Are You Ready for MathFest?

The National School Improvement Alliance capitalizes on the students’ natural affinity to compete and play, in order to develop strong programming which stimulates and improves achievement in math. MathFest is one of the largest programs advancing student excellence in math. It is a math competition for 1st-8th students in public, private, charter, and home school programs. This alternative teaching strategy, which is sweeping across the country, generates tremendous interest and enthusiasm for math while reinforcing existing mathematics curriculum. The first MathFest was held in 2006. That year, approximately 900 students convened at Clayton State University in Morrow, GA. Since the inaugural competition, the number of participants has grown to include over 5,200 students who competed at the Georgia International Convention Center in March 2009. Students of varying skill levels, ethnicities and socio-economic backgrounds vie for “bragging rights” of Math Champion. Each school or parent is invited to bring their students to compete. In addition to the main competition, students participate in the MathBating Competition (a combination of math and debate that gets students talking about the math in critical thinking questions) and other exciting activities.