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Students from St. Joseph School in Fort Atkinson recently competing in the 2013 Math Olympiad are, from left: sixth-grader Ben Nelson, sixth-grader Ernest Bos, fifth-grader Jada Jarreau, and sixth-grader Audrey Shockman. Not pictured is sixth-grader Owen Yin. Four of the students won national awards. (Contributed photo) |
FORT ATKINSON — Several students from St. Joseph School in Fort Atkinson were among the nearly 150,000 students worldwide to participate this year in the Math Olympiad program.
They participated in a series of five monthly contests of five problems each, from November to March, and weekly practice sessions under the supervision and coaching of parent volunteers.
The children were asked to solve unusual and difficult problems by applying math principles, logic, and by thinking creatively.
The students at St. Joseph School performed very well and were recognized with certificates for their participation.
Four of the “mathletes” won national awards for excellence within the Division E for grades four through six.
The Gold Pin is awarded to those in the top two percent. At St. Joseph, Ernest Bos, with a score of 22 out of 25 points, won the award.
The Silver Pin is awarded to those in the 90 to 97 percentiles. Audrey Shockman, Ben Nelson, and Owen Yin were in this group.
Each year the Math Olympiad serves more than 100,000 students on nearly 5,000 teams nationally and about 50,000 students on 2,000 teams in more than 30 other countries.
Since 1979, it has provided challenging, thought-provoking problems that stretch the abilities of students in grades four to eight, strengthening their foundation for both assessment tests and more advanced studies.
Our children have responded to the challenge to the challenge with eagerness and enthusiasm.