The Maths Challenge is a nationwide competition that takes place in schools across the UK, aiming to advance the education of children and young people in mathematics. A variety of different competitions are held throughout the year, for pupils aged between 11 and 18. It can be difficult to get engaged in subjects sat in a classroom, and giving pupils goals such as working towards nationwide competitions help keep them focused. Mr Chris Lehane-Kendrick recently took a group of pupils to Winchester in order to compete in a Maths Challenge ‘maths circle’. Thank you to Mr Lehane-Kendrick for the following report on an innovative and unique way to get children involved in maths:
‘During the half term holidays three students, Rhys Ash, Jacob Kirby and Jack Underwood, accompanied by myself, headed to Winchester for a UKMT Maths Circle. The two-day trip promised to be full of interactive maths challenges, and the boys were looking forward to getting stuck in. Over the course of two days the boys took part in team challenges and individual challenges, as well as learning a host of new and interesting topics from guest speakers.
On the first day Tony Cheslett (of Stockport Grammar School) discussed factors, multiples and primes; Peter Ransom (of The Mathematical Association) lead a discussion about the mathematics of Trafalgar – including Jacob Kirby helping with a practical demonstration of a cannon ball hitting a ship’s hull; and James Hall (of Harrow School) lead an investigation into infinity through Hilberts Hotel. Day two saw Hugh Hill (Winchester College) lead a talk on astroids and envelopes – including some problems I’ve seen in Further Mathematics A Level! ; Stephen Power (St Swithuns School) helped students create personalised polynomials of their names, and Dominic Rowland (Winchester College) looked into how we can use colouring to solve advanced geometrical problems. The event finished with a team challenge. Rhys Ash’s team came second in their half of the competition. It was a fun few days for everyone, and the hands-on experiments really helped to bring the subjects to life.’