MADERA – Coarsegold Elementary School 7th grade and Oak Creek Intermediate School 8th grade teams won the Madera County Academic Pentathlon Math Tournament on Friday, Mar. 14.
Oak Creek Intermediate School placed third in the 7th grade competition, and Wasuma Elementary School’s 8th grade team placed second. Coarsegold, Oak Creek and Wasuma brought home 10 of 18 awards, with 14 schools competing.
Coarsegold 7th Grade Team pictured above includes Monique Ades, Eden Hussey, Tyler Matyshock, Emily Nowka, Cale Sweeney and Paige Szabadi. Oak Creek Intermediate 8th Grade Team pictured below includes Peyton Garner, Olivia Mattos, Kelsey Montalto, Benjamin Negley, Burke Stewart and Zachary Thach.
Ranchos Middle School came in second place in the 7th grade category and St. Joachim School placed third at the 8th grade level.
Sixteen schools and nearly 175 students participated in the Math Tournament hosted by the Madera County Office of Education. Each grade level competed in a separate competition, in which students took three tests: Individual Endurance, Circuit Training and Relay Race at the Madera Center.
During the Circuit Training competition, teams were given 20 questions and two-and-a-half minutes per question moving through a circuit. Wilson Middle School placed first in the Circuit Training 7th grade competition, followed by Ranchos Middle School and Thomas Jefferson Middle School. Wasuma Elementary won the 8th grade competition, with Oak Creek Intermediate placing second and St. Joachim School placing third.
Students raced to answer questions during the Relay Race. Coarsegold Elementary School won first place in the 7th grade competition, with Ranchos Middle School placing second, followed by Oak Creek Intermediate in third.
Oak Creek Intermediate (OCI) placed first in the 8th grade competition and Wasuma Elementary came in second, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School placed third. The results for the individual test will be announced during the Academic Pentathlon awards ceremony on Saturday, Mar. 22.
OCI principal Nicole White was enthusiastic about the overall take-away from the event.
“The kids did very well, Coarsegold, OCI and Wasuma brought home 10 of the 18 awards,” said Mrs. White. “Not bad! Incredible, in fact!”
The Math Tournament is part of the Academic Pentathlon where students participate in a series of five events. Events include the math tournament, essay competition, speech event, literature test and Super Quiz.
“Once again, this year’s event proved to be very engaging for students,” said Cyndy Dolph, Associate Superintendent, Madera County Office of Education.
“The teams came well prepared, making for quite an exciting competition. It’s always a joy to see students excited about learning, displaying excellent sportsmanship, and interacting with other students from Madera County.”
Students will participate in speech, literature and the Super Quiz on Saturday, Mar. 2,2 at Ranchos Middle School. Students will speak on the topic of fairness, one of the pillars in “Character Counts,” and take a test based on the novel Thunder Cave by Roland Smith. The Super Quiz topic is “Islam and Medieval Africa”.
The Super Quiz will begin at 12 p.m. and the public is invited to attend. The event will conclude with the awards ceremony beginning at 2 p.m. where the 2014 Pentathlon winning teams will be announced.
Madera County Office of Education has been hosting the Academic Pentathlon for the last 29 years.
Madera County Office of Education
Results for schools in the Bass Lake School District follow:
Wasuma: 3
Circuit training Relay Overall OCI: 5
8th grade – 1st place
8th grade – 2nd place
8th grade – 2nd place
Circuit training Relay Overall
8th grade – 2nd place
7th grade – 3rd place
8th grade – 1st place
7th grade – 3rd place
8th grade – 1st place
