Advanced middle school math

[Anonymous]

OP they can take any math they qualify for

My kids took alegebra in fifth MCPS they went to the local MS but we had to provide transport

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Citation for this? I was actually present at 2022 Mathcounts Nationals and spoke with parents and coaches. And you were.....?
You're full of shit. The kids there are accelerated to the maximum level allowed by their school districts. Most areas are more willing to accelerate kids than FCPS is. That being said, even FCPS has maybe 10 kids per year taking pre-Calc and Calc in 8th. Kids would get nowhere in Mathcounts without knowing Algebra, Geometry, and even Algebra II (and number theory, and Counting and Probability, and other stuff outside of the regular math curriculum).

There is a difference between 8th grade precalc and 5th grade algebra. I would expect FCPS has even more than that in precalc. LCPS has individual schools with whole sections taking Algebra 2 w trig, though they don't let you take calculus right after that.

I've competed at nationals, no one on my team had algebra before7th grade. That was a while ago and the contest is tougher now(though the top student scored 12 points higher than 2nd place, and 20 higher than the 5th place kid who moved up to 1st.) Even this year, I know several kids in Virginia who nearly made nationals last year and thus a decent chance this year, none had algebra before 6th in school. I think you are giving too much weight to the kids you saw, and the majority are not taking algebra in 5th grade. There are a bunch of states where 30 score is enough to advance, and some even 20.

Your information is out of date. BothMathcounts and AMC 10/12 cranked up the difficulty in the last 5 years in a way that, for better or worse, favors more highly accelerated kids. There also are more schools permitting hyper acceleration than ever before.

You did move the goalpost there. The original assertion was that a kid taking Algebra I in 7th and geometry in 8th could be competitive in VA. They simply can’t be. A kid doing Algebra in 6th and then doubling up later is competitive. A kid stuck learning nothing in school but hyper accelerated at AoPS (like many FCPS kids) could be competitive. A kid who hasn’t even finished geometry would have no chance.

My observation was that every kid at Nationals fit into one of these categories. 1. Hyper accelerated at school. 2. Bored and wasting time in school math but hyper accelerated at AoPS. 3. Representing a weak, non competitive state.

Since we are on this topic (which is somewhat farther than OP's original question), many of the top 50 kids (and certainly most if not all of the countdown round qualifiers) are also USAMO/USAJMO qualifiers. No way they qualify and do well in those if they aren't hyperaccelerated at school (or they are homeschooled) or at AOPS. Indeed Mathcounts is approaching AMC-10 (Q1-15) in difficulty according to my kid (who made Nationals and JMO last year in 7th). School algebra 1/2 or even Geometry is just the beginning for these contests, especially if speed is paramount.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Citation for this? I was actually present at 2022 Mathcounts Nationals and spoke with parents and coaches. And you were.....?
You're full of shit. The kids there are accelerated to the maximum level allowed by their school districts. Most areas are more willing to accelerate kids than FCPS is. That being said, even FCPS has maybe 10 kids per year taking pre-Calc and Calc in 8th. Kids would get nowhere in Mathcounts without knowing Algebra, Geometry, and even Algebra II (and number theory, and Counting and Probability, and other stuff outside of the regular math curriculum).

There is a difference between 8th grade precalc and 5th grade algebra. I would expect FCPS has even more than that in precalc. LCPS has individual schools with whole sections taking Algebra 2 w trig, though they don't let you take calculus right after that.

I've competed at nationals, no one on my team had algebra before7th grade. That was a while ago and the contest is tougher now(though the top student scored 12 points higher than 2nd place, and 20 higher than the 5th place kid who moved up to 1st.) Even this year, I know several kids in Virginia who nearly made nationals last year and thus a decent chance this year, none had algebra before 6th in school. I think you are giving too much weight to the kids you saw, and the majority are not taking algebra in 5th grade. There are a bunch of states where 30 score is enough to advance, and some even 20.

Your information is out of date. BothMathcounts and AMC 10/12 cranked up the difficulty in the last 5 years in a way that, for better or worse, favors more highly accelerated kids. There also are more schools permitting hyper acceleration than ever before.

You did move the goalpost there. The original assertion was that a kid taking Algebra I in 7th and geometry in 8th could be competitive in VA. They simply can’t be. A kid doing Algebra in 6th and then doubling up later is competitive. A kid stuck learning nothing in school but hyper accelerated at AoPS (like many FCPS kids) could be competitive. A kid who hasn’t even finished geometry would have no chance.

My observation was that every kid at Nationals fit into one of these categories. 1. Hyper accelerated at school. 2. Bored and wasting time in school math but hyper accelerated at AoPS. 3. Representing a weak, non competitive state.

Since we are on this topic (which is somewhat farther than OP's original question), many of the top 50 kids (and certainly most if not all of the countdown round qualifiers) are also USAMO/USAJMO qualifiers. No way they qualify and do well in those if they aren't hyperaccelerated at school (or they are homeschooled) or at AOPS. Indeed Mathcounts is approaching AMC-10 (Q1-15) in difficulty according to my kid (who made Nationals and JMO last year in 7th). School algebra 1/2 or even Geometry is just the beginning for these contests, especially if speed is paramount.

Is your kid one of these?
https://www.washingtonian.com/2022/05/09/the-nations-top-middle-school-math-whizzes-are-in-town-could-you-stack-up/

[Anonymous]

Race to nowhere sounds about right. Agree with PhD above that non-lazy parents don’t simply accelerate, they enrich across multiple areas.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:MCPS/Algebra in 6th

Only if you happen to attend one of the wealthy schools. At most schools in MCPS this is not an option regardless of aptitude or test scores.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The race to nowhere

It is not a race, it is trying to engage your child at a level that challenges them. Do you feel the same about travel sports? DS loves math and is good at it. The math taught at his school is not challenging for him. He needs more then what the school can provide. I can let him be bored and lose interest in math because the work isn't challenging or I can find ways to engge his interest.

Work on breath: music, chess, strategy games, art, science, another language. Many of these kids also struggle with social situations, so find a way to encourage social and team skills. He can do advanced math too, but it's not the end all be all.

Generally, these kids already are. Do you really think that there are tons of parents out there pushing their kids only in math and not having them participate in any other activities? My kid does supplemental math. He also does a sport, plays an instrument, is learning a language, enjoys strategy games and so on. This is typical for many math high achievers.

There's a kid up thread who does math, rec sports and scouts. Adding an instrument or language would push his brain to add another skill. It's not a crazy suggestion.

The kid already sounds well rounded enough. Just how many activities does a kid need to be in for you to deem them sufficiently well rounded for supplemental math? Why is it better to force a kid who is interested in math into "math adjacent" activities rather than letting the kid do more math?

Because specializing at age 10 isn't appropriate. Being good at math is extremely one dimensional. For a kid who is as gifted as stated here (i.e., in the 0.01%) then they should be doing other things to find an intellectual challenge. If not, they will be bored. Sports and scouts are great, but just don't have that level of intellectual challege.

The smartest guy I ever knew studied math at Harvard, followed by a PhD at Stanford. In addition to publishing papers in math journals with an MIT professor as a high schooler, he also won several national poetry contests and was fluent in a couple of self taught languages. By contrast, nearly every guy in my engineering program was good at math and liked sports. Nice guys, but far from exceptional. If you just want to be one of those guys, there's zero reason to take Algebra in 4th-6th grade. If you're so damn smart that you're exceptional, then you should expand your horizons or you will be bored.

Doing 4 hours per week of supplemental math is hardly specializing. It would just be a hobby, and it's completely age appropriate for a 10 year old.

You're also getting posters confused. Mine is the 99.99th percentile type kid who also is doing music, language instruction, etc. My kid probably spends more time per week practicing his instrument than he does with math, but I bet you aren't bothered that he's too young to specialize in music. If he did the high level orchestra that would require a time commitment of 10-15 hours per week, I bet you wouldn't bat an eyelash at that even though you seem to be clutching your pearls about a few hours of math enrichment.

There is no reason to assume that PP's kid isn't sufficiently well rounded. It's also not intrinsically superior to force a math oriented kid to do an instrument or play chess rather than do math enrichment, especially if the kid is more interested in math than the other stuff.

I've often thought along these lines. A lot of parents don't bat an eye at their kid practicing music for 5+ hours a week or spending even more time doing some sport like travel soccer, but when you suggest spending 3+ hours a week on outside math for a kid who likes math, they think you're some kind of crazy tyrant. I think kids should be encouraged to pursue their interests and develop themselves fully. Nothing wrong with music or sports (well travel sports do seem kind of nuts but that's probably just me).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm interested in how the public schools handled your kid's accelerated curriculum? When did he start the acceleated path in the school (I assume he was already doing a bunch of stuff at home) Did you have to bus him to the high school?

On a related note, is your kid studying to qualify or take the AIME or USAMO?

Thanks!

DP but my kid was accelerated in middle school. Doubled Algebra 1 and Geometry in 6th, finished Algebra 2 in 7th and doing precalculus online in 8th. Would like to do calculus now but school system won't allow AP classes before high school. Qualified for AIME and USAJMO in 7th.

How did you get the (public?) school to double up on math classes in 6th grade? The school system seems to be against that, from my experience. I hoping the school allows DS to test out of Algebra instead.

Thanks

It so unusual at our title 1 school they didn't know what to make of it. Most of the teachers said things like I've never seen anything like this, but no amount of asking did any good. They were just horribly unprepared and unwilling to make any accommodations. I think parents have more luck at wealthier schools.

[Anonymous]

One of the more interesting threads I've encountered here in a while (at least to me).

Never realized how big an advantage math acceleration was for these contests.

It's kind of unfortunate these options aren't available to all schools. One of my kids could've skipped a year or two of ES math because of their scores but would've required transportation, which we couldn't provide since the classes weren't available at their home school. Some schools in the county offer this on-premises, but ours isn't one of those. It's also not clear that we're doing a kid any favors by doing this aside from improving their ability to compete in some MS contests.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Citation for this? I was actually present at 2022 Mathcounts Nationals and spoke with parents and coaches. And you were.....?
You're full of shit. The kids there are accelerated to the maximum level allowed by their school districts. Most areas are more willing to accelerate kids than FCPS is. That being said, even FCPS has maybe 10 kids per year taking pre-Calc and Calc in 8th. Kids would get nowhere in Mathcounts without knowing Algebra, Geometry, and even Algebra II (and number theory, and Counting and Probability, and other stuff outside of the regular math curriculum).

There is a difference between 8th grade precalc and 5th grade algebra. I would expect FCPS has even more than that in precalc. LCPS has individual schools with whole sections taking Algebra 2 w trig, though they don't let you take calculus right after that.

I've competed at nationals, no one on my team had algebra before7th grade. That was a while ago and the contest is tougher now(though the top student scored 12 points higher than 2nd place, and 20 higher than the 5th place kid who moved up to 1st.) Even this year, I know several kids in Virginia who nearly made nationals last year and thus a decent chance this year, none had algebra before 6th in school. I think you are giving too much weight to the kids you saw, and the majority are not taking algebra in 5th grade. There are a bunch of states where 30 score is enough to advance, and some even 20.

Your information is out of date. BothMathcounts and AMC 10/12 cranked up the difficulty in the last 5 years in a way that, for better or worse, favors more highly accelerated kids. There also are more schools permitting hyper acceleration than ever before.

You did move the goalpost there. The original assertion was that a kid taking Algebra I in 7th and geometry in 8th could be competitive in VA. They simply can’t be. A kid doing Algebra in 6th and then doubling up later is competitive. A kid stuck learning nothing in school but hyper accelerated at AoPS (like many FCPS kids) could be competitive. A kid who hasn’t even finished geometry would have no chance.

My observation was that every kid at Nationals fit into one of these categories. 1. Hyper accelerated at school. 2. Bored and wasting time in school math but hyper accelerated at AoPS. 3. Representing a weak, non competitive state.

Since we are on this topic (which is somewhat farther than OP's original question), many of the top 50 kids (and certainly most if not all of the countdown round qualifiers) are also USAMO/USAJMO qualifiers. No way they qualify and do well in those if they aren't hyperaccelerated at school (or they are homeschooled) or at AOPS. Indeed Mathcounts is approaching AMC-10 (Q1-15) in difficulty according to my kid (who made Nationals and JMO last year in 7th). School algebra 1/2 or even Geometry is just the beginning for these contests, especially if speed is paramount.

It seems like the parents who are able to get their schools to accelerate their children gives them an advantage in these contests and conversely children at schools that refuse to accelerate, regardless of merit, are at a disadvantage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is the highest level of math class available to you 6th grader that is offered through their school/district? Struggling to find something that can accommodate our 6th grader and wondering if our district is just subpar or perhaps this is the normal

'

Technically pre-algebra, many have found ways around that, allowing their kids to get a grade or two ahead by pressuring their school administration. Unfortunately, this is inconsistent, and sometimes the most gifted kids are left out because it's randomly applied. Many like this system because it gives them an advantage over the many schools that won't allow this sort of thing but I think it would be better if there was a level playing field.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP they can take any math they qualify for

My kids took alegebra in fifth MCPS they went to the local MS but we had to provide transport

Qualify how?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Citation for this? I was actually present at 2022 Mathcounts Nationals and spoke with parents and coaches. And you were.....?
You're full of shit. The kids there are accelerated to the maximum level allowed by their school districts. Most areas are more willing to accelerate kids than FCPS is. That being said, even FCPS has maybe 10 kids per year taking pre-Calc and Calc in 8th. Kids would get nowhere in Mathcounts without knowing Algebra, Geometry, and even Algebra II (and number theory, and Counting and Probability, and other stuff outside of the regular math curriculum).

There is a difference between 8th grade precalc and 5th grade algebra. I would expect FCPS has even more than that in precalc. LCPS has individual schools with whole sections taking Algebra 2 w trig, though they don't let you take calculus right after that.

I've competed at nationals, no one on my team had algebra before7th grade. That was a while ago and the contest is tougher now(though the top student scored 12 points higher than 2nd place, and 20 higher than the 5th place kid who moved up to 1st.) Even this year, I know several kids in Virginia who nearly made nationals last year and thus a decent chance this year, none had algebra before 6th in school. I think you are giving too much weight to the kids you saw, and the majority are not taking algebra in 5th grade. There are a bunch of states where 30 score is enough to advance, and some even 20.

Your information is out of date. BothMathcounts and AMC 10/12 cranked up the difficulty in the last 5 years in a way that, for better or worse, favors more highly accelerated kids. There also are more schools permitting hyper acceleration than ever before.

You did move the goalpost there. The original assertion was that a kid taking Algebra I in 7th and geometry in 8th could be competitive in VA. They simply can’t be. A kid doing Algebra in 6th and then doubling up later is competitive. A kid stuck learning nothing in school but hyper accelerated at AoPS (like many FCPS kids) could be competitive. A kid who hasn’t even finished geometry would have no chance.

My observation was that every kid at Nationals fit into one of these categories. 1. Hyper accelerated at school. 2. Bored and wasting time in school math but hyper accelerated at AoPS. 3. Representing a weak, non competitive state.

Since we are on this topic (which is somewhat farther than OP's original question), many of the top 50 kids (and certainly most if not all of the countdown round qualifiers) are also USAMO/USAJMO qualifiers. No way they qualify and do well in those if they aren't hyperaccelerated at school (or they are homeschooled) or at AOPS. Indeed Mathcounts is approaching AMC-10 (Q1-15) in difficulty according to my kid (who made Nationals and JMO last year in 7th). School algebra 1/2 or even Geometry is just the beginning for these contests, especially if speed is paramount.

It seems like the parents who are able to get their schools to accelerate their children gives them an advantage in these contests and conversely children at schools that refuse to accelerate, regardless of merit, are at a disadvantage.

Most of the highly competitive kids at these contests aren't relying on the math taught in their schools. They're taking outside classes that go in much greater depth and cover problem solving strategies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Citation for this? I was actually present at 2022 Mathcounts Nationals and spoke with parents and coaches. And you were.....?
You're full of shit. The kids there are accelerated to the maximum level allowed by their school districts. Most areas are more willing to accelerate kids than FCPS is. That being said, even FCPS has maybe 10 kids per year taking pre-Calc and Calc in 8th. Kids would get nowhere in Mathcounts without knowing Algebra, Geometry, and even Algebra II (and number theory, and Counting and Probability, and other stuff outside of the regular math curriculum).

There is a difference between 8th grade precalc and 5th grade algebra. I would expect FCPS has even more than that in precalc. LCPS has individual schools with whole sections taking Algebra 2 w trig, though they don't let you take calculus right after that.

I've competed at nationals, no one on my team had algebra before7th grade. That was a while ago and the contest is tougher now(though the top student scored 12 points higher than 2nd place, and 20 higher than the 5th place kid who moved up to 1st.) Even this year, I know several kids in Virginia who nearly made nationals last year and thus a decent chance this year, none had algebra before 6th in school. I think you are giving too much weight to the kids you saw, and the majority are not taking algebra in 5th grade. There are a bunch of states where 30 score is enough to advance, and some even 20.

Your information is out of date. BothMathcounts and AMC 10/12 cranked up the difficulty in the last 5 years in a way that, for better or worse, favors more highly accelerated kids. There also are more schools permitting hyper acceleration than ever before.

You did move the goalpost there. The original assertion was that a kid taking Algebra I in 7th and geometry in 8th could be competitive in VA. They simply can’t be. A kid doing Algebra in 6th and then doubling up later is competitive. A kid stuck learning nothing in school but hyper accelerated at AoPS (like many FCPS kids) could be competitive. A kid who hasn’t even finished geometry would have no chance.

My observation was that every kid at Nationals fit into one of these categories. 1. Hyper accelerated at school. 2. Bored and wasting time in school math but hyper accelerated at AoPS. 3. Representing a weak, non competitive state.

Since we are on this topic (which is somewhat farther than OP's original question), many of the top 50 kids (and certainly most if not all of the countdown round qualifiers) are also USAMO/USAJMO qualifiers. No way they qualify and do well in those if they aren't hyperaccelerated at school (or they are homeschooled) or at AOPS. Indeed Mathcounts is approaching AMC-10 (Q1-15) in difficulty according to my kid (who made Nationals and JMO last year in 7th). School algebra 1/2 or even Geometry is just the beginning for these contests, especially if speed is paramount.

It seems like the parents who are able to get their schools to accelerate their children gives them an advantage in these contests and conversely children at schools that refuse to accelerate, regardless of merit, are at a disadvantage.

Most of the highly competitive kids at these contests aren't relying on the math taught in their schools. They're taking outside classes that go in much greater depth and cover problem solving strategies.

I'm sure the winners at nationals study intensively at home, but many state teams are primarily taught by their schools' mathcounts teams

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Citation for this? I was actually present at 2022 Mathcounts Nationals and spoke with parents and coaches. And you were.....?
You're full of shit. The kids there are accelerated to the maximum level allowed by their school districts. Most areas are more willing to accelerate kids than FCPS is. That being said, even FCPS has maybe 10 kids per year taking pre-Calc and Calc in 8th. Kids would get nowhere in Mathcounts without knowing Algebra, Geometry, and even Algebra II (and number theory, and Counting and Probability, and other stuff outside of the regular math curriculum).

There is a difference between 8th grade precalc and 5th grade algebra. I would expect FCPS has even more than that in precalc. LCPS has individual schools with whole sections taking Algebra 2 w trig, though they don't let you take calculus right after that.

I've competed at nationals, no one on my team had algebra before7th grade. That was a while ago and the contest is tougher now(though the top student scored 12 points higher than 2nd place, and 20 higher than the 5th place kid who moved up to 1st.) Even this year, I know several kids in Virginia who nearly made nationals last year and thus a decent chance this year, none had algebra before 6th in school. I think you are giving too much weight to the kids you saw, and the majority are not taking algebra in 5th grade. There are a bunch of states where 30 score is enough to advance, and some even 20.

Your information is out of date. BothMathcounts and AMC 10/12 cranked up the difficulty in the last 5 years in a way that, for better or worse, favors more highly accelerated kids. There also are more schools permitting hyper acceleration than ever before.

You did move the goalpost there. The original assertion was that a kid taking Algebra I in 7th and geometry in 8th could be competitive in VA. They simply can’t be. A kid doing Algebra in 6th and then doubling up later is competitive. A kid stuck learning nothing in school but hyper accelerated at AoPS (like many FCPS kids) could be competitive. A kid who hasn’t even finished geometry would have no chance.

My observation was that every kid at Nationals fit into one of these categories. 1. Hyper accelerated at school. 2. Bored and wasting time in school math but hyper accelerated at AoPS. 3. Representing a weak, non competitive state.

Since we are on this topic (which is somewhat farther than OP's original question), many of the top 50 kids (and certainly most if not all of the countdown round qualifiers) are also USAMO/USAJMO qualifiers. No way they qualify and do well in those if they aren't hyperaccelerated at school (or they are homeschooled) or at AOPS. Indeed Mathcounts is approaching AMC-10 (Q1-15) in difficulty according to my kid (who made Nationals and JMO last year in 7th). School algebra 1/2 or even Geometry is just the beginning for these contests, especially if speed is paramount.

It seems like the parents who are able to get their schools to accelerate their children gives them an advantage in these contests and conversely children at schools that refuse to accelerate, regardless of merit, are at a disadvantage.

Most of the highly competitive kids at these contests aren't relying on the math taught in their schools. They're taking outside classes that go in much greater depth and cover problem solving strategies.

I'm sure the winners at nationals study intensively at home, but many state teams are primarily taught by their schools' mathcounts teams

Not around here, or in other big states. The people who win put in many hours at home an outside classes. There are *many* enrichment/cram schools in the DMV.

The magnet schools provide some training.
The kids solving beyond-honors geometry problems aren't getting that from their Algebra class in school or their one day a week practice at school club.

Think about it. If school training were enough, which schools' students would win? It would be a giant tie

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Citation for this? I was actually present at 2022 Mathcounts Nationals and spoke with parents and coaches. And you were.....?
You're full of shit. The kids there are accelerated to the maximum level allowed by their school districts. Most areas are more willing to accelerate kids than FCPS is. That being said, even FCPS has maybe 10 kids per year taking pre-Calc and Calc in 8th. Kids would get nowhere in Mathcounts without knowing Algebra, Geometry, and even Algebra II (and number theory, and Counting and Probability, and other stuff outside of the regular math curriculum).

There is a difference between 8th grade precalc and 5th grade algebra. I would expect FCPS has even more than that in precalc. LCPS has individual schools with whole sections taking Algebra 2 w trig, though they don't let you take calculus right after that.

I've competed at nationals, no one on my team had algebra before7th grade. That was a while ago and the contest is tougher now(though the top student scored 12 points higher than 2nd place, and 20 higher than the 5th place kid who moved up to 1st.) Even this year, I know several kids in Virginia who nearly made nationals last year and thus a decent chance this year, none had algebra before 6th in school. I think you are giving too much weight to the kids you saw, and the majority are not taking algebra in 5th grade. There are a bunch of states where 30 score is enough to advance, and some even 20.

Your information is out of date. BothMathcounts and AMC 10/12 cranked up the difficulty in the last 5 years in a way that, for better or worse, favors more highly accelerated kids. There also are more schools permitting hyper acceleration than ever before.

You did move the goalpost there. The original assertion was that a kid taking Algebra I in 7th and geometry in 8th could be competitive in VA. They simply can’t be. A kid doing Algebra in 6th and then doubling up later is competitive. A kid stuck learning nothing in school but hyper accelerated at AoPS (like many FCPS kids) could be competitive. A kid who hasn’t even finished geometry would have no chance.

My observation was that every kid at Nationals fit into one of these categories. 1. Hyper accelerated at school. 2. Bored and wasting time in school math but hyper accelerated at AoPS. 3. Representing a weak, non competitive state.

Since we are on this topic (which is somewhat farther than OP's original question), many of the top 50 kids (and certainly most if not all of the countdown round qualifiers) are also USAMO/USAJMO qualifiers. No way they qualify and do well in those if they aren't hyperaccelerated at school (or they are homeschooled) or at AOPS. Indeed Mathcounts is approaching AMC-10 (Q1-15) in difficulty according to my kid (who made Nationals and JMO last year in 7th). School algebra 1/2 or even Geometry is just the beginning for these contests, especially if speed is paramount.

It seems like the parents who are able to get their schools to accelerate their children gives them an advantage in these contests and conversely children at schools that refuse to accelerate, regardless of merit, are at a disadvantage.

Most of the highly competitive kids at these contests aren't relying on the math taught in their schools. They're taking outside classes that go in much greater depth and cover problem solving strategies.

I'm sure the winners at nationals study intensively at home, but many state teams are primarily taught by their schools' mathcounts teams

Not around here, or in other big states. The people who win put in many hours at home an outside classes. There are *many* enrichment/cram schools in the DMV.

The magnet schools provide some training.
The kids solving beyond-honors geometry problems aren't getting that from their Algebra class in school or their one day a week practice at school club.

Think about it. If school training were enough, which schools' students would win? It would be a giant tie

I'm not talking about the teams who represent their state's at nationals, but the ones who make it to states. Many school's mathcounts teams meet more than once a week. Many students make it to states "just" by attending their school's mathcounts events and using the free mathcounts trainer at home.

It's like football or other sports - the best of the best obviously train extraordinarily hard and likely have special coaching and exercise and nutrition regimens, but even students who "only" attend their school team's meets and work out at home often make it to the state level. And within a school, different kids will reach different levels of skill even with the same amount of practice.

This isn't to say equal access to opportunities isn't important - imagine a school team which only let juniors and seniors join regardless of prospective freshmen and sophomore's tryout performance. Or worse, a school with no team whatsoever.