Caribou Help / FAQ
Please look for your question among the >200 questions in our FAQ before emailing us. Caribou aims to be 100% self-service. This helps keep our services affordable.
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Questions & Answers:
What is an interactive question?
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What is an interactive question?
Answer:
In each contest there will be at least one interactive question which is worth 5 points in the total score.
The interactive question is always chosen from the games on our Games page where students can practice it before the contest. These are short, fun games that test a student’s ability to use logic and mathematics to win.
The interactive game is always announced at least 2 weeks before the contest; this information is sent to all Caribou Contacts and Subscribers as well as shared on our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. It can also be found on the Homepage.
What is the purpose of the games?
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What is the purpose of the games?
Answer:
We include interactive questions in our contests to train logical thinking and provide enrichment in ways that traditional contests cannot. Above all, they are fun and our feedback tells us that students love our interactive questions!
On most games pages there is also a discussion section called “Some Food for Thought”. In addition to giving tips for quickly solving the puzzles, the Food for Thought is an interactive introduction to the mathematical theory behind game and the development of winning strategies. In some cases, these become so long that we turn them into mini-courses, e.g. Chomp & iChomp are a mini-course on combinatorial game theory, and the Mazes mini-course introduces topological properties of mazes. These discussions, while accessible to all levels, go beyond what is learned in school mathematics curricula and offer a glimpse of what mathematics is really about: recognizing patterns, making conjectures, and proving them.
What is the next interactive question?
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What is the next interactive question?
Answer:
The interactive game is always announced at least 2 weeks before the contest; this information is sent to all Caribou Coordinators and Subscribers as well as shared on our Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. It can also be found on the Homepage News.
How do you prepare for interactive questions?
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How do you prepare for interactive questions?
Answer:
It is important to practice the interactive game question before the contest day, because usually the game’s page will be blocked on the day of the contest, as many of the games pages give solutions for the problems.
The interactive game is always announced at least 2 weeks before the contest; this information is sent to all Caribou Coordinators and Subscribers as well as shared on our Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. It can also be found on the Homepage News.
For example, we might announce that the next contest will include the game ‘Sudoku’ as an interactive question. Students can then try out the game and practice on our Games page in their preferred language. Some games also include a useful ‘Food for Thought’ section at the bottom of the page which delves into the underlying mathematics and strategies for this game.
To try a game, click on the Games button on the Homepage to see the list of All Games, or use the links in the top bar menu by selecting Prepare > Games. One type of interactive question we like to use is the ‘Calcrostics’ game. Usually a Calcrostics Puzzle will feature in two contests in the year, alongside another interactive puzzle. Besides practicing on the corresponding games page, you can also practice for Calcrostics by purchasing our Calcrostics puzzle book in the Online ShopThis purchase also gives you access to hundreds of interactive puzzles on the Calcrostic games page, normally limited to one puzzle of each type.
How are interactive questions integrated into the scoring system?
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How are interactive questions integrated into the scoring system?
Answer:
The student gets full marks for the question (5 points) when they win against the computer (in two-player games) or they solve the puzzle (in single-player games). The answer is submitted automatically when the student wins the game.
Couldn’t the interactive question distract a student from the rest of the contest?
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Couldn’t the interactive question distract a student from the rest of the contest?
Answer:
Interactive questions include a warning to mind how much time is passing. Also, once the student has successfully completed the interactive game, it is submitted automatically and the game cannot be played anew.
Are interactive games fair when playing against a computer?
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Are interactive games fair when playing against a computer?
Answer:
Yes, we think so.
There is an element of chance when playing against a computer in a two-person game, but overall solving these questions relies on the student’s ability to think logically.
Students can try the interactive question as many times as they would like and they do have the time: before we introduced interactive questions, students completed the contests within an average of 30 minutes.
Is it fair to put a game in a contest when some students might not have played it before?
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Is it fair to put a game in a contest when some students might not have played it before?
Answer:
We believe it is fair to reward students who prepare and practice. Therefore we have previous contests available and we have our Games page where students can practice games that may come up as interactive questions.
Students also have ample notice of the upcoming Game question, so they have time to become familiar with the game. The interactive game is always announced at least 2 weeks before the contest; this information is sent to all Caribou Coordinators and Subscribers as well as shared on our Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. It can also be found on the Homepage News.
In Calcrostics, are remainders allowed in divisions?
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In Calcrostics, are remainders allowed in divisions?
Answer:
No, all divisions in Calcrostics puzzles are exact, without remainders.
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