, but I'm in contact with someone who said they are going to and have added me to their email list. Since that's about a half hour away from us, I'm pretty excited about that option! And dd10 thinks it sounds more interesting to take it somewhere that isn't at home. 🙂

Great! We're going to do something similar ourselves 🙂 . 

[Porridge]

I was originally told AMC had to be taken in person this year, but then I just got an email from another math club saying they are conducting the AMC 8/10/12 online?

[Not_a_Number]

30 minutes ago, WTM said:

I was originally told AMC had to be taken in person this year, but then I just got an email from another math club saying they are conducting the AMC 8/10/12 online?

I wouldn't be surprised if they have no idea right now. Everything is shifting so fast 😞