Online Maths Challenge Back to Ignite Numeric Passion

Online Maths Challenge Is Back to Ignite Students’ Numeric Passion

The Matific Games, a maths competition run by leading online maths resource Matific, is returning for its second year and is set to be bigger than ever with even more schools looking to compete across Australia and New Zealand.

Thousands of pupils in years K–6 will battle it out to showcase their maths skills using Matific’s suite of online maths resources, earning points for themselves as individuals, their classes and their schools.

Interestingly, last year New Zealand students outsmarted those from Australia with seven schools finishing in the top ten. Top honours went to New Zealand’s Alfriston School who won the first prize of $20,000.

Top Australian schools from 2017 included: WA’s Bramfield Park Primary School (3rd), New South Wales’ Minmi Public School (6th), and Clover Hill State School (9th).

This year’s prize pool is a whopping $50,000 in cash and prizes.

Matific’s ethos is all about making maths fun and engaging for all students. The Matific Games was launched to introduce schools to a new, fun and simple way of approaching maths that simultaneously helps young students develop a lifelong appreciation for the subject and its applications.

Matific see these games as a vital return for K-6, to help remedy against a growing number of students that are turning their backs on maths and science will be ill-prepared for the STEM -driven jobs of the future. The Australian Council for Education Research reported that maths achievement and engagement has been declining for more than a decade and Australia is being leapfrogged by other nations.[2]

Matific’s Education Expert, Brent Hughes, says: “Maths is still a source of anxiety for many children and Australia’s mathematics education experts are all advocating for big changes to the way that we teach and engage children with maths in Australia. Our concept behind developing the Matific Games, was to help get more kids excited in the maths subject by making it enjoyable and inviting, aiding to reduce kids’ maths anxiety but also to improve their math scores.

“We hope these games will help improve students’ ability to master necessary topics, from addition and long division to fractions and primary level statistics. The importance of engaging students in mathematical experiences that go beyond simple calculations is crucial. It’s more about meaningful mathematical experiences that make students question, wonder and engage,” continues Hughes.

The Matific Games run over the course of two weeks in August, and participants will be competing at three levels; as a school, as a class and as an individual.

Winners will be chosen based on the accumulation of stars which will be awarded according to the number of games completed; the focus is on effort over ability. Each completed game can earn the student up to five stars, the more games completed the better. Matific will average out the number of stars won so all schools are on an even playing field.

Results will be published live on the Matific Games leaderboard, so schools can keep track of the action as it unfolds. Although a bit of healthy inter-school competition is encouraged, it’s not just about victory or defeat as much as encouraging maths-loving students to get involved and, even if not winning, enjoy the achievement of giving it a go!

Warm-ups for the Matific Games 2018 will take place between 9 August to 13 August with the competition running from 14 August to 20 August.

Schools from all over Australia and New Zealand are welcome to enter – there is no fee and signing up is as simple as heading towww.matific.com/matificgames.

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