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The search for the nation’s best young Mathematicians is here!
The UK’s biggest maths competition for school teams across the country has returned. The National Young Mathematicians’ Awards, which are open to teams of four children aged 9 to 11 from schools all over the UK is set to be bigger than ever before with Britain’s brightest maths brains taking on the challenge to be crowned champions!
Each year, tuition provider, Explore Learning, joins forces with the highly prestigious NRICH Project at the University of Cambridge to give children the chance to show off their maths skills in front of the country’s leading mathematicians.
Now in its sixth year, the competition is easy for schools and teachers to enter and will consist of three rounds. The first is a knockout contest undertaken at an Explore Learning centre on either the 10th, 11th or 12th November. Those victorious will go through to a regional Semi Final on 25th November where schools battle it out against other top schools in their area with the five highest scoring maths brains winning a place in the Grand Final at the University of Cambridge on 8th December.
Last year’s winners were a team of four hugely talented young mathematicians from Holbrook Primary School in Horsham, West Sussex who beat off more than 1,300 teams to be crowned champions. They were awarded their prize by the world famous statistician, Sir David Spiegelhalter of Cambridge University, and Carey Ann Dodah from Explore Learning.
Carey Ann Dodah, Head of Curriculum at Explore Learning says: “We had such an overwhelming response to last year’s National Young Mathematicians’ Awards and the enthusiasm, ambition, determination and creativity from all the children that took part in the Grand Final was wonderful to see. Maths is so often regarded as a subject that can put children off their studies but this competition shows that not only is it fun and engaging, but a fantastic opportunity to build on teamwork, reward children’s success, develop their confidence and realise their skills for numbers.
“In all the rounds children are challenged to solve a multi-layered, high-level problem. Teams are assessed on their ability to get to the root of the problem, teamwork and their true mathematical thinking.”
Last year more than 1,300 teams entered the competition with the top five making it to the Grand Final at the University of Cambridge. Finalists included Mortimer Primary School from South Shields, Cheadle Hulme School from near Stockport, Barry Primary School in Northampton and Ashton House Primary School in Isleworth.
The deadline for schools to submit their team is . For more information and examples of other past problems teachers and schools can visit www.explorelearning.co.uk/youngmathematicians or contact their local Explore Learning centre.