Readiness signs for grades 1–2, 3–4, 5–6, and 7–8, two short problems per band to try at the kitchen table, and the contest that makes the gentlest first attempt at each age.
From grade 4, Continental Math League asks you to pick a division. Here is what differs between Euclidean and Pythagorean, what stays the same, and how to choose.
Your child's school doesn't run the Noetic Learning Math Contest? Your child can still take it through the At-Home edition. Here's how registration works, what test day looks like when you're the proctor, and what you get back.
Sixth grade is when the elementary and middle-school contest lists overlap: MATHCOUNTS opens, MOEMS lets your child compete in either division, and every 5th-grade contest is still open. Here is how to pick one.
A month-by-month plan, the skills each level tests, what the free official material covers, and honest answers on classes, self-study, and whether the contest is worth it.
A first AMC 8 goes better with a small, realistic goal. Here's the format, the topics, the Achievement Roll for 6th graders and younger, a month-by-month prep plan, and three original problems with worked solutions.