TIPS FOR PICOS
PICO stands for Person In Charge of Olympiads. That's you —the person who will devote time, effort, and energy to help your Math Olympians grow as problem solvers. We salute your commitment to help your students "be all that they can be" and extend our best wishes for an exciting, enjoyable, and mathematically worthwhile year!
GOALS OF THE OLYMPIADS
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Developing enthusiasm for problem solving and mathematics.
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Deepening the understanding of mathematical concepts and strengthen ability to use these concepts.
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Considering concepts that they might not otherwise encounter.
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Enriching experiences in intellectually stimulating and significant mental activities
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Building a stronger foundation for assessments and for future mathematics studies.
PRACTICE BEFORE THE FIRST OLYMPIAD
- Since our problems are decidedly not routine problems, it is recommended that you provide students an opportunity to explore the problems before they sit for the contest.
USE COOPERATIVE GROUPS FOR PRACTICES
- Students must compete individually on Olympiads, but practices are best done in small interactive groups. Assign problems one at a time and allow each group to present its method of solution to the entire group.
KEEP THE ATMOSPHERE FUN AND NON-THREATENING
- To us the contests are all about improving mathematical thinking and building a stronger foundation for future studies, but to students they’re about winning awards. We recommend that PICOs downplay the computational aspects and promote personal growth instead. The most important thing is that students feel that they know something today that they did not know yesterday.
DOWNLOAD PAST OLYMPIADS FOR PRACTICE PROBLEMS
- The Sample Contest and problems of the week are available to everyone online.
- An additional 100 problems with detailed solutions are available with your password.
- Additional problems are available in our books which can be purchased from our store.
- IMPORTANT! These are copyrighted materials. Under NO CIRCUMSTANCES may the actual contests or the individual problems and/or solutions be published in any form, including the internet.
DOWNLOAD THE CONTESTS
- The printable form of your contests will be available online one week before the beginning date of the contest window.
- CONTEST DATES: This year the date for administering each contest will be chosen by the PICO from an approximately 4-week “Administration Window”. There is an “Earliest Date” which is the same for all teams, for both divisions, and for both On Paper and Online formats. There is also a “Latest Date” after which the contest may no longer be administered. Be sure to note the dates.
| CONTEST | ADMINISTRATION WINDOW | DEADLINE FOR SCORE ENTRY |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | November 10, 2025 - December 1, 2025 | March 31, 2026, 11:59pm (PT) |
| 2 | December 8, 2025 - December 29, 2025 | March 31, 2026, 11:59pm (PT) |
| 3 | January 5, 2026 - January 26, 2026 | March 31, 2026, 11:59pm (PT) |
| 4 | February 2, 2026 - February 23, 2026 | March 31, 2026, 11:59pm (PT) |
| 5 | March 2, 2026 - March 23, 2026 | March 31, 2026, 11:59pm (PT) |
- If yours is a MOEMS® OnLine team, an email will be sent containing a link to the OnLine document that your team will use with the testing platform.
- You will need your password to access the contests.
- Print out enough copies of the questions for all the students.
- An answer sheet is provided for your convenience.
- If the two sheets are printed single-sided, student will be able to use the reverse sides for scrap. You may provide additional scrap paper if needed.
PRINT OUT ONE COPY OF THE SOLUTIONS
Only YOU should see the solutions until after the contest is given.
REVIEW ORGANIZATION AND PROCEDURES AND ALL OTHER MATERIALS
- The contests must be given under strict test conditions.
- IMPORTANT! These are copyrighted materials. Under NO CIRCUMSTANCES may the actual contests or the individual problems and/or solutions be published in any form, including the internet.
THE FINAL RESULTS OF ALL CONTESTS MUST BE ENTERED
ONLINE ON OR BEFORE MARCH 31st
- The Online Scoring System will close on that date.
- Score changes received after that date will have to be entered manually by the MOEMS® office at an additional charge. Results and initial awards will be processed based on the results submitted up until March 31.
- Awards packages for late score submissions will be sent after June 1st.
