All you need to know to prepare for the Class 9 Maths Olympiad

Olympiads are on the way, and you still haven’t figured how to prepare for the same? Well, don’t worry because we are here to help you and provide you with all the information you need to crack these very important examinations conducted by Science Olympiad Foundation (SOF). Since you’re here to know everything about class 9th International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO) so here are we to help you ace your preparation with some mind-blowing and super helpful tips and tricks. 

Maths is that one subject, practising which would never be enough. The more you practice, the more you learn, and hence, the more you ace. The Science Olympiad Foundation (SOF) conducts a number of Olympiads like the International English Olympiad (IEO), International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO), National Science Olympiad (NSO), National Computer Olympiad (NCO), and a few more. These Olympiads are conducted each year by SOF to test the child’s abilities like competitive nature, learning level, speed of answering questions, analytical skills, reasoning abilities, research work, and how much the child is willing to do.

Olympiads are vital for your school and college life as participation in these olympiads reflects your willingness to go and work a little extra. They represent your hardworking nature and your interest in co-curricular academic activities. When you appear in these examinations, you get exposure to new environments, which are extremely helpful to prepare you for appearing in the upcoming many such crucial examinations. 

Since you now know everything about Mathematics and Olympiads, so now it’s time to discuss the things that you really need to know about the International Mathematic Olympiad if you want to appear in the same.

Below are the things that you really need to know and keep in mind before or while appearing for the International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO):

• You need to know the schedule of the examination. You need to be very clear and sure about the dates of the tests because you’ll have to prepare accordingly. You should also be aware that the International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO) takes place in two levels each year. 

• Read the syllabus carefully: Smart work is always better than hard work because it saves time and, of course, makes you look smart. There’s no need to go behind numerous study materials. Since the International Mathematics Olympiad is conducted in two levels, you should know that in the Level-1, 60% syllabus is from class 9th and 40% syllabus is from class 8th, which makes prepping for the olympiad a little easy for you because you already have the basics cleared of the previous class’s concepts. So don’t forget to revise the early concepts. Questions in the Level-2 Olympiad exam will be from the current class itself, i.e., class 9th. 

• Know the examination pattern: You need to know the Olympiad question paper pattern properly to ace the exam. There are a total of fifty questions in the exam which you need to solve in sixty minutes, i.e., an hour. There are four sections in the paper. In Section One, the questions are based on Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning. In Section Two, the questions are asked on the following topics: Number Systems, Polynomials, Coordinate Geometry, Linear Equations in Two Variables, Introduction to Euclid’s Geometry, Lines and Angles, Triangles, Quadrilaterals, Areas of Parallelograms and Triangles, Circles, Constructions, Heron’s Formula, Surface Areas and Volumes, Statistics, Probability. In Section Three, the syllabus is based on the syllabus of Mathematical Reasoning and Quantitative Aptitude. In the last section, i.e., Section Four, there will be HOT Qs, i.e., Higher Order Thinking Questions, whose syllabus is as per Section Two.

1. Know the Marks Distribution: If we talk about the Logical Reasoning Section, it will contain 15 questions carrying one mark each making it 15 marks for the Logical Reasoning Section. Mathematical Reasoning will include 20 questions carrying one mark each making it 20 marks for the Mathematical Reasoning Section. Everyday Mathematics will contain ten questions carrying one mark each, making it ten marks for the Everyday Mathematics Section. The most important is the last section, the Achievers Section, which will contain five questions carrying three marks each, making it 15 marks for the Achievers Section.

• You need to know the importance of Practising. One can never master mathematics without practicing each aspect of it thoroughly. So, start with covering the classes’ basics, i.e., 8th and 9th, from the school coursebooks or the NCERTs and exemplars. Once you’re done with these, you may find more reference material on the official website of the Science Olympiad Foundation (SOF). You may purchase some workbooks, reasoning workbooks, and previous year question papers from the official site only when you’ve covered the basics thoroughly. You may also practice some IMO Maths Olympiad Sample Question Paper Class 9. Practicing all these resources will surely help you to excel in the Olympiads.

• Stay Consistent and Motivated. Even if you have practised everything, you need to stay consistent and work frequently on whatever you’ve studied. You need to schedule every task and topic on your calendars so that you don’t miss out on any important thing. If you leave practising and revising things, i.e., if you stop being consistent, then there are high chances of your low performance in the olympiads. Staying motivated and focused during the preparatory process is also a crucial step to ensure excellent marks in the olympiad itself! You make take a day off if you don’t feel well or if you don’t feel like staying motivated but make sure to come back stronger!

We hope that you got to learn something beneficial from this article. We hope that these things that you need to know will help you crack the International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO) with flying colors. You get what you believe in and what you work for. Hard work always pays off, and so will yours so get started and ace it! We wish you luck for your Olympiad. Best wishes!