The St Mary’s High School math problem of the week is now on the student bulletin, and is accessible to everyone. The weekly problem introduces a different genre of math problems each week that goes beyond general high school coursework, which can enhance problem solving skills, and critical thinking. For difficulties, we implemented a Lower Division for 9th and 10th graders, and an Upper Division for 11th and 12th graders. Even though the first week problems are fairly easy, we are planing to increase the difficulty every week, by including proofs, puzzles, and many more. In detail, lower division problems will consist of AMC 8, and the IGCSE curriculum. For the upper division, problems include IB AA/AI HL or SL problems, with higher level olympiad style problems.
All problems and additional details/rules can be accessed through the linked slides on the Student Bulletin, where students can also find instructions for submitting their solutions onto a google form. Every problem earns you one point, and as the points add up, you could reach first place on the leaderboard and win a prize! Some important points everyone should know is that they must submit all processes, providing detailed solutions. Students may use external resources such as textbooks, or teachers, but these must be cited. At the end, students can also get math feedback about their solutions.
With that being said, here are the first two math problems of the week:
Lower Division:
Teruma and Wonwoo are trying to make weekly math problems. Teruma knows that he takes 2 days to make a problem, and together with Wonwoo, they can make 4 problems in 6 days. How long will it take Wonwoo to make 1 problem?
Upper Division:
Alice is a professional rock-paper-scissors fighter. She wins 60% of the time, loses 20% of the time, and ties the rest of the time. When the game ties, the two players must re-do their match. What is the probability of winning the match (= there must be a winner and a loser, no ties)?
The submission form for these problems is down below.
https://forms.gle/HRHQZrofJ4fWouKR6
We hope this initiative will make math more engaging and fun, while fostering a stronger math academic community here at St Mary’s. Have fun!
