First let’s define success. We recommend that your goals be the following:

1. Your students get excited about math and want to keep doing it.

2. They are making friends and growing in empathy.

3. They are developing a fearlessness towards facing a math problem they don’t immediately know how to solve.

4. They are growing the habit of asking each other how they solved a problem, both looking for and giving support.

5. They are developing an appreciation for both the beauty of math and of teamwork.

If possible, take the focus off winning. This is about growing a love of math, not feeling so much stress that they associate math with stress and judgment.

Next, what are important components of a practice session?

• Time to settle in and focus on the task at hand

• Time to work together as a team on practice problems

• Time to eat/snack and socialize

• Time to discuss solutions and talk in depth about problem-solving strategies

You should allocate at least an hour per practice session to fit all of this in, ideally two hours. Every coach is sacrificing their own time to do this (thank you!), and time may be limited, but we recommend at least 2-3 of these sessions before the competition, as teams take a while to gel.

What are the most important qualities of a coach?

It’s been a few years since you’ve done hard math problems - how are you going to teach these bright young students? Relax, your main job is not teaching. It is to be a provider of time, space, organization, and practice problems (and oh yeah, food!). Have the solutions to the practice problems on hand.

You are also a facilitator of their time together. Make sure things run on schedule. During the period when they are working on problems, make sure everyone is engaged. If one student appears to be sitting there not doing anything, encourage the team captain and the other girls to figure out how to include her. Model inclusion and encourage perseverance. During discussion time, make sure everyone has a chance to speak, and give as much value to incorrect ideas as correct ideas - it takes courage to share. Be positive and promote fun!

On competition day, be prepared. Make sure all logistics are in place, that everyone is fed and hydrated, and that they know their main job is to have fun and be good teammates. Be their cheerleader! Let them know what a valued part of the team they are no matter what!

Do you have coaching tips to share?

We’d love to hear them! Send them to us at hello@girlsadventuresinmath.com.