Mathleague.org

Formerly known as the Great Plains Math League (GPML), mathleague.org runs the state high school math championships in Missouri (since 1998), Iowa (since 1999), Kansas (since 2000), and Arizona (since 2007). The organization also holds competitions in some non-US countries.

mathleague.org's test format can best be described as a hybrid between the MATHCOUNTS and ARML formats. mathleague.org also organizes ARML teams from several states.

mathleague.org Tests

Region: Mostly USA with international participation

Type: Multiple Choice, Free Response, Proof

Difficulty: 0.5-5

Difficulty Breakdown: ES Easier: 0.5-1.5 ES Harder: 1.5-2.5 MS Easier: 0.5-2 MS Harder: 2-3 HS Easier: 0.5-3 HS Harder: 3-5

Test Format

All mathleague.org tests for all grade levels have three rounds. The Sprint Round involves 30 questions of multiple choice (elementary and high school versions) or free response (middle school version), and calculators are not allowed. The Target Round involves four pairs of two questions that allow calculator use, and students work on and turn in one pair at a time. The Team Round involves 20 minutes to do 10 questions, which are comparatively harder than the previous rounds, though the students can work as a team and use calculators.

Each grade level has some slight differences in round logistics. The below table indicates the differences for each grade level.

	Elementary	Middle	High
Sprint Time Limit	40 min	40 min	60 min
Sprint Scoring	4 points per correct answer, 0 points per blank answer, -1 points per incorrect answer	1 point per correct answer, 0 points otherwise	4 points per correct answer, 0 points per blank answer, -1 points per incorrect answer
Target Time Limit	6 minutes	6 minutes	10 minutes
Target Scoring	10 points	1 point	10 points
Team Scoring	10 points	1 point	10 points

The elementary school version also has the Number Sense Round. This is where the competitor has 10 minutes to do as many questions out of 80 as they can. The questions are usually simple like what's . The questions are mixed difficulty, except for the radicals which are usually at the second page. Every ten questions are estimation questions and require the estimation answer to be within of the number.

For middle school, there is also a Countdown Round which is very similar to the MATHCOUNTS countdown round.

For high school, there is also a Power Round, which is a proof-based problem set of around 10 problems for a team. The Power Round is scored out of 100, with possible partial credit on most problems. There are usually about 10 problems.

Another extra round is the Relay Round, where each question after the first needs the answer to the previous question. From 2019 onward, the relays are now collaborative and can involve partial credit if the first or second questions are answered correctly.

Scoring

Generally, the individual scores are calculated from the scores where the individual does the rounds individually. For elementary school, the score is the sum of the scores of sprint, target, and 1/4 of number sense (if the result is non-negative), and the max score is 300 points. For middle school, the score is the sum of the scores of sprint and twice the target score. For high school, the score is the sum of the sprint and target rounds for a maximum of 200 points.

Generally, the team and school scores are calculated from taking the sum of the top 4 individual scores from teams or scores respectively, dividing by four, then adding the top team score. For elementary school, the max score is 400 points. For middle school, the max score is 46 points.

For high school, the top two relay scores are added to the average of the top six individual scores from that school (if a school sent less students those extra "filler" receive an assumed zero). Then the team round is added (twice the team score for middle school). The total points possible for a team is 400. At contests where the Power Round is taken, that score is also included in the total sum, making it out of 500.

Post Season

Students who score high on the qualifying rounds can enter the post season state round, and students who score high on the state round can enter the post season national round. The problems in the post seasons are generally harder than the problems in the qualifying rounds.

Links

• Official mathleague.org Website
  • mathleague.org Online Contest Rules
• Official mathleague.org YouTube channel
• AoPS Forum for mathleague.org contests