Central Pennsylvania Championship Finals 2002

The 24 Challenge is an exciting game that develops strong math skills.  For more game 24 information, visit http://www.math24.com/.

CONGRATULATIONS to Pranay Soni, who is the School Street Elementary champion for the year 2002!  Pranay and others will be honored at our year-end awards’ assembly on June 6.  In the meantime, Pranay has earned the right to advance to the 11^th annual Central PA Championship, which will be held at Penn State on May 7, 2002.  Because we must arrive no later than 9:30 AM, we will be leaving at 6:00 AM from the School Street Elementary parking lot.  I will be driving Pranay and the runners-up to the competition.  Parents are invited to accompany their children.  If you plan to attend or have any questions, please call me at 368-4974. 

FOOD & MISCELLANEOUS - We will stop at McDonalds in Phillipsburg for a restroom break and a quick snack.  After the competition, the university provides a luncheon.  We hope to return to Bradford around 4:00 PM.  Please read all of the information on these pages, sign the attached permission slip, and return it as soon as possible.

SEATING - Students sit three or four to a table, by grade level or section level (e.g. 4^th & 5^th grades combined).

PUTTING CARDS INTO PLAY - A proctor puts a card into play by “cupping” the card in the palm of one hand. The proctor places the “cupped” card into the center of the table and then withdraws the hand to reveal the numbers.

STUDENTS’ HAND POSITION - During play, students’ finger tips should be no closer than 8 inches from the center of the table - where the cards are placed. If a special tournament playing mat is used, students must keep their hands on the blue area only.

MAKING A DECLARATION - When a student has a solution, he/she declares by touching the card. The student may touch anywhere on the card but with no more than three finger tips. This prevents students from slapping hard with the whole hand as a way of dominating play. The first student to make a valid declaration is allowed to give the solution. If the answer is correct, the student takes the card and places it in front of him. The proctor then puts the next card into play. At the end of the round (when all cards have been claimed) proctor tallies all the points on the cards each student has won.

GIVING THE SOLUTION - Proctor determines first student to touch the card. That student must announce the pattern (last step of the solution to make 24; i.e. “3 times 8” or “15 plus 9”) within 3 seconds of touching the card. The final solution (all three steps) must be completed within 15 seconds. A student cannot change the pattern that he states within the first 3 seconds, and must complete his solution using this same pattern. A student may correct himself and change the first and second steps of his solution until he “fixes” the solution by saying “equals, makes or is 24”.

PENALTY FLAGS - If a student cannot give the solution or gives an incorrect solution, he/she receives a penalty flag (use Post-it brand notes or tokens). Students who receive three penalty flags in a round, during rounds 1 and 2, are disqualified from further play during that round. Students are allowed only two penalty flags in a round during Rounds 3 and 4. Disqualified students keep the points they scored up to the point of disqualification. They are eligible to play in any subsequent rounds and start without any penalty flags. [NOTE: In their eagerness to win, students sometimes touch the card first and then try to solve it. This may turn the play into a “slapping match”. This penalty rule disqualifies students who continue this approach.] The card is taken out of play when a student gets a penalty flag and put into the middle of the deck they are dealing from to be played again later.

FIVE WAYS TO DRAW A PENALTY FLAG: 1) Does not announce a pattern within three seconds. 2) Does not complete solution within 15 seconds. 3) Solution given is incorrect. 4) Touches card with more than 3 finger tips. 5) Student touches proctor’s hand before it is withdrawn. STUMPED CARDS - If all students at the table agree that they are stumped, or if no student makes an attempt to answer a card after 15 seconds, the proctor removes that card for later play.

NUMBER OF ROUNDS PLAYED - Tournaments are usually played with four rounds, each lasting 10 to 15 minutes. Points won by each student in Rounds 1 and 2 are added to determine who advances to the Semi-final Round 3. Semi-final Round 3 and Final Round 4 are face off rounds with the highest scoring student at each table advancing forward. Students should be given an 8 minute break between rounds. If the players at a table finish early, they should sit and wait for the round to end at other tables, so as to not disturb other students.

NUMBER OF CARDS PLAYED - A fixed number of cards are played in each round. This approach is preferred over a “timed round” because it is not dependent upon the speed with which proctors put the cards into play and does not put a table with a “slow” proctor at a disadvantage.

ROUND 1- Play for 48 cards. Take the first half of a 96-card deck of single digits and flip the cards so that all the red sides (color of center square on the cards) are facing up. (The first half of the deck will give you 12 one point, 24 two point and 12 three point cards.) Shuffle the cards and you are ready to begin. Make sure that all tables are using the same cards. All students play.
ROUND 2 - Play 48 cards of double digits. Students change tables to get a chance to play with different players in their own grade or section level. All students play. SCORING - Proctors tally points at the end of each round. Remember to count points and not just the number of cards, as a difficult card may be worth three points (look for the number of dots in the card’s corner to determine the point value). Proctors enter each student’s score on his/her score card. Scores from Rounds 1 & 2 will be added together. The sixteen highest scores from each grade or section level advance to the Semi-final Round 3. Semi-finalists are seated four to a table.
Semi-final ROUND 3 - Play for another 48 cards (single and double digits). This third round is a “face-off” round. Only the points earned in this round are used to determine the winners, the scores from the previous rounds are disregarded. The highest scoring student at each semi-final table advances to the Final Round 4 to determine the grade/section level champions.
FINAL ROUND 4 - Flip over the above 48 cards and play the white side. The highest scoring student in this final round is the overall grade or section level champion. As in Round 3, all previous scores are disregarded.

It is critical to keep practicing daily with the best 24 players you can find.  If you succeed in the single and double digits, you may see some cards similar to the one at the right.  In addition to practicing with your friends and family, please plan to spend some time from 3:00 – 3:30 PM in my room to practice.

Please complete the permission slip below and return it to me no later than Friday, May 3.  If you have any questions, please call 368-4974 and leave a message or email me at [email protected].  Thanks.