Parent FAQ

USAAIO Club at BASIS Scottsdale is a student-led learning community focused on the mathematics, Python, data skills, and machine-learning reasoning used in AI Olympiad problem solving. It is an internal school Club, not the official national competition organization.

The Club is intended for current BASIS Scottsdale students who are curious about artificial intelligence and willing to practice mathematical and coding reasoning. Students should be ready to work with Python and mathematics; the early lessons establish the shared foundations needed later.

The Club is designed around one 60-minute meeting each week. Exact meeting dates, room information, and school-calendar changes will be communicated through Club or school announcements and shown in the portal when confirmed.

Students complete homework after each lesson. Ten optional mastery problems are available for students who want more depth or an early unlock. Time varies by experience, but consistent practice matters more than completing everything in one sitting.

No large video library is required. The portal provides concise lesson notes, worked examples, problems, hints, solutions when released, Colab templates, and instructor feedback. Monday Club meetings are used for explanation, discussion, and problem solving.

Objective questions may be checked automatically. Written reasoning and code are reviewed by an instructor when needed. Students can receive a revision request, improve the marked response, and submit it again. The system is designed to reward learning from mistakes, not only first-attempt scores.

XP is a learning-progress system for required homework. Students may choose whether to appear on the Club leaderboard. When they opt in, only their nickname, pixel avatar, and XP are visible; their email address is not displayed.

AI may be used to understand concepts, request hints, debug code, or check completed work. It may not be used to produce an answer that the student cannot independently explain. Students should submit their own reasoning, calculations, and code.

Colab lets students run Python notebooks without configuring a local programming environment. Students work in a copy stored in their own Google Drive and submit a viewable link. They should never grant editing access to the Club reviewer.

No. Club membership and official competition registration are separate. When official registration is available, the portal may display a reminder and link to the official registration provider. Families remain responsible for reviewing official dates, eligibility, rules, and registration requirements.

The portal uses the student’s approved email address to provide account access and save learning progress. Membership requests are reviewed by Club administrators. Public Club views use an optional nickname and avatar rather than displaying the student’s email.

For account access, scheduling, or course questions, use the Club or school communication channel provided with membership information. When reporting a homework issue, include the lesson number, question number, and what the student has already tried. Do not send passwords.