What is Caribou？
The Caribou Contest is an international online mathematics competition that provides students of all levels, from Year 1 to Year 13, an exciting opportunity to showcase their problem solving skills.
Held six times a year, this competition is accessible from anywhere in the world, including New Zealand!
Competition Dates:
The Caribou Contest takes place in six rounds annually, typically held in October, November, January, February, April and May.
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First Round: October 17th, 2024;
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Second Round: November 14th, 2024;
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Third Round: January 16th, 2025;
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Fourth Round: February 13th, 2025;
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Fifth Round: April 10th, 2025;
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Sixth Round: May 8th, 2025.
(All on Thursdays)
Deadline to Register
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First Round: October 10th, 2024
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Second Round: November 7th, 2024
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Third Round: December 23th, 2024
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Fourth Round: February 7th, 2025
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Fifth Round: April 3rd, 2025
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Sixth Round: April 30th, 2025
The registration is considered successful upon receipt of the registration fee.
Competition Format
Format
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Grade levels: Divided into 7 Grade categories (K/1, 2, 3/4, 5/6, 7/8, 9/10, 11/12). (*These Grade levels are one year lower than NZ Year).
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Duration: Each contest lasts for 50 minutes.
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Frequency: Six contests per year, with the option to participate in one or all.
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Online/ Paper: Online
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Participants eligibility: Any school-aged child can participate in Caribou Contests, no matter their nationality or schooling situation.
Register Now!
Fees for the Caribou Contest
Year1-5 (Grade K-Grade 4):
$20 for each round, or $108.00 for six rounds.
Year6-10 (Grade 5-9):
$30 for each round, or $162.00 for six rounds.
Year11-13 (Grade 10-12):
$35.00 for each round, or $189.00 for six rounds.
Please note: If you registered after the deadline, the fees will be doubled.
BANK: ANZ
Name of Account: Pinnacle Education Group
Account: 06-0241-0684634-00
Please make payment with the students 'full name + Caribou ' as reference.
⚠️ Please note that any fees and payments made are non-refundable.
⚠️ Before you make any payment, make sure you read through the refund policy on our website to avoid misunderstandings.
(Terms and conditions apply).
PGA reserves the right to interpret all competition and course arrangements.
Why Participate in the Caribou?
● Global Recognition
Compete with students worldwide and measure your math skills on a global scale.
● Interactive Learning
Engage with fun math and logic games, math history questions, and receive immediate feedback on your results.
● Rewards & Prizes
Top performers receive certificates, along with recognition on the Host's website.
● Great Preparation:
For students planning to take part in more advanced math contests, the Caribou Contest is excellent preparation, offering an array of challenges designed to enhance both critical thinking and mathematical reasoning.
Special Features
● Video solutions on the YouTube & Dailymotion channels.
● All previous contests including interactive questions available as previous tests online 24/7.
Awards
After each round, participants receive certificates.
Each student is able to print a Certificate of Achievement and a Certificate of Participation for each Caribou Contest they participate in and for the Caribou Cup (after the last contest).
Contest Certificate
Caribou Cup Certificate
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can I start participating after the first contest?
Yes, each contest is separate. For every contest there is a separate ranking, and you can download certificates for individual contests. The first contest is in October, but you can definitely start to participate later in the year.
2. What types of questions are in the contests?
Question content is tailored to each level (K/1, 2, 3/4, 5/6, 7/8, 9/10, 11/12) and favours the lower grade level within a level - that is, the lower grade level in each level should be able to answer all the questions for that contest level. We base this on mathematics curricula and feedback from our proofreaders (teachers).
The questions for one contest level vary widely in difficulty because students vary widely. inability. We want everyone, from the students weakest in math to those who are very gifted, to be able to participate in Caribou Contests. So the 9/10 contest level may contain questions that even a grade 8 student could answer. In general these easy questions are worth 3 points whereas the harder ones are worth 4 or 5 points.
In addition to word problems on geometry, patterns, logic, algebra, counting, arithmetic, and so on, Caribou Contests also includes interactive questions in each contest, and usually a History question as well.
3. Why is there overlap in questions between levels?
Sometimes Caribou Contests puts a question from the 7/8 contest in the 9/10 contest. Here are some reasons why:
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Students must be able to complete 15 questions in 50 minutes, so some of the questions need to be relatively easy. Longer than 50 minutes would not be feasible for many logistically. Fewer than 15 questions would make it possible to have a high ranking by guesswork alone.
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There is great variation in student ability and so there needs to be great variation in question difficulty. If you look at Contest Results you can see, for example, that the low grade questions are too difficult for 50% of the students in a higher grade . Caribou Contests is a math competition for students of all abilities, not just the most gifted in math.
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It means fewer questions for Caribou Contests to create, verify, and translate, making it possible to have 6 contests per year for 5 different levels, and even more eventually. The frequency of contests has changed many students' lives, pushing them to form math clubs in many schools around the world.
4. How are contest results calculated?
A Student’s score is the sum of the points they earned from all the questions. A third of the questions are worth 3 points, another third are worth 4 points, and the last third are worth 5 points. The students are then ranked within their level (2, 3/4, 5/6, 7/8, 9/10, 11/12) according to this total. The K/1 level is not ranked.
There is no penalty subtracted for incorrect answers, nor for leaving questions blank. It is better to guess than leave a question blank.
5. How are students and schools ranked in the contest and in the Caribou Cup?
A Student’s ranking in a contest is determined based on the number of points they achieved.
Their score is the sum of the points they earned from all the questions. A third of the questions are worth 3 points, another third are worth 4 points, and the last third are worth 5 points. Test time is no longer used to calculate contest ranking.
