The Young People's Project

06/02/2026

Good news making headlines! 📰✨ We are so thrilled to see the amazing impact of the Wicked Math Initiative in Boston!

We are incredibly proud to bring our unique near-peer teaching and learning model into the mix to support Schools students. Huge shoutout to our wonderful partners and Calculus Project—together, we are helping students thrive and celebrate big wins!

🎉🏆Every child can be a "math person" when we make the learning journey joyous and supportive. ❤️ Check out this inspiring story from The Boston Globe:

bostonglobe.com
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2026/05/25/metro/wicked-math-fourth-grader-state-competition/

A fourth grader O’Donnell Elementary earned the top score at a statewide math competition, which landed him a spot next month at the national championship at Texas A&M University.

05/27/2026

Congratulations to Cliff Freeman, YPPs home-grown Director of STEM Programs (and many more top-level chores...) for his PhD at Boston University.

05/22/2026

🎉 2026 National Math Playground — A Saturday Worth Showing Up For 🎉

Over 450 guests filled the Massachusetts Institute of Technology gymnasium this Saturday — and that number tells a story. On a beautiful Massachusetts spring day, with countless other places families could have been, more than 450 people chose to be here, with us, playing and learning math together. That's the kind of turnout that doesn't happen by accident. 💛

A heartfelt thank you to the Cambridge STEAM Initiative, whose outreach in the local community made a real difference in bringing Cambridge families through our doors. We saw it on the floor — parents, kids, neighbors, all leaning in.

More than 25 math games came to life across the Algebra Land, Innovation Land, Number Discovery Land, Fraction Land, and Flagway Land — all facilitated by Math Literacy Workers (MLWs) from across the country: Atlanta, Florida, Illinois, Texas, and a strong contingent right here from Cambridge. This is what the near-peer model looks like in motion — young people teaching young people, and learning right alongside them. ✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿

A milestone worth celebrating: 8 brand new games debuted this year as part of our growing partnership with Mathematics, where YPP is a certified partner.

And because community is more than math: live music filled the gym, food was shared, and families lingered — not just to eat, but to connect. That's the playground we keep building: one where math is the doorway, and connection is what happens once we're all inside. 🎶🍴

To every MLW who traveled, every Cambridge family who chose us this Saturday, every Illustrative Mathematics collaborator, every musician, every cook, every volunteer and our hosts at MIT — thank you. The Movement keeps moving because of you.

See you at the next one. 💚❤️💛

05/18/2026

🏆 10th Annual National Flagway Tournament & Math Playground — MIT, May 16, 2026
All 110 Flagway participants walked away winners this weekend — a celebration of teamwork, joyful sportsmanship, and math precision in equal measure. Still, our top three teams deserve a special shout-out after a thrilling final stretch and weeks of dedicated training behind it.
A huge congratulations to the coaches and players from Clayton County, Georgia — you brought the reigning top spots of the Flagway National League back home to the Atlanta area. We are so proud of your tenacity, your focus, and the spirit you carried onto the MIT floor. 🧮✨
🥇 1st — MD Roberts School of the Arts (Jonesboro, GA) — 156 points
🥈 2nd — Triumphant Tigers, North Clayton Middle (Atlanta, GA) — 153 points
🥉 3rd — Tenacious Tigers, North Clayton Middle (Atlanta, GA) — 146 points
Full standings — every team that took the floor:
4. Morrow Middle — 132 points
5. DVUS — 122 points
6. CSUS — 118 points
7. Crossroads — 81 points
8. inSTEM — 81 points
9. Mount Kisco (5th) — 74 points
10. Mount Kisco (4th) — 61 points
11. AMIGOS — 59 points
12. PAUS — 59 points
13. FOCOUS — 45 points
14. Fox Lane Middle — 41 points
To every Mover, coach, family member, and volunteer who made this milestone 10th anniversary possible — thank you for keeping the Movement alive. 💚❤️💛

05/16/2026

See y’all this Saturday 16th at 10 am…

The Cambridge STEAM Initiative, in partnership with the Young People's Project (YPP) and Cambridge Public Schools, invites Cambridge students, families, educators, and community partners to the Math Playground and 10th Annual National Flagway. 🧮🔢

- Saturday, May 16, 2026
- 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- MIT Zesiger Sports & Fitness Center (120 Vassar St.)

The day-long extravaganza will kick off with the Math Playground, which will feature more than 30 interactive, math-centered games tailored to students in Kindergarten through 8th grade (registration encouraged). 🎲🧩

Community members are encouraged to attend the National Flagway Tournament in the afternoon, where a team of Cambridge students in 5-8th grade will compete against other teams from across the country. 🏆➗

Learn more: https://camb.ma/4uGiRls

05/15/2026

Tomorrow is the day!

The 10th Annual National Flagway™ Tournament & Math Playground is finally happening — and we want you there!

📍 MIT Campus, Cambridge, MA
🕙 10:00 AM–4:30 PM

Students. Families. Educators. Community. Everyone is welcome!

Come ready to play, watch, learn, and cheer alongside young people leading one of the most joyful math events in the country. From high-energy Flagway competition to hands-on Math Playground activities, tomorrow is about seeing what math can look like when it’s public, collaborative, and alive.

See you at MIT!

Save this post, share it to your Stories, and text a friend who should come with you.

👉RSVP here: https://www.typp.org/10th_annual_flagway_tournament

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Cambridge STEAM Initiative

05/14/2026

What to expect on May 16th!

This Saturday, MIT becomes home to the 10th Annual National Flagway Tournament & Math Playground — a full day of youth leadership, collaboration, competition, creativity, and community.

Expect fun, collaboration, learning, and a lot of energy. From Flagway matches to hands-on Math Playground activities, the day is built for students, families, educators, and community members to experience math as something social, joyful, and shared.

Save this schedule, share this post with someone who should come with you, and join us at MIT this Saturday. We can’t wait to see you there!

Massachusetts Institute of TechMassachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)FCambridge STEAM InitiativeT

05/14/2026

This Saturday, May 16th, young people from across the country will gather at MIT for the 10th Annual National Flagway Tournament & Math Playground — a celebration of what math looks like when it belongs to everyone. ⚡

None of this happens alone. Flagway and Math Playground are built through collaboration: students, Math Literacy Workers, families, educators, organizers, schools, community partners, and sponsors all working together to create spaces where young people can lead, learn, and belong. Because math was never meant to be a solo act — math is meant to be a team sport. 🎯

Thank you to our incredible sponsors and collaborators for helping make this movement possible. Your support helps turn math into something public, joyful, youth-led, and alive.👏🤝

We can’t wait to see the energy, teamwork, and brilliance that will fill MIT this weekend.
👉RSVP here: https://www.typp.org/10th_annual_flagway_tournament



Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

05/13/2026

This Saturday at MIT, young people from across the country will not only participate in the 10th Annual National Flagway Tournament & Math Playground — they’ll be leading it.

This is not an event built around youth. It is an event built by youth, with the support of their community and the belief that math can open doors when it is made visible, joyful, and shared.

From Flagway teams to Math Playground activities, every part of this experience reflects what’s possible when young people are trusted to lead serious intellectual work together. Because math was always meant to be social. Meant to move. Meant to belong to everyone.

Join us this Saturday at MIT. RSVP, bring your people, and repost to help spread the word.

👉RSVP here: https://www.typp.org/10th_annual_flagway_tournament

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Cambridge STEAM Initiative

05/08/2026

On May 16, join us at the Math Playground — where students in Kindergarten through 8th grade can explore the joy of math. Through 30+ interactive games, near-peer learning, and a community built around family, Math Playground thrives on young leadership.

YPP's near-peer model brings older students from several Cambridge Public Schools together with younger learners, creating an environment where every kid feels seen, inspired, and empowered.

Hosted at MIT's Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center, Math Playground comes alive through the collaboration of YPP, the Cambridge STEAM Initiative, and Cambridge Public Schools.

📍 MIT Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center — 120 Vassar St, Cambridge
🕙 10:00 AM – 12:30 PM
👉 RSVP now: www.typp.org/10th_annual_flagway_tournament

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Cambridge STEAM Initiative
Cambridge Street Upper School
Public School District (Official Site)