Rujuta wanted a math quiz. She is now in the eighth grade and has studied arithmetic, some algebra, and some geometry. She enjoys the process of discovery. Of course, like everyone else, she has some blind spots. But one thing that I really admire about her is that she gives it her everything. She is upset with herself when she makes a silly mistake or when she doesn’t get a (difficult) question. Her evolution as a “math person” is heartwarming.
In my view, she enjoys mathematics just the way the great mathematicians Hans Rademacher and Otto Toeplitz have said in their amazing book, The Enjoyment of Math.
I am wary of giving a quiz to young children. If the quiz is too tough, like most of us, they may lose confidence and if the quiz makes students plainly apply known algorithms, they may be bored or become overconfident. It is a delicate balance.
I have tried to apply sound principles. Here are the instructions to the quiz:
- Sit in a comfortable place with all the things you need: mostly a pencil and a lot of paper. This is an open-book exam in that you can refer to your notes and use a calculator. Just don’t Google the problem statement.
- Be honest.
- Read the problem carefully. Draw diagrams. Use Geogebra if you like. No need to curb creativity. Don’t hesitate to ask if something is unclear.
- Try to stick to the time, but it is okay if you run over.
- The correct answer to each problem carries certain points (indicated against the problem number), but that’s not why we are writing this exam. The goal for me (as a facilitator) is to understand if I need to change my method of instruction and reinforce certain topics, whereas the goal for you should be to just enjoy solving the problem. Show your work.
- Take the quiz right here on this doc (provide answers inline). Of course, you can take a picture of your rough paper-pencil work and stick it here. Neatness matters but content is more important than form.
And here is the quiz in its entirety. Take a look. I hope you enjoy it. It contains Rujuta’s solutions and our discussion: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xHOM5MSP9OFMPDUTruQ6ty1LZbKHwvjex3LcMo9rHkI/edit?usp=sharing
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