When you think of a math club, you probably imagine a dirty whiteboard packed with seas of equations and formulas, with some variations of the trigonometric ratios being used at least 20 times. Along with this, your mind conjures up people nose-deep in 1,000-page textbooks attempting to decipher the writing on the board.

If you actually walked into Liberty’s Math Club during this past month, however, you would find a completely different scene. Instead of using complex formulas, the students are counting. Counting the number of pencils and pens they have, the amount of staplers, all for one reason: to prepare for the Math is Cool competition.

“We take time at least a few weeks in advance to help organize things like room assignments,” vice president Abhay Bhat said. “The week before the competition is extremely busy.”

Liberty hosted this competition on March 22. The competitors were fourth graders from various ISD schools.

“We were excited to give back to the community and proctor with our friends,” Bhat said.

Because the Math Club members weren’t actually participating, they–along with other volunteers–got to proctor the competition.

“Proctoring includes reading instructions, keeping track of time, and making sure everyone stays in line,” secretary Tyler Rubenstein said. “It’s a key element in helping the competition run smoothly.”

The competition went well, according to Bhat, who cites hanging out with friends during lunch, cleaning up, and seeing all of the competitors enjoy themselves during the competition as his favorite parts.

“There were a few hiccups along the way, like some of the kids cheating and not cooperating, but overall, we were very excited to host the competition,” Bhat said.

This competition marked the end of Math Club’s competition season, and the team is happy it ended this way.