2017 School Magazine

Competitions SIGMA MATHS

or learning a new topic such as algorithms. We focused on a wide variety of subjects, from basic questions to difficult questions. Competitions included the annual Australian Maths Competition, in which all year levels were invited to participate. A large portion of the Year 7 cohort participated in this event and it was very enjoyable. Another event, the Australian Problem-Solving Mathematics Olympiads, is held nationally and consist of five separate competitions, each containing five questions. Each of these questions are similar to those completed at Sigma meetings. These papers are completed at Monday lunch times and we were given a 30-minute time limit. Sigma Maths is a great way to learn more about maths in a very enjoyable environment! ISABEL SHORROCK-BROWNE (7R) AND ESANDI TENNAKOON (7B)

This year, the Year 7 Sigma Maths Group met every second Monday afternoon, participated in competitions and held a problem-solving question each week on Moodle. Sigma Maths is a great way to make new, like-minded friends who also enjoy being extended in maths. As well as extending the boundaries of friendship, it extends your knowledge of maths, through challenging questions. Run by Mathematics teachers, Ms Mazzaglia and Mrs Muller, we were constantly given new material to learn. Every time you answer a question and get it right, you always feel a sense of achievement and even if you don’t answer correctly, you learn something new … a win-win situation! To help feed our brains, we were always provided with a great afternoon tea at the fortnightly meetings. After a snack, we started work, either discussing the answers of the previous maths Olympiad This year the Maths Team Challenge was hosted by Indooroopilly State High School. This competition was a great opportunity for students to expand their knowledge in mathematics. Students did this by competing in two rounds. In the first round, students could collaborate or work independently; this was chosen based on strategy. During the second round, teamwork was the biggest factor, as students had twenty problems to complete in sixty minutes. This was done by two students working together to complete a problem. From this, students could see another perspective of how problems were solved, and could assist each other where needed. This year, two of our teams achieved placings. Junior Division: Alisa McKenzie (8B), Mia Chang (8W), Wiji Rahim (8G), Sandra Jiang (7W) and Kai Hughes (7L) came second. In the Intermediate Division: Yuwen Guo (10M), Jane Jonaton (10L), Priyanka Rudra (10E), Eva Seet (9B) and Christabel Huang (9R) came third.

MATHS TEAM CHALLENGE

Overall, this experience was enjoyable, educational and enriching. I would recommend this competition for students who enjoy and would like to enhance their mathematical skills. ALEXIA GEORGAS (9B)

Maths Team Challenge — Junior Division Team

Maths Team Challenge — Intermediate Division Team

106 | CO-CURRICULUM | BRISBANE GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL 2017