AMC 8 so many questions

[Kezia]

I have a 12 year old who loves math. He recently started playing with the AoPS practice questions. He has enjoyed it so far. 
 

I want to sign him up, but I am not finding exactly what I need to do. Registration opens Sept 6 and the competition is in January? Someone other than the parent has to proctor? If homeschooling who does the proctoring? If public school and the school doesn’t already do any AMC prep or proctoring, how do public kids get signed up?
 

I apologize for all the questions, but I can’t find answers. 

[JennyD]

Others will have more up-to-date information, but I believe that homeschoolers can no longer register directly for the AMC exams.  It used to be possible to register one's homeschooled kid and find a proctor oneself,  but AFAIK a few years ago they stopped allowing this sort of thing.  

I believe now the exam has to be hosted by a school or other educational organization.  If a student's school doesn't offer it, or if they are homeschooled, then they're out of luck unless they can find another host. 

You might try reaching out to one of the schools in your area that offers the exam to see if they would let your son sit for it.  We did that the very first time my son took the AMC 8 - -the math teacher at a local public magnet school agreed to let him take the exam with the rest of her class -- but you may have to hunt around to find someone accommodating.  

 

 

 

[daijobu]

The MAA never allowed parents to proctor, but I had found it easy to coordinate with librarians to host the AMC , but that is no longer an option.  You'll need to contact middle schools, maybe high schools, and any college math departments, especially if they are already doing community outreach like math circles.  

You do need to sign up through a school, not directly yourself with the MAA.  They tend not to be very helpful but you can also try calling them and asking for help, but your best bet might be to call around locally.  

[daijobu]

I'll add that if you are really having a difficult time, you might make some inroads by contacting anyone on the "inside" at the MAA (try here), especially if that person is local to you.  If an MAA board members in your area learns that nearby talented math students are unable to participate without significant hurdles and expense, you may get some sympathy.  If you do complain, you can also try using the phrase "equity issue" in your complaint. 

The MAA should be trying to make it easier, not more difficult to participate.    

[Not_a_Number]

We did it through a local math circle last year. I think the AMC website lists the participating groups.

[purpleowl]

14 hours ago, daijobu said:

I'll add that if you are really having a difficult time, you might make some inroads by contacting anyone on the "inside" at the MAA (try here), especially if that person is local to you.  If an MAA board members in your area learns that nearby talented math students are unable to participate without significant hurdles and expense, you may get some sympathy.  If you do complain, you can also try using the phrase "equity issue" in your complaint. 

The MAA should be trying to make it easier, not more difficult to participate.    

Would this be worth pursuing for Mu Alpha Theta, do you think? Their government council has reps from MAA, among other organizations. The way their rules are written, there's literally no way for homeschooled kids to participate (even if a school would be okay with allowing homeschooled kids in their chapter, Mu Alpha Theta rules won't allow it).

 

To the OP - when I had my kids do the AMC 8 a while back, I looked at school websites to find the specific teacher in charge of math club and competitions and then contacted that person. The person at the first school I contacted (our zoned school) said his school didn't offer it, but he pointed me to the right person at another school. She had me give my kids a sample test that she could score to see if she felt like it was worth giving spots to my kids (she had a limited number of openings).