October Update

Some updates as we start our second month of AG:

1) We did well at our first Saturday tournament on the 28th.  We had 44 students at the tournament, averaged 14.66 points, good for second place in the tournament (first place was 15.04, third place was 13.65) and had a top five score (sum of our five highest score) of 93, good for first place in the tournament! (second place was 90).  Our next tournament will be October 19 at Pioneer High School.  This is a change in location from the original scheduled Huron High School (see updated schedule to the right)

2) The students are continuing to learn Equations variations and strategies, and we will be playing Equations at the next tournament.  We have uploaded Equations worksheets to the to the right.  There is a packet for Elementary players (6th graders) and one for Middle players (7th and 8th grade).  We will not be printing out copies, so it is up to each student to print them out on their own. Worksheets are due before Thanksgiving break.  

For every page completed, students will get one point added to their Friday tournament score, regardless of the number of problems they get correct. The idea is to reward effort. Students are encouraged to bring their worksheet packet with them to all practices, as we will often have times when they can work on them with other students.

6th and 7th grade students can get a maximum of 20 points from the worksheets, while returning 8th grade students can only get points for the worksheets that have not been in previous years' packets (Pages 7L, 7N, 7O, 7P, 7Q, 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, & 8E)

3) The students have also begun learning a second game, Presidents.  We will be competing in Presidents amongst our team on every Friday, after our normal cube game round is over (Pres. Progression).  We have uploaded some Presidents study guides to the right.  Although students will not receive points for completing those worksheets as they do with Equations, they are very helpful in improving their Presidents scores.  Additionally, our 8th graders are putting together some Quizlets to help all the students study.

4) A quick reminder to turn in your registration sheet (Welcom letter linked to the right) if you have not already.

5) Finally  on October 29th, we will be holding a fundraiser at Panera on Washtenaw for all of Ann Arbor Academic Games.  A flier for that event is also linked to the right.

Equations Worksheets

Equations worksheets are linked on the right. There is a packet for Elementary players (6th graders) and one for Middle players (7th and 8th grade).  We will not be printing out copies, so it is up to each student to print them out on their own. Worksheets are due before Thanksgiving break.

For every page completed, students will get one point added to their Friday tournament score, regardless of the number of problems they get correct. The idea is to reward effort. Students are encouraged to bring their worksheet packet with them to all practices, as we will often have times when they can work on them with other students.

6th and 7th grade students can get a maximum of 20 points from the worksheets, while returning 8th grade students can only get points for the worksheets that have not been in previous years' packets (pages 9G, 9H, 9I, 9J, 9K, 9L, 9M, 9N, 9O)

Equations Worksheets

Equations worksheets are linked on the right. There is a packet for Elementary players (6th graders) and one for Middle players (7th and 8th grade). We will not be printing out the worksheets, so it is up to each student to print them out on their own. Worksheets are due before Thanksgiving break.

For every page completed, students will get one point added to their Friday tournament score, regardless of the number of problems they get correct. The idea is to reward effort. Students are encouraged to bring their worksheet packet with them to all practices, as we will often have times when they can work on them with other students.

6th and 7th grade students can get a maximum of 20 points from the worksheets, while 8th grade students can only get points for the worksheets that have not been in previous years' packets, specifically worksheets 7O, 7P, 7Q, 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, 10C, & 10D 

Challenge Match results

By request, the results of the challenge matches:

We Love Pi 3.94
Bob Lee's Pizza Delivery Service 4.07
Rated Ag-13 4.25
Raisin Brains 3.80

As a result, every member of Rated Ag-13 who was present tonight will get a 6 added to their Friday tournament scores, Bob Lee's players will get 4s, We Love Pi 3s Raisin Brains 2s.

Last practice of the year on Friday.  We will play another round of Ling, our usual Presidents Progression and maybe start learning Propaganda.  Reminder that On-Sets worksheets are due on Friday.

Late November Updates

Hello All!

Just a quick note to provide some updates on practices, tournaments and worksheets.

Equations worksheets were turned in by the students on Monday.  For the most part, I was very pleased with the time and effort the students put into the worksheets.  I told the students at practice that I think that these worksheets might be the single hardest thing we do in AG, so I was very proud of their work.  Most students turned in worksheets.  Over half the students got ten or more sheets completed with at least a third of the students getting the maximum number of points.  I will check off points for the students and return the worksheets Monday next week.  I would encourage kids to keep working on the worksheets if they didn't complete all of them, and to save the worksheets to study from for future tournaments.  I have posted the answer key for the worksheets in the right sidebar so that each student can check their own answers.

I have also posted the On-Sets worksheets on the right.  These worksheets are considerably easier than the Equations worksheets, I believe, and there are fewer of them.  Any student can get up to ten points for completing these worksheets, and they are due before winter break (our last practice is December 20).  Although we won't spend as much time in practice working on these worksheets as we did with the EQ worksheets, I would still encourage every kid to print them out and bring them to each practice.

Our mini-Presidents tournaments are going well.  As many of you may know, on Fridays after our cube game tournament, we have been reading five Presidents questions, keeping score for everyone, and tracking the average Presidents score for each grade.  As you might guess, the eight graders have the highest overall average, but the 7th graders have been closing the gap, and the sixth graders have been as improving as well.  To improve Presidents scores, I would recommend every student find a good book about the Presidents, or a good digital source of information, and spend at least 10-15 minutes per day reading and / or studying that material.  You can find good, cheap Presidents books at most bookstores (they still have those?), or on Amazon.  There are a host of Presidential trivia apps you can get for either an IPhone or an Android based phone.  And you can find Presidents quizzes on the national Academic Games website (agloa.org).  I will also post some Presidents worksheets that can be used as study guides a little later in the year.

Finally, we have begun learning our fourth game, Linguishtik.  A game that tests students' vocabulary, and their knowledge of English grammar, many students struggle with the game when we first learn it because those are subjects that aren't taught very much in school.  I told them to imagine what it would have been like to learn Equations with knowing how to subtract or multiply.  I told them not to get discouraged, and to make sure they take good notes when they are learning.  I will post some Linguishtik worksheets which contain a lot of lessons within them sometime before next Monday.  Those worksheets will not be due until after we return from break in January. 

So much for this being a quick note (!)  Hope you are all having a good Thanksgiving break - eat lots of turkey (or tofurky if you prefer), watch some parades or some football, and maybe study some Pres ;-)

Linguishtik Worksheets

The Lingushtik worksheets are posted on the right.  Please note that they have been revised from last year's worksheets to fit the change in Linguishtik rules at the State level.  They are due on or before Monday, January 21. All students can get up to twenty points for completion of worksheets, although total worksheet points from all games is limited to thirty. 

On-Sets worksheets and Eqs Answer Key

The On-Sets worksheets are posted on the right.  They are due before winter break (12/21 is our last practice).  All students can get up to ten points for completion of worksheets.  Also posted is the answer key for the Equations worksheets that the students have already completed and turned in.
Linguishtik worksheets (due in January) will be posted soon.

Welcome Back

Hello All,

We hope everyone had a peaceful holiday season and a happy new year.

A few important dates and bits of information for you:

January 20 - Academic Games Fun Night - Our biggest fundraiser of the year. All parents of students expecting to attend the State Tournament are expected to volunteer.

January 21 - Tournament at PEC in Detroit. Remember, students need to attend three saturday tournaments to be eligible for the State tournament.

February 4 - Tournament at Northeast Elementary in Jackson

February 6 - State tournament money and preliminary paperwork due. Expect the cost to be between $275 and $300 per student. We will have scholarship money available. Much more information coming about this tournament coming soon.

Additionally, the Linguishtik worksheets are linked at the right. They will be due by February 3rd.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions

Eric & Vivek

Equations Worksheets

Equations worksheets are linked on the right. There is a packet for Elementary players (6th graders) and one for Middle players (7th and 8th grade). We will not be printing out the worksheets, so it is up to each student to print them out on their own. Worksheets are due before Thanksgiving break.

For every page completed, students will get one point added to their Friday tournament score, regardless of the number of problems they get correct. The idea is to reward effort. Students are encouraged to bring their worksheet packet with them to all practices, as we will often have times when they can work on them with other students.

6th and 7th grade students can get a maximum of 20 points from the worksheets, while 8th grade students can get points for the worksheets that deal with variations that are new this year, specifically worksheets 8B, 8D, 8E, 9K, 9L, 9M, 9N & 9O.

Ling Challenge Match Results

Welcome back from break! We held our Ling challenge match on Monday. First place went to the Giant Midgets with an average score of 4.7. The Pretty Pink Trashcans finished second with 4.4, the No Names third with 3.9 and the Indestructible Cabbages had a 3.35.

Yearly standings:
Pretty Pink Trashcans 1,145 points 86.95 average
Giant Midgets 965, 73.16
Indestructible Cabbages 1,073, 68.51
No Names 1,063, 64.89

Top Individuals:
Susanne S. 100 pts
Oliver B. 98
Livia B.-W. 98
Jesse C. 95
Matthew S. 95
Shreya M. 93
Justin S. 89
Luke C. 87
Miela F. 87
Preethi G. 87
Natsume O. 87

Ling worksheets have been posted at the right, they will be due by February 4. 8th graders are eligible to receive points for all clause and phrase worksheets only. They can also turn in propaganda and presidents questions for points.

Things to do over break to get ready for States

Hello All,
Hope you are enjoying all of this snow we are getting. Go outside and have some fun!
When you get back in, we have some suggestions for things you can do to get ready for the State tournament next week (or in two weeks for the 6th graders):

-Print out the Presidents packet and begin to fill them out. If enough people print them out, we may go over the answers at practice next monday.
-Print out the Propaganda cheat sheet, and use it to review all of the techniques. We will post some propaganda questions later this week to test how well you studied.
-Do problems in the WFF packet (Basic Part 1 / Basic Part 2 / Regular). Check your answers in the answer key. We are going to play a basic and a regular WFF game here via the comments section in the next couple of posts, which anyone is welcome to join.
-Go back and study your On-Sets and Equations packets. Check your answers against the answer keys (On - Sets and Equations).
-Invite a friend over, or go over to a friend's house. Studying is more fun with friends. You can also play a shake or two if you have games at home.

Let us know if you have any questions. Have fun, we'll see you next week.
Eric & Vivek

On-Sets Worksheets

On-Sets Worksheets are linked at the left. This packet is smaller than the Equations worksheets, and students can only get a maximum of ten points toward their Friday tournament scores by completing these worksheets. As with the Equations worksheets, students get a point for every page they complete, regardless of the number of correct answers they get. All students can get points for these worksheets, there is no limitation on the 8th graders.

These worksheets are due before we leave for winter break. We will have some time to work on them at practice, so we do encourage students to bring them with them to practice.

Exponents and Captains

Monday's practice included a review of basic exponent rules for sixth graders (worksheet) and a lesson on how to deal with negative and fractional exponents for 7th and 8th graders (worksheet).
It should be noted that students in the Elementary Division (6th grade and below) are not allowed to use negative or fractional roots or exponents.
At the end of practice this year's team captains were announced. Congratulations to 8th graders Lorna, Chelsea, Richard and Andrew. The Friday tournament teams will be revealed on Friday, and the students will pick names for their teams.
Our first tournament is this Saturday at Clague. Students should be there by 8:30.

Presidents Clues

A quick reminder that Ling packets, Presidents questions and Prop Examples are due next Friday.

As I mentioned at practice, after each practice I will post some presidents clues. If you find out the president, type it up, and bring it to the next practice, I'll add a point to your next friday tournament. Explain the clues a little, and you'll get two points. So for example, if the clue was "The Louisiana Purchase", you'd get one point for knowing Jefferson was the president when we purchased it, and you get an additional point for knowing who we purchased it from (France), how much we paid ($15 million dollars, or less than 3 cents per acre), or what land it encompassed (part or all of 15 different states).

So the clues for next Friday, January 30:

1)Brown vs Board of Education
2)Polio vaccine discovered
3)Sputnik launched
4)1st president to run a TV commercial

Good luck, see you on Friday

Friday and Saturday Tournament Results

Friday's Ling Tournament:
Get Smart 65, 4.06 average
Next Prime Suspects 61, 4.36 avg
Smurfs 60, 4.00 avg
No Names 58, 4.14 avg

Overall:
No Names 1261, 76.77 average
Next Prime Suspects 1193, 69.42 avg
Get Smart 1096, 69.01 avg
Smurfs 1156, 66.39 avg

Saturday:
24 students braved the snow to attend the tournament at the inappropriately named Winterhalter school. We finished with a 91 Top 5, which placed us second, and a 15.33 average, which was best in the tournament. For the year, we lead top 5 by 13 points, and average by .84 points.
High scorers at the tournament were:
Topher, Andrew, Deniz, Jiaao, Graham, & Harith.

New postings:
I have posted the Elem and Middle Ling packet, along with the answer key for the On-Sets worksheets. The Ling packet will be due by January 30.

Friday, December 5

We had our second Linguishtik tournament on Friday. Results are listed below. Overall standings also include points earned from Equations worksheets. Answers are posted on the side. Also posted on the side are the On-Sets worksheets which were passed out on Monday. They are due before winter break. Students may complete any ten pages of the On-Sets worksheets for credit.

Finally, a reminder that our next tournament will be this coming saturday at McNair middle school in Detroit. As per usual, all students should be there by 8:30 am at the latest.

Friday's Tournament:
Next Prime Suspects: 74 points, 4.35 average
Get Smart: 68 points, 4.25 average
The Smurfs: 63 points, 3.83 average
No Names: 63 points, 3.71 average

Overall Standings:
No Names: 903 points, 55.66 average
Get Smart: 834 points, 53.05 average
Next Prime Suspects: 890 points, 51.27 average
The Smurfs: 859 points, 49.06 average

Top Individuals:
Lorna 75 Points
Shwetha 73
Renee 69
Anthony 69
Alan 69
Andrew G. 68
Luke 67
Chelsea 66
Caleb 66
Wendy 65

First Practice

Over 60 kids showed up Friday afterschool for the first full practice of the Academic Games year. Every new student was paired off with a returning student or two who taught them the basic rules of Equations. After the students had played a few shakes in their little groups they were given a little worksheet designed to see how well the older kids did in teaching them the rules of the games. The new students then went over the worksheet as a group. We ended practice by gathering all of the students together and talking about the plan for the year, and answering students' questions about the Friday, Saturday, and State tournaments. Finally, the returning players stayed behind after the sixth graders were dismissed and voted for this years team captains. The five captains will be announced at Monday's practice.