February 1, 2010   Filed under Senior & Middle School
Any student with her sights set on the Math Olympiad could take a few tips from Grade 12 student Lydia, who has been invited to write the 2010 Canadian Math Olympiad in March. This invitation was a result of her success in the Canadian Open Mathematics Challenge, which she wrote last November 25, together with 20 other Branksome students.

The challenge is a no-calculator Math contest, lasting two-and-a-half hours, at the University of Waterloo.

According to Lydia: “To be good at Math, there is no trick. It’s just practice.” Lydia downloaded and completed many past question papers, and also took extra Math lessons in the summer.

Fellow contestants Natalie, Grade 12, and Jie, Grade 11, earned Certificates of Distinction for scoring in the top 25% of all competitors. Lydia received a gold medal for her outstanding performance, placing 43rd out of 8,300 contestants.

According to Ian VanderBurgh, Director at Waterloo’s Centre for Education in Mathematics and Computing, the contest tests competitors’ “intuition and their mathematical skills,” and that “a good score [requires] a demonstration of ability to analyze and to write clear solutions.” He doesn’t mention that it also takes creativity and determination.

Natalie attributes her success to a clear head. “The most important thing,” she says, “is to get a lot of sleep before the test.”

Also a Math lover, Jie wrote this contest for the first time and found it fun.

Congratulations to all 21 students who took on the challenge of writing the contest.

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