7 Best AMC 10 Study Materials for Advanced Students Math Coaches Trust

Your child is flying through their school math curriculum, and a teacher mentions the AMC 10. You’re thrilled they have a passion for a challenge, but a quick search for "AMC 10 prep" unleashes a flood of books, websites, and classes that all look impossibly advanced. How do you support this incredible interest without pushing them too hard or investing in the wrong materials? This journey is about nurturing a love for creative problem-solving, and choosing the right tool for their specific stage is the first step to building confidence, not frustration.

Choosing AMC 10 Resources for Your Mathlete

Seeing your child get excited about a high-level math competition is a fantastic moment. But that excitement can quickly turn to overwhelm for parents trying to navigate the prep material landscape. It’s tempting to just buy the most recommended book, but that can be like handing a nine-year-old a full-size guitar—the instrument might be high quality, but it’s not the right fit for the learner.

The key is to match the resource to your child’s current reality. The most important question is not "What’s the best book?" but "What does my child need right now?" Are they a self-starter who loves digging into a dense textbook, or do they thrive with the structure of a class? Have they truly mastered school algebra and geometry, or are there some shaky spots that need reinforcement before adding new concepts?

Before you spend a dime, have your child take a past AMC 10 exam with no time pressure. This isn’t for a score, but for information. The results will give you a roadmap, showing you whether they need a broad foundational review, targeted help in one area like combinatorics, or simply more practice with pacing and strategy.

AoPS Volume 1: The Foundational Challenge

You’ll hear this book mentioned in revered tones in math competition circles: The Art of Problem Solving, Volume 1: The Basics. For a motivated student who has a very strong command of Algebra 1, this book is the quintessential starting block. It’s not a textbook for learning school subjects; it’s a training manual for learning how to think like a mathematician.

This resource is designed to build problem-solving intuition from the ground up. It teaches students to explore, experiment, and connect ideas across algebra, geometry, number theory, and counting. The solutions are often as instructive as the problems themselves, revealing elegant pathways that a standard curriculum would never touch.

However, its strength is also its challenge. This is not a gentle introduction. It’s for the student who is ready to grapple with difficult concepts independently. If your child is easily frustrated or needs more guided instruction, starting here might dampen their enthusiasm. For the right kid, though, this book is the key that unlocks a whole new way of seeing math.

AoPS Intro Series for Targeted Topic Mastery

What if that initial practice test reveals a very specific pattern? Maybe your mathlete solves every algebra problem with ease but stares blankly at the geometry questions. This is an incredibly common scenario, and it’s where a more surgical approach is far more effective than a general overview.

The Art of Problem Solving (AoPS) "Introduction to…" series is the perfect tool for this job. With dedicated books for Introduction to Algebra, Introduction to Geometry, Introduction to Counting & Probability, and Introduction to Number Theory, you can directly address a weak area. These books build the subjects from their foundational principles but always with an eye toward competition-style problems.

Think of this as skill-specific coaching. Instead of making your child wade through material they already know in a comprehensive book, you can provide a deep dive into the one topic holding them back. This targeted work is efficient, confidence-boosting, and respects the student’s time and energy.

AoPS Alcumus for Adaptive, Personalized Practice

Sometimes the biggest need isn’t new instruction, but focused practice. Your child understands the concepts but needs to build fluency and apply them to a wide variety of problems. You need a tool that can provide a steady stream of "just right" challenges to keep them engaged without being overwhelming.

Alcumus, the free adaptive learning system from AoPS, is brilliant for this. It presents problems tied to specific topics and adjusts the difficulty based on your child’s answers. Get one right, and the next one might be a little harder. Struggle with a concept, and it will offer easier problems to help solidify the skill.

This is a fantastic, low-pressure way to build mastery. The built-in gamification, with points and quests, makes practice feel less like a chore. For parents, it provides a seemingly endless well of quality problems, ensuring your child can work independently to sharpen their skills whenever they have a spare 15 minutes.

Official MAA Past Exams for Test Simulation

There comes a point in preparation where knowing the math is only half the battle. Your child also needs to master the test itself: the timing, the question style, and the strategic decisions about which problems to tackle and which to skip. No resource teaches this better than the real thing.

The Mathematical Association of America (MAA) makes decades of official past AMC 10 contests available online. These are, without question, the gold standard for practice. Using them allows a student to become deeply familiar with the unique "flavor" of AMC problems, which is often different from their textbook exercises.

The key is to use them strategically. Early in their prep, they can do problems untimed to learn the concepts. As the test date approaches, they should be used for full, timed simulations. The post-test review is where the real learning happens. Analyzing every mistake helps students build a personal strategy for maximizing their score on test day.

AlphaStar Academy for Structured Online Courses

Does your child learn best with a teacher, a clear syllabus, and the camaraderie of classmates? For many students, the solitary journey through a textbook isn’t the most effective path. They need the accountability and interaction of a formal class.

AlphaStar Academy specializes in online training for math competitions. Their courses provide a structured curriculum led by expert instructors who are often past high-achievers in these same contests. Students get weekly lessons, homework assignments, and feedback, creating a framework that keeps them on track.

This is a significant investment, but it can be the right one for certain learners. It’s an excellent choice for the student who thrives on external deadlines and enjoys learning in a social context. It also takes the burden off parents to be the curriculum director, providing a clear and proven pathway guided by experts.

Batterson’s Competition Math for Bridging Gaps

Some students are in a tricky transitional phase. They’ve outgrown the math in their middle school curriculum, but the jump to a resource like AoPS Volume 1 feels like trying to cross a canyon. They need a solid bridge to get from one side to the other.

Jay Batterson’s Competition Math for Middle School is that bridge. While its primary audience is top MATHCOUNTS and AMC 8 competitors, its content is the perfect primer for the AMC 10. The book does an exceptional job of introducing core competition topics like number theory and combinatorics in a clear, accessible way.

Coaches often use this book to ensure a student’s fundamentals are rock-solid before tackling more advanced material. It fills in the conceptual gaps that school math often leaves behind. If your student needs to build confidence and reinforce their foundation before taking on a bigger challenge, this book is an outstanding choice.

AoPS For the Win! (FTW) for Building Speed

Your child can solve the hard problems, but it takes them 15 minutes. On a 75-minute test with 25 questions, that pacing just won’t work. Once conceptual understanding is there, the next frontier is often speed and accuracy under pressure.

For the Win! (FTW) is a fast-paced, real-time online game on the AoPS website where students race against others to solve math problems. It’s chaotic, fun, and incredibly effective. The game format drills instant recognition of problem types and rewards rapid, accurate calculation.

This is the sprint work that complements the long-distance running of textbook study. Playing FTW for 20 minutes a few times a week can dramatically improve a student’s mental math and problem-solving speed. It’s a powerful tool for the final phase of prep, turning slow, deliberate thinking into quick, instinctive execution.

Ultimately, the goal isn’t just to prepare for one test. It’s to foster a deep and lasting appreciation for mathematical thinking and creative problem-solving. The best resource is simply the one that meets your child where they are today and gives them the confidence to tackle the next challenge. Trust their pace, celebrate the effort, and enjoy watching them become a more powerful and resilient thinker.