Two brothers from Great Neck North Middle School and from Baker School, have been named Long Island Young Scholars of Mathematics by the Institute of Creative Problem Solving for Gifted and Talented Students at SUNY College at Old Westbury. They are eighth-grader Michael Jan and fifth-grader Albert Jan.
The brothers are among 80 Young Scholars selected from some 700 top-ranking Long Island math students who competed for this honor. Acceptance was based on a rigorous entrance exam, nomination by school principal or math teacher, school transcript, recommendation by math teacher and a short essay. The program is open to students in grades 4 through 9. Selection implies that these students are among the top one-tenth of one percent of math students in their grade.
Program participants meet for 20 Saturday morning classes, each 2.5 hours long. There are also special projects outside the classroom. The curriculum covers mathematical topics such as geometry and probability and statistics, as well as other topics not usually covered in the classroom, including triangulation with scale drawings, logic matrix puzzles, drawing of an ocean-bottom profile, and measurement and graphing of various types of balls.
The Institute, which was founded in 1992, is supported by the Nassau County Mathematics Teachers Association, Suffolk County Mathematics Teachers Association, Nassau County Interscholastic Mathematics League, Nassau County Association of Mathematics Supervisors, MoMath (Museum of Mathematics), and Mathematical Olympiads for Elementary and Middle Schools. The Institute is tuition free and is funded primarily by private donations.
