On Saturday, Dec. 3rd, Burien’s Seahurst Elementary School’s Math Club won several awards at the 2011 Federal Way Middle School Math Contest, hosted by the Thomas Jefferson High School Math Team.

Over 150 elementary and middle-school mathematicians from more than 10 area schools met at Thomas Jefferson High School for the competition.

After all the questions were answered and graded, Seahurst students received several awards:

• Frank Evans placed 7th among 5th-graders on the Ciphering Test, while on th e Individual Test he placed 5th in the 5th-grade division
• Ashleigh Bell came in 7th-place.
• Joemir Nocom (a 4th-grader!) came in 8th place.
• The team of Anita Chung, Michelle Lopez, Frank Evans, and Joemir Nocom placed 8th in the 5th- & 6th-grade division.

The Seahurst Math Club plans to attend many more contests in the Spring, including the Mt. Rainier Math Invitational, three ‘Math Is Cool’ regional grade-level contests, and the All-City Math Bonanza. The Seahurst Math Club will also host their Elementary Math Bonanza again next Spring – a fun, short, inexpensive contest designed to encourage Highline schools to start their own math clubs.

The Math Contest featured a Ciphering Test, consisting of 10 rounds in which individuals had four minutes to work on four problems. With a single test for grades 5-8, older students were challenged to answer all four problems in the time limit, while younger students hoped to answer one or two problems in each round. After the Ciphering Test, there was an Individual Test with forty multiple-choice problems to be solved in fifty minutes, then a Team Test on which teams of four students worked to solve twenty multiple-choice problems in thirty minutes. On each test, the top ten students in each grade 5-8 or teams in the 5th/6th or 7th/8th divisions were recognized.

If you are a parent, community member,or local business interested in helping the Seahurst Math Club in any way, please contact Tom Clymer, the Seahurst Math Club adviser, at clymer@natassessment.com.

On Friday, May 6th, Seahurst Elementary School’s Math Club hosted 150 of Highline’s top 4th through 6th-grade mathematicians for the 2011 Elementary Math Bonanza.

This was their second year running the event, which they intend to continue indefinitely.

“We love seeing so many students excited about extracurricular mathematics!” said Tom Clymer, the Seahurst Math Club’s advisor, “Hopefully they’ll take that excitement back to their school and will be able to experience it year-round in a Math Club of their own.”

After some opening instructions, students took both an Individual Written Test and an Individual Mental Math Test. The difference between these formats is significant: in the former, students may perform scratch work while arriving at their answer, but in the latter, the ONLY thing a student may write is their final answer to each problem; all work towards this end must be done mentally.

Following these two events, the students reorganized themselves into teams of four for two team tests: the first focused on the topics of Algebra and Probability, while the second focused on Geometry and “Potpourri”. Seahurst volunteers and attending coaches and parents proctored the tests, and as each test was completed these adults also worked to quickly and accurately score the answer sheets to enable awards to be determined in a timely manner.

Once the final test was over, students tucked into pre-ordered pizzas and anxiously awaited results. Shortly thereafter, the results were in:

The High-Scoring Individuals in Each School and Grade were:

The Top Five Individuals in the 4th-Grade were:

The Top Ten Individuals in the 5th-Grade were:

The Top Fifteen Individuals in the 6th-Grade were:

All of the tests for the 2011 Middlementary Math Bonanza were provided by National Assessment & Testing, which in addition to this local competition administers five national contests by mail each year in different formats.

After school on Friday, May 6th, the Seahurst Math Club will be hosting their 2011 Elementary Math Bonanza, a math contest for students in grades four through six.

The math club is administering the contest as a fundraiser to help pay for the registration fees of the many contests in which they participate. Local elementary school students will benefit by being exposed to problems and topics that go beyond their standard curriculum and by sharing their enjoyment of extracurricular mathematics with like-minded students. Competitors will participate in a variety of tests in different formats: an individual test in which students will attempt to solve thirty problems in thirty minutes, a mental math test in which individuals will try to solve questions entirely in their head, and two team tests (Algebra & Probability and Geometry & Potpourri) in which teams of four students will attempt to solve twenty topic-specific problems in twenty minutes.

If you are a coach, teacher, or parent of a student in grades four through six and are interested in registering for this competition, please contact Tom Clymer, Seahurst Math Club Advisor, by e-mailing clymer@natassessment.com. Because this contest is a fundraiser for the Seahurst Math Club, donations of money, time, goods, or services by local businesses and individuals would be greatly appreciated.

All of the tests for the 2011 Middlementary Math Bonanza will be provided by National Assessment & Testing (http://www.natassessment.com), which in addition to this local contest, administers five national contests by mail each year in different formats.

Highline Public Schools will be holding two “Math Listening Tour” nights for parents and guardians of K-6 graders, on Thursday Nov. 4th or Monday, Dec. 6th from 6pm – 8:30pm at the ERAC Boardroom in Burien.

These community meetings are aimed at improving achievement outcomes in mathematics in Highline elementary schools.

This meeting is a step in the process to improve mathematic achievement at the elementary level. Please join us to share your input and perspectives.

The ERAC building is located at 15675 Ambaum SW in Burien, across the street from Azteca and just north of Hi-Line Lanes.

According to a press release:

Highline Public Schools is working to address low student achievement in math by looking at what successful districts are doing, and what the community wants in elementary math.

The K-6 Math Listening Tour has the parent voice at its heart. Parents and guardians’ voices are a critical element, both to give feedback about what they see working and not working around math, and what support they need to help their student.

Event details:

WHAT: Highline Public Schools Math Listening Tour Nights.

WHEN: Thursday, Nov. 4th or Monday, Dec. 6th from 6pm – 8:30pm.

WHERE: ERAC Building Boardroom, located at 15675 Ambaum SW in Burien.

INFO: For more information, please visit www.hsd401.org or contact Carmen Gonzales at gonzalct@hsd401.org.

Burien Goodwill is offering FREE classes in English and computers as well as job search workshops from Jan. 4 through Feb. 25th at their Job Training and Education Center at 1031 SW 128th Street.

Registration begins Monday, Dec. 14th and continues through Tuesday, Dec. 15th.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Goodwill’s FREE classes in English and computers as well as job search workshops

WHEN: 8-week classes run from Jan. 4th through Feb. 25th, 2010; Registration is Dec. 14-15th

WHERE: At Goodwill’s Job Training and Education Center in Burien, located at 1031 SW 128th Street

COST: FREE!

INFO: Register on Dec. 14th-15th for free classes in the eight-week session that runs from Jan. 4 through Feb. 25, 2010.

These courses teach people with significant barriers to employment valuable skills needed to find and keep jobs.

Classes fill up fast, and sign-up is on a first-come, first-served basis, so contact the center soon to reserve your spot!

The center will offer classes in English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), from basic to intermediate skill levels.

Computer Basics and Microsoft Word classes will also be available.

Additionally, the center will present several Job Search Workshops during the session on the following topics:

• Resume Writing
• Internet Job Search
• Online Job Applications
• Interviewing and Self-presentation

For class availability and enrollment information, please call (206) 957-1026.

On Monday, Sept. 16th, a small group of parents gathered at Highline Public Schools offices in their own version of a classroom.

They were there to try and learn more about the district’s new algebra curriculum, which, as you can expect, has confused a lot of people, both young and old. Luckily, HSD brough in math teachers and specialists to introduce parents to the “Discovering Algebra” textbook series and the online support materials available to parents and students.

The “Discovering” series was adopted by the school board last spring, with some controversy.

At this new “Parent Math Academy,” parents learned what students will learn in the new curriculum (or at least tried to). They were shown how to access online help for students who are stuck on homework problems, and how to find the actual text online so a student can complete his or her homework if s/he leaves his book at school or is home due to illness.

“I’ve been pretty confused about the math and the way they have been teaching it previously, but this new program has a lot of tools,” said Valerie Constantino, who has a son in middle school and one in high school. At the parent academy, “I really learned how to help my kids with their math.”

The next parent math academy will be held on Monday, Sept. 28 at 6pm. at Highline Public Schools central office, located at 15675 Ambaum Blvd. SW in Burien. Additional academies are scheduled for Oct. 12th and Oct. 26th.