Math Kangaroo is a one-day international math competition that will occur on March 20st, 2025 that encourages problem solving in mathematics. The test is challenging (but fun!) and is comprised almost entirely of word problems or spatial visualization challenges. Depending on grade level, there are 24 to 30 problems. All students are allowed 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete the test. High scoring students receive a small prize and will be recognized on the Math Kangaroo website in Summer 2026.
A quick overview of Math Kangaroo can be found in this presentation. (The presentation is geared for the youngest participants, children in grades 1&2, but is generally applicable to all levels.)
Bringhurst students in grades 1-6 are encouraged to participate.
NOTE: Students must be independent readers (around late first/early 2nd grade level for Level 1-2). No reading help is allowed on the exam. Interested Kindergartners with strong reading skills are allowed to participate on the Level 1-2 exam, but be aware that this test is quite challenging even for mathematically precocious Kindergartners.
MONDAY, March 23th, 2026
Math Kangaroo will be a different day this year: Monday! We have permission to run the competition on Monday due to the conflict with Spring Break.
Session will be held after school at Bringhurst int he MUR.
Registration begins Sept 15.
See registration directions below.
There is a $18 registration fee that is paid directly to Math Kangaroo upon registration.
The Bringhurst PTO offers need-based scholarships for this competition. Please see the PTO website for more info.
This fee includes a particpation gift that will be distributed the day of the competition. No T-shirts this year, unfortunately!
Registration opens on September 15th. (Priority Registration closes December 31st. Final Registrations closes in January with a higher fee.) You will need an invitation code to register for the Bringhurst session. Bringhurst's code is blazers2026. ONLY BRINGHURST FAMILIES MAY REGISTER. Please do not share the code.
Detailed instructions folow:
Go to the Math Kangaroo Website. Click on Login/Create Account.
If you do not already have an account, you must create one.
2. Log in to your account. You MUST log in to be able to see the next step.
3. If you are logged in, you should see a “By Invitation” button/tab. Click on this tab. It may appear under a "quick links" list as well.
4. Enter the Bringhurst Code: blazers2026
5. Pay the $18 fee directly to Math Kangaroo at registration. After Dec 31st, the fee goes up.
6. Students will receive a mathematical gift that will be handed out the day of the competition. Unfortunately, Math Kangaroo will not be providing T-shirts this year.
7. For tips on how to prepare, check out the info below!
Math Kangaroo provides Free Sample Problems going back many years to help students prepare.
Free Math Kangaroo Sample Problems
Kids and parents can work together on the problems at home. As an alternative, grade level study groups can be fun to organize with friends!
At level 1/2, explicitly teaching problem solving strategies will help your child. If you solve problems together and model how to use strategies like Draw a Picture, Find a Pattern, Use Logic, Work Backwards, Guess and Check, List all the Possibilities, Create a Table, or Organize the Information, that can help them prepare.
If your child is going to move to a new level the following year (for example, a second grader taking the level 1/2 exam) looking at the problems for the next level up can also be good practice. In addition, after you register for the test you have access to free videos of many of the problems and explaining how to solve them. All these free resources can help your child prepare.
In later years, math content becomes more important. Here is a list of the content that the test problems draw on. Topics that may appear on tests at the different levels can be found here.
Over the years, I've also stumbled across books/games that help develop the logic and reasoning skills useful for Math Kangaroo. We have used these resources in Math Club in the past. You can find my list here.
Math Kangaroo Organized Activities
Math Kangaroo has many other options for prepartion. You can check out their webiste for their offerings of classes, Live Solves, webinars, practice tests, and test anthologies. Math Kangaroo Practice Resources
Most of those prepartion materials cost money, but some are free. The most economical option (in my opinion) is to purchase a copy of the practice test books for your grade level. Working through the tests with your child can be a fun way to prepare.