Staff writer
Hillsboro Middle School students tested their mathematical abilities Tuesday against international students from distant countries such as the United Arab Emirates and Estonia.
“This is not a normal day for us,” math teacher Stephanie Sinclair said.
Seventh and eighth graders raced to answer online equations ranging in difficulty from questions 4-year-olds can answer to equations designed for adults. Points were assessed for how quickly students could generate correct answers to questions. Students scored as high as 49 points in a round.
Sinclair learned of the free worldwide competition from a postcard in the mail. It caught her attention because it had a Hong Kong address.
HMS students participated in the competition Monday and Tuesday; one seventh-grade student accumulated more than 700 points.
The worldwide goals for the math day competition were to answer more than 572,753,084, a mark set last year; 235 countries participated in the contest last year.
As of noon Tuesday, HMS students were matching up well with their international opponents. In a class of eighth graders, every student said they had won at least one round.
“These guys are really competitive,” Sinclair said of her students.
While designed to be a fun break in a rigorous school schedule, Sinclair did have the ability to track the performance of each student. She was paying close attention to the answering accuracy of each student.
“They’re doing well compared to the people they’ve played,” Sinclair said.