Math Pentathlon

Math Pentathlon 2017-18

Day of the Week: Tuesday evening 6:30pm – 7:30pm OR Tuesday after school 2:55 – 4:15pm OR Thursday after school 2:55 – 4:15pm  (Each child attends one meeting per week.  Meeting times are not interchangeable.)
Dates: 10/03/2017 through April, with exact end date determined by the child’s tournament date (details below)
Eligible Grades: K – 5th grade
Fee: $105
Description: After reading the information below, if you have questions about Math Pentathlon, including how parent volunteering works, please come to our parent information session on 9/6/2017, at 7:15am in the LME library.

Mathematics Pentathlon® is a national program that supports interactive problem-solving, strengthens basic math concepts and skills, aligns with STEM and National and State Mathematics Standards, stimulates creative thinking and integrates spatial, computational and logical reasoning skills.  More information is available here:  https://www.mathpentath.org/about-us-overview/

The LME Math Pentathlon Club meets weekly to learn five different games that build foundational math skills.  Math Pentathlon games are designed to be fun and to allow children with different strengths to shine in different games, as each game emphasizes a different type of mathematical thinking.  The season culminates in a Saturday tournament in which the kids play each of the five games they learned one time, facing different opponents from schools all over north Austin.  Tournament play is in a relaxed environment that emphasizes fun more than competition.  

Tournament attendance is mandatory.  Before registering, please confirm that you and your child are available to attend the tournament for their grade level:
*  04/07/2018  Kindergarten & 1st grade
*  04/21/2018  2nd & 3rd grade
*  04/28/2018  4th & 5th grade

Parent volunteering is mandatory for this club:

• One parent per child is required to attend the entire tournament day.  All parents will volunteer during the tournament so that our club can meet national Math Pentathlon’s volunteer requirements.
• One parent per child is required to thoroughly learn rules for 1-2 games and will serve as a game expert on that game, assisting both kids and other parent volunteers with questions relating to rules.
• Parent volunteers also coordinate logistics for the club throughout the season and on tournament day.

For Tuesday evening sessions:

• A parent is required to stay during the entire meeting due to school requirements and for safety/liability reasons.
• Each parent will be assigned one game to coach, leading several meetings related to that game.  The game assignments and meeting leader schedule will be sent out before club meetings begin.

For afternoon sessions:

• Every child’s parent volunteers during 6 club meetings, actively assisting the kids and other parent volunteers with rules for the game being played that day and serving as a game rule expert.  Parents sign up for all of their meeting volunteer dates before meetings begin.
• Every team of 16 kids needs 2-3 parent coaches who will divide up the responsibility for leading meetings for the season.
• Coaching a team guarantees your child a spot in the afternoon.  Without volunteers to coach, we will not be able to place very many kids in the afternoon.  So, please consider coaching. Every year, around half of our afternoon coaches are in their first year of Math Pentathlon.  There is training before the seasons starts, resources to use during the meetings, and plenty of knowledgeable LME parents available to answer questions.
• If leading meetings regularly is not your cup of tea but you want to guarantee your child a spot in the afternoon session, another option is to volunteer during 15+ meetings, providing logistics support to the parent coach who is leading the meeting but not leading any meetings yourself.
• If you are considering coaching or co-coaching an afternoon team, please email lmemathpentathlon@gmail.com and include your name, phone number, child’s name and child’s grade.  We will reach out to you with more specific information about how coaching works and answer questions so you can decide if you are interested.

The registration form includes questions about the ways in which you are available to volunteer.  Please be accurate about your availability so that the group your child is placed in has enough parent volunteers to avoid canceling meetings or disbanding the team.

The club fee covers the cost of tournament registration, pizza on tournament day, a t-shirt, games and supplies that are used during club meetings, and Beyond School Hours Admin.

Club Sponsors:  Krista Laine (afternoon meetings) Sridevi Thambi (afternoon meetings), and Abhishek Desai (evening meetings), parent volunteers