UKMT Junior Maths Challenge - question

[incorrigible]

Am I right in assuming it's mostly Year 8s that get through to the Olympiad?

noble, if it's true, I find it quite shocking. My ds said answer was B = 7.
But my ds Was obsessed with BIDMAS blaster on Manga high when he was in yr1, and still plays it occasionally.

But then, even they forget BIDMAS, that doesn't mean they are capable to do part/most of paper correctly, if they have enough time, I hope?

Sorry that sentence doesn't make sense, does it? they aren't?

Ok they might get confused by the language on Q4 which is deliberately convoluted. Q5 no chance they'd know 1/25. Q6 the vast majority would answer 330. Q7 looks too confusing with all those decimals, they probably wouldn't spot that it would have to be under 1 mile and think they had to work it out exactly. Q11 they would forget the divisibility tests and try to do by hand. Q12 no chance. Q13 they wouldn't know what adjacent meant before they've even started. Q14 might as well be Greek and Q15 they don't know what is meant by a perfect square and even if they did, a lot would think cubing was multiplying by 3.

I'm not even going to bother looking at the harder ones!

I only looked at first few questions with ds, but I thought those questions are rather easy .
So if average yr7 children aren't capable/ may make mistakes on those questions, what makes so much difference between able children and average children? And wonder how teachers cope with so much difference in ability, when you are teaching higher staff than primary level?
Q14, it's really weird, but I was doing some maths on khan today, and I done exactly the same question!

And wonder how teachers cope with so much difference in ability, when you are teaching higher staff than primary level?

This is why we set for maths!

i have a year 5 girl at prep school who qualified for the Junior Olympiad this June. She said that the paper was easier than past papers. Guess she got lucky.

I noticed this thread the other day and asked ds about it today, he is yr 8 and did the Intermediate earlier in the year and I think then the kangaroo and then did the Junior more recently. I'm not sure what exactly he got, I think he had a couple of gold certificates and a taking part certificate, but brought them all home at the same time.
He said he is doing the Junior Olympiad, and when I asked if it was this week said "oh is it? How do you know?". They just get told it's on if they want to go.
He says he got 119, he went through the questions after and was convinced he had all but the last 1 right and picked that up himself afterwards, when they got the results he'd also got the second to last wrong as well.
He says the best mark on the school was a super right yr 7, I think he said 127?

Noblegiraffe - I'd really appreciate a little advice. My maths-brain y7 ds has sailed straight into the olympiad next week by scoring 122 in the challenge (he wasnt even sure if it was a real paper or a practice paper !). This had never happened at his school before so I don't think they're going to offer him much preparation - and it's a week today . I printed off last year's paper for him to peruse today. What's the best preparation he can do by himself?? Grateful for any advice. State school comp btw for those who are counting!

Like I said earlier, looking at the sample pupil solutions is probably useful - links on www.ukmt.org.uk/individual-competitions/junior-mathematical-olympiad/

Most y7s won't have been used to writing out proofs or explanations like that, so just seeing what's expected is helpful.

Apart from that, just have a go at the past papers. You can buy more if he goes through all the ones linked on the website, but maybe save them till next year I think UKMT also now sell a book aimed at Junior Olympiad level.

Oh yes, shop.ukmt.org.uk/ukmt-books/first-steps-for-problem-solvers

But for the next few days, what's linked on the JMO page should be enough, and then get the book to dip into over the coming year.

The other piece of advice I'd give first time JMOers, especially if they're not going to have time to do a whole paper to time before the real thing, but even if they are, is to look at the information about scoring that's on the UKMT page. Someone who gets half the available marks on the JMO has done really well (last year, Distinction and possibly a bronze medal!).

To prepare for it, Dd does will do tests in the 2 hour time limit and then go through the official answers and pupil answers. The proofs required for section b are very different from anything they do at school.

Dd went into the Olympiad in year 6, did not even qualify for a kangaroo in year 7 and is in the Olympiad in year 8. Her results in the IMC and SMC are equally variable. I think the thing is for them not to be disappointed if they do not do as well as they expect, is is important for them to see it as fun and not some ,judgement on their mathematical ability.

Thanks for these. Looking at the sample students' answers for Section B is reassuring, as they are quite informal and 'chatty'. Being afraid of the word 'proof', I was worried that they were expecting something full of formal jargon. I think I'll show him the students' answers and keep him away from the official solutions this year

For what it's worth, when I first got the chance (a bit older than this) to sit something akin to the Junior Olympiad in style, as part of being picked up for training towards the national and international maths olympiads, I knew very little about formal proofs beyond an instinct for what needed to be explained. I do recall writing a lot of words to try to explain myself on one question!

Trying a question - spend time, even go back and have another go after doing something else - then having a look at solutions is probably the most useful way to get a feel for what will do well at that level. Good luck!

Place marking as I really don't understand any of it!

My year 7 DS has recently done it and achieved a silver award, I'm assuming that's it now??

Yes. Silver is good, well done to him!

Thanks Atia, it was reading about it on the net earlier that made me realise that he'd done well. He totally played it down!

feelingmiffed, yes, it is a good result. If he enjoys doing maths like this, it is well worth a potter on the UKMT website. There are past papers and more "thinky" puzzles on the mentoring section. For those who like these sort of problems it is fun and offers some instructive tips.

In year 7, he is one of the younger ones and will do the JMC again in year 8, so stands a good chance of getting into a follow on round. Just so long as he keeps seeing it as fun and does not get disappointed if he does not. As we have found with dd it is very hit and miss. With the nerves of the first question any child could have dropped 5 marks by forgetting BIDMAS, and that could be the difference between a follow on round or not.

Yes, feelingmiffed. As far as I understand, the top maths sets all do the junior challenge paper. The ones with the very top marks go through to a second round, others with very good marks get bronze, silver, gold certificates and that's that. If you go on the ukmt website it tells you what proportion usually get certificates.

The Junior Challenge 2016 thresholds:
Bronze 51-64 Silver 65-80 Gold 81+ Kangaroo Qualifier 93-112 UK only Olympiad Qualifier 113+

The top 40% of students nationally receive a gold, silver or bronze certificate in the ratio 1:2:3 and each institution receives a Best in School certificate.
Around 1200 of the highest scorers are invited to participate in the Junior Mathematical Olympiad.

So does that mean if you answer 11/25 questions correctly, you will get bronze?

The initial challenge is scored out of 135, isn't it?? So a bronze certificate would mean you'd got 51-64 out of 135

Bronze means that you got somewhere between 51-64 on the initial challenge paper, which I think is scored out of 135

Sorry for double post!

I think it's in the spirit of the thing to point out that with 11/25 questions right you could get Silver. They'd have to be all of qs 16-25, plus one question from 1-15, and you'd have not to attempt any others and get them wrong - admittedly not a likely scenario