On Friday 21 November, Miss Blackmore and Miss O’Callaghan had the privilege of taking eight students from Years 8 and 9 to Lift Ryde to participate in the UKMT Isle of Wight Teams Challenge Trial Day.

Secondary schools from across the Island competed in teams of four to experience what a full UK Maths Trust Challenge event could look like if held locally. After a briefing on the rules, students took part in four activities throughout the day: a crossnumber, a group round, a shuttle pairs round, and a relay race. It was a fantastic event filled with high-level mathematical problems and impressive demonstrations of teamwork.

Students from all schools collaborated brilliantly, solving problems together and ensuring that every challenge was attempted, even when the content went beyond their current areas of study. Our students were a credit to the school. A staff member from another school praised our second team for their excellent teamwork, noting how well they recognised and used each other’s strengths to secure fourth place. Our first team, who placed fifth, also made a very positive impression on the sixth former from Lift Ryde they worked with – and were rewarded with plenty of biscuits!

All of our students were wonderful ambassadors. They even visited the other 12 teams to offer sweets in recognition of their efforts. We can’t wait to take part in this challenge again next year.