What is MOEMS?

Created by Dr. George Lenchner, an internationally known math educator, the Math Olympiads went public in 1979 and is one of the most influential and fun-filled math competition programs in the United States and throughout the world, with over 120,000 students from every state and 39 participating countries. Math Olympiad includes problem solving contests that stimulate enthusiasm and a love for Mathematics in students while introducing them to important math concepts and strategies of problem solving. For more information, check out the MOEMS website

Who can participate?

Math Olympiad is open to students in grades 4 through 8 (for Chadbourne it is up to 5th grade). Only schools, home schools and institutes can register students, NOT INDIVIDUALS.

Math Olympiad Divisions and Contests

MOEMS offers two age appropriate divisions to choose from. Students in grades 4 through 6 will participate in the Elementary Division (Division E) while the Middle School Division (Division M) is open only to grades 6 through 8. 

MOEMS publishes five monthly contests for each division from November through March. 

• Registration is for teams. Each team may have up to 35 students.  

• Contests consist of five non routine problems that must be completed in 30 minutes during each monthly contest

• Students work alone, scoring 1 point for each correct answer

• STUDENT SCORE (0 – 25) is the number of problems answered correctly after all the 5 contests

• TEAM SCORE (0-250) is the sum of the ten highest student scores, taken after the fifth contest

MOEMS at Chadbourne

At Chadbourne, all interested 4th and 5th graders will be registered for Division E, as teams of up to 35 students per team. CFFA will register students and facilitate contests online. The overall coordination, organization of teams and administering the monthly contests will be handled by parent volunteers. 

Parents are responsible for coaching the students and preparing them for the contests. CFFA or Chadbourne staff will NOT conduct any coaching classes.

The test dates for MOEMS 2023-24 at Chadbourne are:

Note:  All registered students have to take the test at this set date and time. There will not be any retest allowed. If any student misses the test for whatever reason, that student will be marked as absent when the scores are submitted to MOEM.

Online proctoring of MOEMS

MOEMS allows the test to be conducted in-person or online. This year's tests for Chadbourne students are planned to be administered online using Google meet or Zoom platform. Answers will have to be submitted using Google form. 

Ahead of each test, meeting links for the test will be sent to the email address provided during registration of the students.

Test Requirements

• All registered students should have access to a Computer and High speed internet access that allows the student to be on a video call for the duration of test

• Students should login 15 minutes prior to the start of test and follow instructions given by the parent volunteer who will be the test administrator

• Students are allowed only a pen, pencil and eraser, along with blank sheets of scrap paper. No calculators, graph paper, protractors, or other aids or resources are allowed.

• Students are not permitted to seek the aid of a parent, sibling, friend who may be in another room. In case of any violations found, students will be disqualified from the test

Study Materials and Sample Problems

MOEMS recommends the following books for students to prepare for the contests:

• Creative Problem Solving in School Mathematics

• Math Olympiad Contest Problems for Elementary and Middle Schools Volume 1

• Math Olympiad Contest Problems Volume 2

• MOEMS Contest Problems Volume 3

These books are available at the MOEMS online store and on Amazon. These are just recommended books; you can also use other books that teach similar concepts. 

The MOEMS website also has sample contests and Problem of the Month available. What Every Young Mathlete Should Know is another helpful sheet for participating students. 

The Math Olympiad committee at Chadbourne will share the past few years' test papers along with solutions to the parents via email. 

Awards and Certificates

Upon the conclusion of all five contests, students will be eligible for the following individual and team awards.
Individual Awards

• A Certificate of Participation for each student who took part in MOEMS

• An embroidered Olympiad Iron-On Patch for each student whose cumulative score ranks in the top 50 % of their division

• A “Gold Pin” or a “Silver Pin” for each student whose cumulative score is in the top 2% or 3-10% of their division, respectively

• One trophy for the highest individual scorer for each team

• A boxed Medallion (the George Lenchner Award) for any student scoring a perfect 25 on his/her cumulative score

Team Awards 

A Team’s Score is computed by taking the sum of the ten highest scores on each team. 

• For Each Division: A plaque for “Highest Team Achievement” for a team score in the top 10% of all participating teams

• For Each Division: A “High Achievement” certificate for a team score in the next 10% (11% – 20%) of all participating teams