Four mathematicians from The Armidale School have taken out first place at the University of New England’s Year 8 Maths competition last Friday.
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The foursome were one of two TAS teams which competed alongside 58 others from Armidale, Tamworth, Inverell, Port Macquarie and Coffs Harbour.
Convenor Anne Parnell said the day was about bringing together students from across the region to test their knowledge and build team work skills.
“They’ve done activities where they have worked together as a team which is quite unusual for mathematics because usually it’s an individual thing,” she said.
“To finish the day with some fun we did a construction activity where they were given 15 sheets of A4 paper, a roll of sticky tape and have to see who can make the tallest tower.”
Ms Parnell said team building was an important skill and can help not only improve the students in maths but also enhance their every day lives.
“It’s a different way of looking at mathematics and team work is so important in every day life,” she said.
“One of the things we’re trying to instill in the students is ‘even though I might not be the best mathematician in the world, I can still develop my mathematics skills’.”
TAS student Henry Mitchell, who was a member of the winning team, said he found the experience valuable. “The day was good fun, with a great variety of challenges.”