Steyning Grammar students get competitive in maths

This is an annual event organised jointly by the UK Mathematics Trust and the Further Mathematics Support Programme for senior level students.

The team consisted of Morgan Blake and Charlotte Roberts who are both year 13 Further Maths students, Jamie Luxford, a year 12 Further Maths student and Charlotte Gisbourne, a year 12 International Baccalaureate student studying Higher Maths. These students were selected for their strong mathematical ability and also for team working and problem solving capabilities.

Miss Louise Rannie, Maths Teacher at Steyning Grammar School said: “This is the first time Steyning have entered a team at this event, we were very pleased to finish fourth and hope to return next year and do even better.

“I am extremely proud of the students; they showed great teamwork and really enjoyed using their mathematical skills to represent the school.”

The competition took place at Lancing College, 18 teams from a variety of state and independent schools across East and West Sussex took part. There were three rounds to the competition, firstly a group competition, followed by a ‘Cross Number Puzzle’ round, this is similar to a cross work puzzle but where words in the crossword are replaced by numeric digits and Maths equations replace the word hints. The final round was a relay race where students were required to work in pairs to solve a problem then pass the answer to the other pair who needed that information to answer their own question. The last round was very time pressured and was quite intense!

Morgan Blake a keen student mathematician said: “This is the first time we have taken part in this kind of competition and it was really good fun. I really enjoyed taking part in a Maths specific event and really pleased with where we came as a team”

“It was a real challenge and the team working element was different and a very positive aspect of the event,” said Charlotte Gisbourne

Mr Daniel Dryer, Head of Faculty Maths said “This was an exceptional performance by our students and is a testament to their hard work and fantastic ability.”

Last week 43 Sixth Form students from Steyning Grammar School completed the Senior Maths Challenge. This competition was also organised by the UK Mathematics Trust and is a multiple choice exam paper. Almost 75% of students who entered this competition got a certificate; the national average is 60%. Overall the students were awarded 8 gold, 10 silver and 14 bronze certificates.

Thomas Ranger scored the highest mark at 92, with Jamie Luxford 1 mark behind and Morgan Blake and Charlotte Roberts equal third with a score of 90. All these students along with Charlotte Gisbourne have qualified for the next round which is called the ‘Senior Kangaroo’ and takes place on the 29th November.

Mr Dryer emphasised: “As a department we have a very large number of students studying Maths at Key Stage 5 and these successes encourage everyone to feel inspired and positive about Maths.”

Report and picture contributed by Steyning Grammar School.