THUNDER BAY - From logic puzzles, to word problems, to equations, young minds were exercising their math skills as they competed for a chance to represent the region on the provincial stage.
On Saturday, 141 students between grades 6 and 8 participated in the 21st Math Olympics at Superior Collegiate.
“This particular competition is fantastic for these kids who may not necessarily always get into the athletic groups,” said Simone Poling, chairperson for the Northwestern Ontario chapter of the Ontario Association for Mathematics Education.
“This is their way to shine for their schools. They are mathletes and they are showing their academic abilities and their enjoyment of math is what is really important.”
The students were facing a variety of mathematical challenges, including logic problems, algorithm games, tangrams, and problem solving.
“They always have a great time,” Poling said. “We always get wonderful feedback from not only the kids but the teachers who are coaching the kids prior to this and the parents.”
This year saw the inclusion of a team from Robert Moore School in Fort Frances. Corbin Riches, a grade 7 student at Robert Moore, said it was his first time competing in the Math Olympics.
“It’s been pretty fun,” he said. “It’s really fun to do all the challenges you get to go against and meeting people.”
No competition is easy, but Corbin said he was up to the challenge, in fact, it’s something he enjoys.
“Some of the problems have been really challenging and some less challenging, but it’s just fun to face those challenges,” he said. “I like putting myself to challenges and it’s something I like to do.”
Grade 8 students, Connor Neill, Tiano Gomes, and Emma Johnston from Westmount Public School, were all competing and they all agreed that teamwork goes a long way when tackling math problems.
“You can always mess up sometimes but your team is there to check it for you or if you need any help,” Connor said.
“You can bounce ideas off people,” Tiano added. “If you don’t understand, then they can help you or catch your errors if you make a mistake.”
“Some people have different input and different opinions on the questions and that really helps a lot,” said Emma.
According to Poling, the way math is taught and how students learn has changed significantly, which she believes is really beneficial.
“I think the way children are understanding math now is increasing awareness for different ways of thinking about math,” she said. “Back when I went to school there was one way you were taught how to think about math, but now it is much more diverse.”
After a day of competing, the students who will be representing the region during the provincial Math Olympics in Toronto at the end of May will be grade 7 students Luka Plesa and Adam Tassone from Pope John Paul II, and grade 8 students Abbie Houlding from Pope John Paul II and Lucas Crupi from E.Q. Jennings.
