CCSD Math Competition Adds Up to Success!

Knox ES STEM Academy, Team 5B (Lorelai Bird, Caleb Cavendish, Emma Kelley and Declan Wright) work on a problem during the Team competition.

 

Note:  A gallery of candid photos from the event can be viewed at http://www.cherokeek12.net/0/gallery/412 [CONTENT_REVIEW InternalLink]

The inaugural CCSD Elementary School Math Competition drew several hundred young mathematicians to the event last week, putting their ciphering skills to the test in timed individual and team competitions.   When all the answers were submitted and checked, Knox ES STEM Academy took first-place honors with the most accumulated points, with Avery ES claiming second place. 

 

Fourth-grade and fifth-grade students competed against fellow mathematicians in their respective grade levels, with the opportunity to place individually and as a team in separate competitions, with points from both going to their school’s overall score.  During the individual competition, students solved problems on a whiteboard during a series of timed challenges.  For the team competition, teams of up to four students were given 10 math problems to solve, with two minutes per problem to collaborate, calculate and submit their solution. 

 

Participating schools formed after-school math clubs based on student interest and, if needed, held tryouts to select a competition team from the club’s membership.  Schools could have up to two teams per grade level in the team competition. With clever team names for the event like “Math Magicians” and “Mathletes,” 13 elementary schools competed at the event, which was held February 3 at Liberty ES.  Designed by the Office of Curriculum & Instruction, the goal of the event is to encourage students’ interest in math, develop their problem-solving skills and inspire them to excel and have fun with mathematics. 

 

Trophies were awarded to the top two individual winners for each grade level, with ribbons awarded to the members of the two top-scoring teams for each grade level.  The two schools with the highest combined individual and team scores (Knox and Avery) won trophies.  Individual and team winners were:

 

Individual

1^st Place, 4^th Grade:  Alex Hopkins, Macedonia ES

2^nd Place, 4^th Grade:  Peyton Nelson, Knox ES STEM Academy

1^st Place, 5^th Grade:  Virgil Hughes, Avery ES

2^nd Place, 5^th Grade: Andrew Meyer, Sixes ES

 

Team

1^st Place, 4^th Grade:  Knox ES STEM Academy, Team 4B (James Cochran, Max Kroukamp and Peyton Nelson)

2^nd Place, 4^th Grade:  Indian Knoll ES, Team 4A (Cole Cook, Jake Kirkpatrick, Carter Smith, Grayson Smith)

1^st Place, 5^th Grade:  Avery ES, Team 5A (Brayden Daugaard, Virgil Hughes, Graham Miller, Gauge Stephens)

2^nd Place, 5^th Grade:  Knox ES STEM Academy, Team 5B (Lorelai Bird, Caleb Cavendish, Emma Kelley and Declan Wright)

 

Although there is not a next level of competition for the elementary teams, the event was designed to prepare students for math competitions available to older students including the annual middle school and high school math tournament co-sponsored by CCSD and Reinhardt University.  While the event has been postponed this year due to the pandemic, organizers look forward to hosting a 2022-23 event.  The new elementary school event is the culmination of significant work by district curriculum and instruction staff including Dr. Catherine Head, curriculum coordinator for K-12 mathematics.