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Nov. 22, 2017
USC fifth and sixth graders score top math honors
Boyce Middle School students took top honors at the annual CalcuSolve competition on Nov. 8, 2017, at Duquesne University. Boyce students placed first and second in the individual and team competition among 360 participants and 90 teams.
In team competition, the first place team was comprised of sixth graders Leona Chen, Libby Eannarino, Arya Patel and Arjun Suresh. Finishing second was the team of sixth graders Luke Bishop, Mahir Parmar and Alex Sun; as well as fifth grader Yuhong Shi.
Sixth grader Alex Sun placed first in individual competition, followed by sixth grader Arjun Suresh who earned a second place finish.
Other Boyce students who competed in the regional CalcuSove competition included fifth graders Jamie Barrett, Sam Berger, Esha Lathia, Grace Myers, Eitan Schwartz and Ishaan Sharma as well as sixth graders Colin Liang and Brian McFerran. The Boyce Middle School students were coached by Kathy Hoedeman, math resource teacher.
The competition was comprised of two 10-point team questions and seven 5-point individual questions. Skills and knowledge needed involved geometry, probability, measures of central tendency, ratios and proportions, divisibility and number patterns.
“This was our first year to bring a record seven fifth graders and we were pleased to enter one team that was entirely made up of fifth graders,” Mrs. Hoedeman said. “This is great experience for them and they were super excited to realize that they might be able to attend this competition every year all the way through to their senior year.”
To earn a spot on one of the Boyce CalcuSolve teams, 112 fifth and sixth graders completed the selection test. The top 16 scorers were tapped to serve on the school’s four teams.
“Through October and the beginning of November, we practiced before school, after school and during Boyce’s Pride Time, solving dozens of problems, sharing lots of strategies, learning how to communicate with each other and, most importantly, having a lot of fun!” Mrs. Hoedeman said. “For me, the practice sessions are the most valuable part of the competition. We all learn so much from one another, gain confidence and get to know each other. Surprisingly, solving problems together really builds camaraderie!”
The CalcuSolve event, sponsored by the II-VI Foundation and organized by the Allegheny Intermediate Unit, was open to fifth and sixth graders throughout Allegheny County.
