Posting Guidelines and How to Use the Classroom Math Forum

rrusczyk

The Classroom Math forum is for middle school students to discuss the math from their classes.

This forum should only be used by middle school students and teachers. (Others are free to read, but please leave the discussion to middle school students.)

Middle schoolers should use this board to answer challenge questions posted by board moderators, administrators, and other users. They can also use this board to ask questions they have about their math studies.

When you make a new topic in this forum, you will have the ability to place a Message Icon next to your post. Please use the icon

when you are posting a question you need help with and use

when you are posting a question you are challenging others to answer.

Older students should leave the challenge questions for the younger students - answer the challenge problems that are appropriate for your age and experience level only! You are free to help out students who have questions.

We expect the math in this forum to be topics you might find in a middle school classroom. Typical classes in middle school classrooms include Pre-Algebra, Algebra 1, and very basic Geometry. If you wish to discuss contest problems, use The Basics for beginning contest problems and use MATHCOUNTS for harder middle school contest problems.

If you are uncertain which forum to place your question in, always place it in the more advanced forum of those you are considering.

Please refrain from titling a post as "easy" or "hard." If it is in the right forum, it is appropriate regardless.

Please do not post messages that are meant to "teach" others about forum etiquette. Messages such as "do not revive old topics" should not be placed on the forums.

If you feel someone is abusing the forum, please contact a moderator or administrator.

**Posted:** Mon Jan 10, 2005 9:15 am

MCrawford

The following are examples of problems that are appropriate for this forum. You can answer these problems in other threads if you like, but please do not make a thread of solutions here.

Arithmetic:

Simplify the fraction $\frac{44}{180}$ .

Convert $\frac{19}{25}$ to a percent.

Perform the indicated arithmetic:

Algebra:

Find $x$ where $3x+7 = 16$ .

Find $(a, b)$ where $a+2b = 11$ and $b-a = 4$ .

If $3^{x}= 81$ , find the value of $2^{x}$ .

Factor $2x+6$ , $x^{2}+2x+1$ . More advanced factoring belongs in High School Basics

Geometry:

Find the area of a right triangle that has hypotenuse of length 37 and one of whose legs is 12.

The area of a circle is $32\pi$ . Find the length of its diameter.

Counting:

How many multiples of 12 are there between 100 and 200?

In how many ways can at least one student from a group of four be selected for class honors if any combination of student(s) can be selected?

Probability:

When two fair 6 sides dice are thrown, find the probability that the sum of the rolls is 9.

John flips a fair coin 3 times. Find the probability that exactly 2 of the flips come up heads.

Number Theory:

Find the greatest common divisor of 60 and 105.

Find the least common multiple of 40 and 90.

Problems that use this level of curriculum, but a greater level of problem solving creativity should be posted in The Basics or the MATHCOUNTS forums.

**Posted:** Sun Jan 16, 2005 7:49 pm

rcv

To add one very important guidelines to what rrusczyk has said:

- Please keep subject material to topics that your principal would find acceptable for discussion at your middle school.

If your principal would object to the posting of a particular topic in a school newsletter, the topic has no place on this forum.

Questions and solutions not meeting these guidelines will be deleted.

**Posted:** Wed Feb 02, 2005 1:37 pm

robinhe

And another thing:

Please only post one problem per post Mr. Green

Some of you are posting multiple problems in one post and that makes it difficult for the person answering the post see all of the problems in front of them. If you have to make 5-6 topics in a row, then do so. Smile

**Posted:** Mon Feb 27, 2006 7:14 pm

MCrawford

I'll second robinhe's suggestion for another reason: some posters in various forums have grouped problems of highly varying difficulty. This makes it difficult or impossible to move threads into the forums in which they fit best.

**Posted:** Mon Feb 27, 2006 8:05 pm

MCrawford

For now, we are locking marathon threads and asking that students discontinue creating them. The reasons are that (1) many of the problems are growing too difficult for the level of the forum, (2) the depth of discussion of the solutions is low, and (3) it's hard to search/identify the problems in any way. Please keep posts to one problem per thread (except where another problem relates to the original problem discussed).

**Posted:** Tue Jun 06, 2006 11:20 am

DaReaper

i am an eight grader and i was just wondering...in one of my posts...(medium easy hard prob) the question had an integral in it ( $\int$ ) although knowledge of the integral was not necessary for the question because it cancelled out...

although one poster asked me what the integral was and i explained... is that ok?

**Posted:** Fri Jan 26, 2007 4:39 pm

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levans

Just a friendly reminder to review the forum guidelines. Simply scroll to the top and read the first few messages. We have had numerous messages of late falling outside the guidelines.

**Posted:** Mon Dec 03, 2007 9:24 am

levans

Reminder of this guideline which is often ignored:

Please do not post messages that are meant to "teach" others about forum etiquette. Messages such as "do not revive old topics" should not be placed on the forums.

**Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 10:11 am

gauss1181

Why is it that? Some people just need reminders..especially if they're new.

I think it's ok.

**Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 4:52 pm

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levans

Clutters the forums, and moderators have to delete the messages. Moderators will tell the user as needed. In general, we don't really have a rule against reviving old posts.

**Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 5:13 pm

n0vad3m0n

**Posted:** Tue Dec 11, 2007 3:59 pm

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gauss1181

What's so bad about reviving old topics?

**Posted:** Tue Dec 11, 2007 6:52 pm

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DonkeyKong

**Posted:** Wed Dec 12, 2007 10:58 am

jimi · Hodge Conjecture Offline Joined: 10 Dec 2006 Posts: 81

I posted a reply in this forum yesterday simply to say that I thought the poster had posted a great question ('distance problem')! This seems to have been deleted. Just wondering why.

**Posted:** Tue Dec 18, 2007 1:49 am

levans

**Posted:** Tue Dec 18, 2007 9:10 am

HopeCahill · New Member Offline Joined: 03 Jan 2009 Posts: 3

Hi! I can't solve some of the problems and i was wondering if anybody out there had the answers to them. Embarassed

Can someone explain how to solve the geography questions? I don't know the formulas. Help

Thanks!

**Posted:** Sat Jan 03, 2009 3:25 pm

AIME15

Do you mean geometry, and not geography?

Experience is the only way.

**Posted:** Sat Jan 03, 2009 3:53 pm

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HopeCahill · New Member Offline Joined: 03 Jan 2009 Posts: 3

Sorry! I meant Geometry. Very Happy

**Posted:** Mon Jan 05, 2009 4:09 pm

PowerOfPi

Are proofs of basic things ok? Would they go in another forum if they are harder?

**Posted:** Sat May 16, 2009 7:14 pm

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