By Kathy Lauer-Williams
Of The Morning Call

Seth Rivas, a third-grader at Fountain Hill Elementary School, clutched his certificate of achievement and fiddled with the gold medal hanging around his neck as he considered why he has done so well in math.

''The sort of thing I like is multiplication, because it's challenging,'' said the 8-year old. ''I'm pretty good at multiplying fractions, too.''

Seth was recognized Thursday as the top-ranked third-grader in the nation in First In Math, an Internet competition of 24, a math game that includes problems from simple addition to algebra, which isn't typically taught in elementary school. Seth's team, made up of 29 students from Shawn Collier's class, also is the top-ranked third-grade team in the nation in the game played on the Web site http://www.firstinmath.com .

Seth, who accepted hugs and high-fives from his classmates for his achievement, said he most enjoys competing with friend and teammate Deron Seaman, playing for up to five hours at a stretch to advance through the game's eight levels.

Seth said he never expected to do so well. ''I just kept playing,'' he said. ''It's fun.''

Seth was one of many third-, fourth- and fifth-grade students who gasped in shock when Robert Sun, creator of the 24 game, told them that 95 percent of adults have trouble getting past level five in the game.

Seth said he made it to the eighth and highest level, although he admitted he struggled with the algebra because he hasn't had it in school yet.

The students received the awards from Suntex International, the Easton company founded by Sun. ''It's quite an achievement for this school,'' Sun said.

It's the first year all of the Bethlehem Area School District's 16 elementary and four middle schools have competed in First in Math, and Sun said the district finished as one of the top districts nationwide. Sun said more than 250,000 students from 25 states competed in the program.

Fountain Hill and Broughal Middle School were part of the pilot program last year that proved so successful the district decided to introduce it in all of the schools. Fountain Hill Principal Joseph Rahs is an enthusiastic advocate for the program.

''It's the most exciting application of instructive technology I've seen,'' he said. ''We've not yet tapped its potential. The promise it has for children is tremendous.''

The online version is similar to the annual 24 game competitions held in the Lehigh Valley, in which students add, subtract, multiply and divide the four numbers on a game card to get to the number 24.

Bethlehem Superintendent Joseph Lewis called the program ''phenomenal.''

''They've found the link between gamesmanship and mathematics, and it's positively addicting,'' he said. ''If this is the way kids get engaged in learning, then let's do it.''

Sun said that Daniel Candelario, a fifth-grader from Fountain Hill, is among the 11 nationally ranked individual students who earned more than 10,000 points.

''This program has the power to engage children,'' Sun said. ''Kids like Daniel spend a 100-plus hours just on this game while the average student spends 100 hours on math in a full year. When a student spends that kind of time, it has an impact on learning.''

Sun told the students that he emigrated from China when he was in elementary school and had difficulty fitting in because his English was not very good. Then he discovered that other children came to him for help with math.

''When you build a solid foundation in math, you can cross boundaries,'' he said. ''You have tasted the power of math.''

kathy.lauer@mcall.com
610-861-3627

24 still giving 'mathletes' mental workout
Bethlehem Area fifth-grader has highest game scores in nation.

By Genevieve Marshall
Of The Morning Call

Alexa Curto is a shy 10-year-old with waist-length chestnut hair who fiddles with her dangly silver earrings when she's asked about her accomplishments.

This month, the fifth-grader at Farmersville Elementary School in Bethlehem Township became the top-ranked student in the nation in an Internet-based competition of 24, a math game that includes polynomials and algebra — subjects few students tackle during their elementary school years.

''I got this medal,'' Alexa said, looking sideways as she tugged on a red, white and blue ribbon around her neck awarded to her last week by Suntex International, an Easton company founded by the creator of the 24 game, Robert Sun. ''And a certificate. That was cool.''

But the competition seems to be the real reward for Alexa, who admits to playing the game for as many as two hours a night to improve her score and advance through the game's eight levels.

In an era in which schools are rewarded or reprimanded based on standardized test scores, the Bethlehem Area School District has inadvertently found a way to make math fun for its students.

The concept is the same in the online version as the annual 24 game competitions held in the Lehigh Valley. Students add, subtract, multiply and divide the four numbers on a game piece to get to the number 24.

The fast-paced game encourages competition by ranking students, classes and schools across the nation. Students are encouraged to try higher-order math problems in bonus levels, or ''gyms,'' that help them earn more points, or ''stickers.''

More than 100,000 students from 25 states are registered on the Web site http://www.firstinmath.com .

''While the children compete, they are also sharpening their basic math skills, such as computation, problem solving and pattern sensing,'' Suntex spokeswoman Jody Hecker said.

This year is the first time all of the district's 16 elementary and four middle schools have signed on to First in Math, Suntex's online version of 24, said Julie Victory, Bethlehem Area's supervisor of mathematics.

District officials used about $30,000 of a $361,000 federal grant to purchase rights to First in Math for Bethlehem's third- through eighth-grade math classes. Enhancing Education Through Technology grants are designated for programs that could improve students' academic achievement through the use of technology.

A pilot program at Fountain Hill Elementary School and Broughal and Nitschmann middle schools last year proved so successful that Victory wanted all of the schools to have the opportunity to enhance their math curriculum with it.

''I saw how engaged the kids were competing against themselves and their classmates for better scores,'' Victory said. ''The kids absolutely loved it. The teachers told me were playing it at home because they couldn't get enough of it.''

The schools make laptops available three times a week before or after school for students whose families don't have computers or an Internet connection.

In Edward Yenolevich's fifth-grade classroom, Alexa is not the only student who has caught the 24 fever.

''They're all crazy about it,'' Yenolevich said. ''They want to play math games when they have indoor recess.''

Alexa's success has encouraged her classmates to work harder. The game fosters a good-natured competitiveness, he said.

Jay Newman, 10, sat on the classroom floor with his laptop, trying to work his way through the first game of skill set seven. When he hit a particularly tough problem, he asked Alexa for help.

''I can try to beat Alexa's score, but I'm never going to,'' said Jay, who practices at home a couple of times per week. ''Alexa's really good at fractions.''

Alexa demonstrated her math prowess by solving a three-part algebraic equation in less than 30 seconds. With her laptop computer resting on Yenolevich's desk, she quickly figured out that when x=2, 2(-2x+12) divided by 4 equals 4.

Then she had to figure out how to get to 24 using that 4, plus another 4 and two 3's — through a combination of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

With a few rapid clicks of a mouse, Alexa answered that 4 x 3 + 4 x 3 = 24.

''Geez, she's fast,'' Jay commented from his place on the floor.

Although she has completed all of the game's levels, Alexa said she continues to play because she wants to maintain her high score. Classmate Grace Mao, also 10, is nipping at her heels.

Grace has the second-highest class score and is ranked eighth in the nation among other fifth-graders.

''My score would be better if I could play more at home, but sometimes my parents get mad,'' said Grace, who tries to fit in a half-hour of practice a day. ''I'm supposed to be practicing the piano or Chinese.''

genevieve.marshall@mcall.com
610-861-3637