Problem Solving with Mykhailo

The maths society had the pleasure of welcoming one of our own, Mykhailo who presented a captivating talk on problem solving in mathematics.

He began by telling us of his journey through mathematics, starting in Ukraine at the humble age of 7, where he agreed to compete in his first Olympiad in return for some Lego - a worthy reward. By the age of 11, however, he began to lose interest until a remarkable geometry teacher reignited his passion.

From that point on, he was completely hooked on geometry, so much so that his Olympiad scores reflected his singular focus: 0/7, 0/7, 0/7, and finally, 7/7, as he excelled in geometry alone.

He, therefore, decided that it would be best for his progress if he stopped doing geometry altogether, focusing instead on the other 3 areas of math: Algebra, Arithmetic, and Number theory.

He led us through a series of questions, seemingly impossible at the face of it but very manageable after explanation. Among the problems were a complex simultaneous equation with 3 unknowns, sourced from a USA Olympiad Team selection test, and a classic math puzzle crafted by Archimedes himself.

The Hans Woyda Trials

The Hans Woyda Maths competition is a London based interschool challenge. A big difference to other competitions is that it is a vertical year group team containing a Fourth, Sixth, Lower and Upper Eighth student (Years 9, 11, 12 & 13). The Hans Woyda’s main focus is speed, with seven sections of fast-paced questions. For instance, in the first section students only have 30 seconds to give their answers, and in the last section the first student to answer correctly gets all the points! The trials took place over multiple mornings and lunch breaks and students had to complete a time pressured test in order to claim a place in the St Paul’s squad. The top 3 students of each year group will each compete in one of the group matches of the Hans Woyda competition and will challenge other schools for the illustrious trophy. Here is a selection of some of the questions:

Preparation for the Senior Maths Challenge (SMC)

With the Senior Maths Challenge (SMC) a week away, 8 th form students are preparing at the Senior Problem-Solving Club. The Senior Problem-Solving club is a lunch time activity where students work through a mix of interesting and stretching questions. The focus this week was on the hard final question on the paper with Dr Hemery and Mr Morris providing the last 20 years of question 25. Here is an example: As the final and typically the most demanding question of the SMC, it provided an excellent test for even some of SPS’s best problem solvers.

SPS Mathematics Blog