2021 #MathOlympiad Winners Announced

We are excited to present the very first winners of our new Math Olympiad! Even with the unprecedented change in format, our participants came through with shining colors. We have received amazing and creative projects that truly impressed us. Out of all the participants, the best of the best were chosen as this year’s winners of the Math Olympiad! They stood out for their sharp critical thinking skills, thorough research, and great attention to detail, presenting the best solutions to the given problem. However, all participants are winners in our book for trying something new and not backing down from a challenge. We thank everyone for participating and congratulate our winners! DIVISION I:   1st: Josephine Tsai (Alamo, CA) 2nd: Atharv Ghadigaonkar (Warren, NJ) 3rd: David Seok (Cresskill-Tenafly, NJ) DIVISION II: 1st: Rishik Kalluri (Allentown, PA) 2nd: Siddharth Chander (South San Jose, CA) 3rd: Teddy McKane (Redwood Shores, CA) DIVISION III:   1st: Tanvi Walia (East Brunswick, NJ) 2nd: Florin Sturza (Calgary, AB) 3rd: Winston Lee (Auburndale, NY) DIVISION IV: 1st: Rithvik Juluru (East Brunswick, NJ)

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Must-Have Skill for Children #17: Taking Care of Others

There is a common belief that older siblings are generally more responsible, successful, and confident than younger siblings. According to one study, this is likely to be true. One of the reasons this may be the case is that older siblings often take on the role of another caretaker, usually to their younger siblings. But why are they the only ones with this responsibility? As you can see, taking care of others is a skill that is valuable for every child. That’s why it’s our Must-Have Skill for Children this month! Make sure your child has plenty of opportunities to watch over others, whether it’s through babysitting, raising a pet, or mentoring a group of other children in school, extracurricular activities, events, and more. To raise your child to become a dependable adult, encourage them to take care of others, so they can develop these important traits! Responsibility Your child will only develop a sense of responsibility if they are given responsibilities. One of the most impactful is responsibility for others. Providing such opportunities will make them feel important, like they are contributing to their family or community. This also makes them feel as if you trust them, which they will take seriously and continue to behave in a trustworthy manner. Overall, they will feel more confident about themselves and their abilities. Sense of Mentorship In many cases, your child will be taking care of children who are younger. This gives them the chance to become a mentor, which isn’t a task they will take lightly. With some guidance from adults, they will adjust their behaviors accordingly to become a good mentor and role model for others to look up to. These experiences also show them how much of an impact their behaviors and actions have on others. Decisive Leadership Similar to becoming mentors, taking care of others puts your child in a position of leadership. They will have to make big decisions, listen to their instincts, and learn from their experiences. They will also have to work collaboratively with others while commanding a certain level of respect and self-assertion. All of this will help them in every area of their lives, from teamwork in sports to group projects at work. Selflessness The right way to watch over others is to prioritize their needs and take into consideration what’s best for them during that time. It’s not about your child taking command of the group by putting their own needs first. In many cases, the younger children or a pet will require a lot of attention. Your child will understand that others need more care and attention sometimes, which will be a great lesson in selflessness and patience. Empathy Your child will have to recognize the needs and wants of others without being told. Some children may be too shy or uncertain about how to communicate or express themselves. Pets, like dogs or turtles, can’t speak with words. This gives your child a chance to boost their emotional intelligence by practicing engaging with and understanding those around them. In turn, a perceptive, empathetic child will be better at picking up on social cues, strengthening relationships, and perspective taking. — It may be worrisome sometimes to give your child such responsibilities, but it’s important that they start experiencing this from a young age, even if it’s a little bit at a time. You can start by having them watch over younger children in the presence of adults at a family event. Based on how they do, you can give them advice or guidance, so they can become better at taking care of others on their own. JEI steers our students forward in a similar manner. We guide and help them with what they learn in our centers, but we’re also aware that we can’t follow them into school or the workplace. Our main purpose is to transform them into independent, confident learners who will continue to grow on their own, even years after they finish our programs. To find out more about how we can help your child learn, speak with an expert at a JEI Learning Center near you!

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How JEI's personalized instruction helped Angela become a better learner

Our student Angela switched over from Kumon to JEI Math in the third grade and never looked back. Enrolled at the JEI Learning Center in Princeton Junction, New Jersey, Angela attributed her growing success as a learner to the personalized instruction she received and our unique workbooks. Now in the 8th grade, she has finished JEI Problem Solving Math, learned language arts in JEI English, and has reached the end of the JEI Math program. “At first, I thought JEI was like any other extracurricular math class, but it was better than other classes I took,” Angela told us. “At first, it was kind of easy, but that was like a good review and refresher for me and helped to prepare me. As I went up the levels, things got more challenging. As the problems got harder, I would use my knowledge from the previous problems to help me with the harder ones.” She enjoyed the personalized experience that is unique to JEI, explaining that teachers in other extracurricular classes usually were too busy teaching a bunch of students. “Those weren’t one on one, which made it hard to learn anything, but at JEI, I could go at my own pace. Since it was personalized, I was able to learn more things than I could have at any other place,” said Angela. While JEI helped her with the challenging things she was learning in school and prepared her for the algebra and geometry she would be learning next year, what she learned goes beyond JEI Math. Angela said: “You need to finish a whole book in a week, so I had to split up the pages I had to do, and that helped me with time management. This helped me the most this year because I have a lot of classes outside of school and a lot of homework for school. Every middle schooler procrastinates at some point along the school year, but JEI helped me with that.” The workbooks helped her with not only time management but also comprehension and study habits. She would read the concept pages and, if she didn’t understand them, her instructors would explain further and walk her through one problem before having her do more on her own. Angela would then do more work at home. She said, “That helped me figure out how to study when I’m by myself and reinforced the things I learned at school or JEI. I would usually go over the material for the concepts I learned and make some extra notes if I have to.” The workbooks would also motivate her to keep on going, so she could move on to the next levels with a feeling of satisfaction each time. More than anything, through our JEI programs, Angela gained confidence in herself and her abilities: “At first, when a problem or anything seems challenging, I just have to push through and use everything that I learned before to help me. I figured out that sometimes, I give up really easily because I don’t have confidence in what I’m doing and think I can’t do it, but with guidance, the instructors, parents, or anyone who’s helping me can push me further, so I can gain confidence and do whatever I want to do.” Angela concludes that even though she did not enjoy the subject of math, JEI helped her understand many things much better and will continue to help her in the future. That’s why she recommends it to everyone, regardless of how they feel about the subject. If you and your child are interested in experiencing all the benefits of the JEI programs like Angela, make sure to give us a call at (877) JEI-MATH!

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