Can you solve Wycombe Abbey’s Maths Conundrum?
24 February 2023 - Academic
In December 2022, we launched the new Conundrum Website to host its Christmas Mathematics Quiz. The questions were written and selected by pupils in the Wycombe Abbey Mathematics Society, and they were designed to be a fun introduction to problem-solving. The puzzles, aimed at children from Year 5 upwards, required no background knowledge, but nevertheless got heads scratching. For example:
Alice and Bob are brother and sister. While opening their presents on Christmas morning, with the rest of their family, Bob notices that he has the same number of sisters as he has brothers. Alice notices that she has twice as many brothers as she has sisters. How many children are there in the family?
After the Christmas competition proved to be successful and popular with over 160 participants signed up on the Conundrum website, Wycombe Abbey has decided to launch the site permanently with new competitions being offered each term. There will be two age groups for the competition, Years 5 – 8 and Years 9 – 11, and the competition is completely free for school children in the UK and Internationally.
In order to be eligible for a prize, pupils must give the contact details of their teacher as the termly prizes will be sent out via their school. If teachers want any more information about the competition, for example, help with getting their pupils enrolled or sample materials, then they should contact Mr David Vaccaro, Director of Innovation and Learning via email: [email protected].
Schools, particularly those local to High Wycombe or in London, can also contact Mr Vaccaro if they are interested in other opportunities offered by Wycombe Abbey, for example, lecture programmes, higher education support, teaching training, or partnership opportunities.
Image: Winners from Headington School
Keep up to date with further news from Wycombe Abbey on our social channels.