D22 always meh about math until this year. AP Stats is her favorite class. She can clearly see it’s relevance and that has been a game changer.
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D90 here! (It’s making me wonder what parents should say for their non-binary kids T22?)
Anyway, @InfoQuestMom S22 has been on-again/off-again with his gf this fall, and I’ve just been praying to get through applications without heartbreak! I don’t mean to sound heartless, but I feel like I’ve been fighting off distraction with a sword and shield, a broken heart would be rough! Good luck to you and your girl!
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I think statistics is very underestimated as a subject. While calculus is relevant to STEM, it’s statistics that we run into all the time. We all are presented with different statistics on daily basis but not always in the right context and with correct conclusions.
Of course, to dive into serious statistics one has to know calculus, but the knowledge presented in AP Stats is more than sufficient and extremely useful in daily life. I wish math curriculum paid more attention to what people actually use in their lives.
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Math competitions are a mental break. Dang, you guys are in a different league. 
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Same here. For the past couple times D22 missing US(A)JMO cutoffs by least points. She’s more AIME type (not a fast kind like AMC), so she just wanted to work on AMC this one last time to see where she gets. Besides I love the way some of these kids teamup and work together in the math club. They mentor each other, throw tough problems as challange and solve them. Since she’s the president of the club, she has those high spirits and we are just supporting her and going along with the flow.
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I know what you mean! My S18 just gets math the first time he learns it, never studies. He looked at me once and said, “Mom, I wouldn’t even know HOW to study for math”. Well my S21 always compared himself to his brother, but now he is the guy who helps others with homework and is starting to figure out that he’s pretty good at math too, and also loves it. Tough comparing yourself to outliers!
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Good luck to your daughter!
I hear you on AMC and speed. My kids always preferred AIME. I wish AIME would be given more emphasis when combining the scores for the USA(J)MO qualification. The current ratio seems a bit off.
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Agree. D22 going to pursue poly sci/public policy and many programs very statistics heavy. Her teacher this year has combined it with issues of the day like the census and voting, which is completely her jam. She took calculus last year and got an A but it was torturous for her.
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Totally. But doing AIME and college competitions like HMMT gives them a different dimension to enter proof world which is not taught in US curriculum as is. Good luck to your S22 for his endeavors. Did he apply to colleges as math major?
I’m a D94 myself 
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Yes, even economics is very much data driven. Kids find their own niche when they learn how to apply their learnings. An interesting teacher will make a topic/subect interesting IMHO. My D22 never liked history just for the reason she needs to memorize things. Things turned around when she was a sophomore when they did US history and a teacher who played political speeches and actively made kids speak in his class. She did very well in APUSH and now into APGov enjoying her classes. Looking to add a minor in Pol Sci if she can.
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No, we’re holding off on hearing from MIT in later December. On the outside chance she is admitted, we’ll save the few hundred dollars.
D22 has never done any last-minute intensive prep for AMC, other then a couple of the AoPS schools several years ago. She attends her math team class every Sunday, doing the prep/homework during the week, pretty much year-round. She’s never felt that any last minute efforts would have made a difference. Methods/approaches to solving difficult problems comes with long-term experience, IME.
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Yes, he did 
I’m a D86!
It’s amazing how different high schools can be across the country. I’d never heard of these math exams/competitions before. There are no math clubs in our schools. I know colleges take into consideration where you are from and what your school offers, but it doesn’t change the fact that our graduates will be less skilled in maths when they enter college than kids from other parts of the country, which is too bad. It’s like arriving for your study abroad program with only a year of the language under your belt vs arriving fluent in the language. You’re going to get so much more out of your experience starting off fluent.
Anyway, S22 just submitted another application! 
Three down, five to go…
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How do those who are so inclined develop their interests?
We don’t have math clubs in our school either (or science clubs, for that matter). Students develop their interests in their classes.
I honestly have no idea how AOs manage to compare students from such different backgrounds.
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I’m not sure kids in our area realize they can pursue an academic interest past their regular classes. We are in a rural community where kids spend most of their energy pursuing traditional sports. There is a robotics club but I think that’s about it for academic clubs.
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My error for assuming that STEM enrichment activities are common nowadays - I grew up in a pretty laid back community and STEM enrichment activities weren’t available except for math club. I hope all the Young Sheldons (I am a fan of the show) will find a way to nurture their precious talent.
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I’m also a huge fan of Young Sheldon and the Big Bang Theory!
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I’m a D81 
and where I grew up, it was considered a big deal to graduate from high school. Never heard of math competitions until we moved to northern Virginia.
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Hi - while filling in the UC application ( majors/campuses etc) , for UC San Diego they ask to rank 6 colleges John Muir etc. what is it? UC app very different from common app.