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Secondary education

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Original poster

UKMT Junior Maths Challenge

134 replies

shank2 · 27/04/2017 19:11

Did your y/y8 son /daughter sit the Maths challenge today and if they did -did they find it easy/hard

OP posts:
ErrolTheDragon · 28/04/2017 09:07

They're meant to be hard and rather different from school maths, aren't they? If any of yours who are generally good at maths don't do particularly well in them and are despondent, for comforting anecdotal context DD only ever got a couple of bronzes and one silver, but got top grades in gcse maths and further maths, and is predicted A* in maths and FM A levels.

TheCountessofFitzdotterel · 28/04/2017 09:29

Hmm, I think people are overstating the 'don't answer unless you're positive' thing. If I read it correctly there are questions that potentially lose you two but could also gain you 6, so if you are about 50% likely to be right you should try. Random guesses won't be worth it but educated ones might be.

TheCountessofFitzdotterel · 28/04/2017 09:34

Actually I don't mean educated guesses. You would still have to work it out, just wouldn't necessarily have to be 100% certain.

JustRichmal · 28/04/2017 10:09

Dd has done lots of UKMT tests over the past 5 years and sometimes does great in them and sometimes badly. The ones she did practice for are the ones she did better in. I would just take their results with a pinch of salt and remember that only those with children who have done well will be posting on here with the results in a couple of weeks. If they are disheartened, just remind them it is only for fun and they do not know how much work those who did well put in. (Even those who claim to have just done nothing before).

Newtssuitcase · 28/04/2017 10:29

Presumably in most schools it is a positive thing even to have been on the team? Certainly that is the case in DS's school. Very few Year 7s put forward.

TheCountessofFitzdotterel · 28/04/2017 10:50

I think it was the whole of the Y7 and 8 top sets at dd's school (ordinary northern comp).
Not sure they really gave it much thought.

serenaserene · 28/04/2017 11:16

Yesterday's paper is already on the ukmt site - with solutions

iseenodust · 28/04/2017 11:45

Serena thanks for that. DS was supposed to sit the challenge but a cricket match got in the way! I'll let him have a go at home.

SaltyMyDear · 28/04/2017 13:20

DS in Y8 got gold last year. Thought yesterday's test was fine........

PhilODox · 28/04/2017 13:25

Are there two challenges a year? DD did one yesterday, but I'm sure she did one last term (or maybe autumn term??) .
She got silver last year, so aiming for gold this time...

ToffeeCaramel · 28/04/2017 16:45

Dd did this and after reading this thread this morning i asked her if she knew not to guess from question 16 as you get marks taken off if you get them wrong. She said the teacher didn't mention this and although it did say not to guess on the paper she ignored it as they are usually told to give it a go. Of course it is very possible the teacher did tell them and she didn't listen. At least it's better for her to learn to listen to test instructions in year 8 than later on!

ToffeeCaramel · 28/04/2017 17:06

Just spoke to a mum with a child in dd's maths class and yep, they were told by the teacher about losing marks for wrong answers for those questions. Dd must have been daydreaming!

catslife · 28/04/2017 17:08

It was a different level test last term (intermediate).

TheCountessofFitzdotterel · 28/04/2017 17:11

Toffee that kind of thing is exactly why I am glad my dd's school is doing this even though I doubt any of them will do that well. It's excellent practice for proper exams.

ToffeeCaramel · 28/04/2017 17:17

Definitely. Smile

lilybookins · 28/04/2017 17:24

My daughter did it (Yr 6) They have done no practice (I'd never heard of the test, neither had they) - the top five mathematicians from Yr 6 were picked to do it but were only told they were doing it on Wednesday afternoon. She did know about not attempting the second set unless you were sure but wanted to do all of them (as that's what she's used to doing and it's her nature to have a go!) and she did indeed drop quite a few marks. She got the highest score of her classmates - 66 - have no idea if this is good or bad. All of the kids thought it was hard and they are a bunch of clever kids. Does it actually mean anything important?

lilybookins · 28/04/2017 17:37

Have just seen her paper - she gained 18 marks in questions 16-25 but lost 7 so I guess it was still better for her to attempt them than not...

PhilODox · 28/04/2017 18:02

Catslife- i don't think it can have been intermediate. DD got a gold and into kangaroo round, but she's Y6!

PhilODox · 28/04/2017 18:02

Intermediate is aimed at Y9-11.

TheCountessofFitzdotterel · 28/04/2017 20:26

Could it have been the Primary Maths Challenge?

ToffeeCaramel · 28/04/2017 20:48

Is it marked by the teachers or sent somewhere else to be marked?

EmpressoftheMundane · 28/04/2017 21:15

My DD Y8 thought it was harder than last year.

noblegiraffe · 28/04/2017 21:20

Papers are sent back to UKMT where they are machine marked. They're multiple choice and the kids colour in lozenges on a sheet for their answers.

ToffeeCaramel · 28/04/2017 21:21

Thank you

Scarlettcat123 · 28/04/2017 23:09

DS2 did it yesterday and got 129, which he seems happy about.

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