National Math Bee Finals
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There are 3 levels of competition in Math Bee:
- MB1 (Math Bee Level 1): Grades 1 and 2
- MB2 (Math Bee Level 2): Grades 3, 4 and 5
- MB3 (Math Bee Level 3): Grades 6, 7 and 8
- A contestant who participated in a higher level bee cannot participate in a lower level bee in subsequent years.
- A 1st rank winner at the National Finals is not eligible for competing at the same level in future math bee contests conducted by the Foundation. National winners of MB1 and MB2 can participate ONLY in MB2 and MB3 bees, respectively. National winners of MB3 are not eligible for future Math Bee competitions.
- The contest is conducted in two phases for all levels. Both phases are written. All contestants participate in both Phase I and Phase II. Phase II for MB1 contains only multiple choice questions. Phase II questions for MB2 and MB3 are presented as a slide show. Phase II questions for MB1 are presented in the form of a booklet.
- Contestants are responsible to bring their own pencils and erasers.
- Contestants are seated by the badge number order from left to right.
- Calculators are NOT allowed at any level during Phase I and II.
- All sheets (including question and answer sheets) should be returned at the end of the contest. It is the responsibility of the contestant to write the badge number on the answer sheet.
- Unclear and illegible writing might be open for misinterpretation. Contestants are expected to write clearly and legibly.
- There will NOT be any partial credits for steps. There are NO negative points for any incorrect answer. If the final answer is incorrect, zero points are awarded, and if the answer is correct, one point is given.
- Each contestant is given a booklet containing 25 questions and has 40 minutes to answer them.
- Each question paper has adequate space to work out the answers. No other sheets are given. Contestants are allowed to use the backside of the question paper if more space is needed to work out problems.
- Contestants are required to transfer the answers from the question paper to the corresponding numbered row in the Student Answer Sheet (last page of the question paper booklet). All answers to multi-part questions must be transferred to the Student Answer Sheet for credit.
- Phase II is called the lightning round consisting of 20 questions. Questions are projected on to a screen, one by one, and read by a pronouncer in front of the contestants. Once a question is read, contestants have 45 seconds to write down the answer on the Student Answer Sheet.
- In Phase II, each contestant is given a small booklet. The last page is called Student answer Sheet and the contestant has to transfer the answer to this sheet. A couple of scratch sheets are added to the booklet to work out the answer for each question.
- Phase II for Math Bee Level 1 is a written test with 20 multiple choice questions. Each contestant is given a booklet containing 20 questions and has 20 minutes to answer them.
- In Phase II, Contestants are required to transfer the answer choice from the question paper to the corresponding numbered row in the Student Answer Sheet (last page of the question paper booklet).
- Winners are first determined based on the combined scores of Phase I (25 questions) and II (20 questions). The first place winner shall be ahead by at least one point to be declared as the champion. If there is any tie for the top ten positions, it is broken as per the tie-breaker rules outlined below. Since the Foundation recognizes only the top 10 ranks, any tie is broken among the top ten places.
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To break the ties, the scheme outlined below is followed in the order given:
- Combined Phase I and II score
- Phase I score alone
- Phase I score among questions 21-25
- Phase I score among questions 16-20
- Phase I score among questions 11-15
- Phase I score among questions 1-10
- Phase II score among questions 16-20
- Phase II score among questions 11-15
- Phase II score among questions 1-10
- If the above steps fail to break the tie in question, the foundation may use additional measures including date of birth to resolve the tie.
Phase I (Written):
Phase II (Written for Math Bee Level 2 and 3, Lightning Round):
Phase II (Written for Math Bee Level 1):
Winners and Ranks:
Tiebreaker Rules for Ranks 1-3 and for Ranks 4-10:
This page contains resources for preparation for the Math Bee conducted by NSF. The resources are categorized by level.
- Critical Thinking Skills - Teaching your kid how to think rather than what to think www.criticalthinking.com.
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Khan Academy - Free Video LecturesArithmetic - www.khanacademy.org/#arithmeticDevelopmental Math 1 - www.khanacademy.org/#developmental-mathDevelopmental Math 2 - www.khanacademy.org/#developmental-math-2
- Math Kangaroo for grades 2 and above www.mathkangaroo.org
- CML (Continental Math League) www.continentalmathematicsleague.com
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Singapore Math (
www.singaporemath.com):
- Primary Math Work Books US Edition: 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B
- Primary Math Intensive Practice U.S. Edition: 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B
- Challenging Word Problems for Primary Mathematics: 1, 2
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Khan Academy - Free Video LecturesArithmetic - www.khanacademy.org/#arithmeticDevelopmental Math 1 - www.khanacademy.org/#developmental-mathDevelopmental Math 2 - www.khanacademy.org/#developmental-math-2Pre-Algebra - www.khanacademy.org/#pre-algebraGeometry - www.khanacademy.org/#geometryWorked Examples 1- www.khanacademy.org/#california-standards-test-geometry
- Math League for grades 4 and above www.themathleague.com
- Math Olympiad: www.moems.org
- CML (Continental Math League) www.continentalmathematicsleague.com
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Singapore Math (www.singaporemath.com)a. Primary Math Work Books US Edition: 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 5A, 5Bb. Primary Math Intensive Practice U.S. Edition: 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 5A, 5Bc. Challenging Word Problems for Primary Mathematics: 3, 4, 5
- Book for advanced middle school students: the Art of Problem Solving, Volume 1: the Basics, By Sandor Lehoczky and Richard Rusczyk
- Practice problems from middle school students: (Past AMC8 tests and solutions); CD -- AJHSME & AMC 8 (1985-2007); http://amc.maa.org/d-publication/publication.shtml
- Book for high school students: the Art of Problem Solving, Volume 2: and Beyond, By Richard Rusczyk and Sandor Lehoczky
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Khan Academy - Free Video LecturesAlgebra - www.khanacademy.org/#algebraWorked Examples 1 - www.http://www.khanacademy.org/#california-standards-test-algebra-iWorked Examples 2 - www.http://www.khanacademy.org/#ck12org-algebra-1-examplesWorked Examples 3 - www.http://www.khanacademy.org/#california-standards-test-algebra-iiWorked Examples 4 - www.http://www.khanacademy.org/#algebra-i-worked-examplesGeometry - www.khanacademy.org/#geometryWorked Examples 1- www.khanacademy.org/#california-standards-test-geometryTrigonometry - www.khanacademy.org/#trigonometryProbability - www.khanacademy.org/#probabilityStatistics - www.khanacademy.org/#statisticsPrecalculus - www.khanacademy.org/#precalculus
- MATHCOUNTS - Free: www.mathcounts.org
- Math League www.themathleague.com
- Algebra1 Concepts (Concept-wise Book Series by Vaishali Patil) (Volume 1) - https://www.amazon.com/dp/069283771X
- Math Olympiad: www.moems.org
- Alcumus Online Learning system adjusting to student performance (Algebra and Probability) www.artofproblemsolving.com/Alcumus/Introduction.php
- For the Win game on AOPS. Helps to improve speed. Documentation is at the link below: www.artofproblemsolving.com/Edutainment/FTW/documentation.php
- Jason Batterson's website agmathematics.com has a collection of mock papers/ speed drills etc., for MATHCOUNTS preparation agmathematics.com/57427/index.html
- Saab: Preparation Drills for MATHCOUNTS MATHCOUNTS.saab.org/mc.cgi
- AMC - 8 (American Math Competition): www.unl.edu/amc/e-exams/e4-amc08/amc8.shtml
- CML (Continental Math League): www.continentalmathematicsleague.com
- SAT and SAT II - www.collegeboard.com
- ACT www.act.org
- Ez Math Trix: (DVD/Video) 2004
NSF Math Bee is a Mathematics competition among the children of Indian-American community all across North America. It is aimed at nurturing mathematical skills among children attending grades 1 through 8, in a challenging environment. Math Bee has Regional and National-level components just as all the other NSF Bees.
The underpinnings of everyday life increasingly involve math and science/technology. NSF believes that math abilities are a vital foundational and literacy requirement for the child of today.
We also believe that proficiency in Mathematics can be personally satisfying and empowering to the individual. Mathematics is one of the greatest intellectual achievements of humankind, and the children should develop an appreciation and understanding of that achievement.
India has produced several great mathematicians like Ramanujan, Aryabhatta, Bhaskara, and Brahmagupta. Just as the level of mathematics needed for enlightened citizenship has increased dramatically, so too has the level of mathematical thinking and problem-solving needed in the modern workplace.
Although all careers require a foundation of mathematical knowledge, some are more math-intensive than others. We hope that the Math Bee program will especially help our students pursue an educational path that will prepare them for lifelong work as mathematicians, statisticians, engineers, computer programmers and scientists.
Further, NSF also believes that Math Bee will better prepare children to take standardized tests like PLUS, PSAT, SAT I, SAT II and ACT.
There are several goals and some of these are :
- To make Mathematics an easier subject to learn and excel from early childhood
- To better prepare for excelling in college entrance exams like the SAT and ACT
- To stimulate enthusiasm and a love for Mathematics
- To introduce important Mathematical concepts
- To teach major strategies for problem solving
- To develop Mathematical flexibility in solving problems
- To strengthen Mathematical intuition
- To foster Mathematical creativity and ingenuity
- To provide for the satisfaction, joy, and thrill of meeting challenges
- To meet other students of Indian origin and develop friendship
See the section on Math Contest Rules .
See the section on Math Contest Rules .
No, a participant can only participate in one Math bee and in one regional center only. Eligible contestants from the Regional Contest will be invited into the same bee for the NSF National Finals event.
Yes, each grade group will have a different test. The questions will be based on the syllabus for the particular grade grouping.
See the section on Math Bee Preparation .
See the section on Math Bee Syllabus.
Yes, a child in KG is allowed to participate in the Math Bee Level 1, on an equal basis without any special privileges. Parents should bring young children into the contest with the primary aim of getting them familiar with the Bee. Over, the last several years many young children have participated and done exceedingly well in various contests.
Calculators are not allowed at any level.
This is only applicable at the National level. In the lightning round, we will avoid questions involving complex calculations. Typically the students are expected to answer within 60 seconds. A blank paper and pencil will be provided to children.
No. The questions in the contest will be within the syllabus for the particular level.
It depends on each chapter. Some may hold it over on one day and some over two days. Please refer to the Contest Calendar or contact your Chapter Coordinator.
Online registration via NSF homepage is generally available, starting early January. You can also refer to the NSF Contest Calendar or ask your Regional Coordinator about registration deadlines and contest dates.