The Pius X Math Team earned first place in the Data Estimation event at last Friday’s 2024 University of Nebraska Omaha Math Contest. This event allowed all 10 students to compete as a team.
“I think it gives kids a chance to experiment with approaches and practice true analytical thinking, since they likely have not seen problems like this before in math class,” said Danielle Karre, Pius X math teacher. “It’s also a chance for them to figure out how they can take what they have learned in math class and adapt it to apply in a different context. Since the topics and skills change with every question, competitions like these force kids to think about the big picture instead of the same skill repeated over and over.”
“Also, the team competitions are great for social learning; when a student is forced to verbalize their thought process, they formalize it and ‘flesh it out’ better, and they catch misconceptions in their own thinking and others!
Pictured include, front row, from left: Marie Nguyen, McKenna Smith, Penny Willis, Macy Konz, Lucas Walker, Jennifer Vu; back row: Mrs. Danielle Karre, Kaily Wesely, Josi Montgomery, Tan Pham, James Kruger, Mrs. Tricia Walker.
