Middle Schoolers Rise to the Challenge in Math Contest
When it comes to The Hardest Math Problem Student Contest, Hunter Friedman ’31 is batting a thousand.
The sixth grader put his math skills to the test when he submitted the correct solutions for all three levels – grades 6, 7 and 8 – in the annual competition’s first round.
“I wanted to try all of the grade-level problems, and I had a lot of time so I was able to narrow them down and get the correct answer for all of them,” he explained. “It was a bit weird, but the sixth grade problem was the hardest one to do.”
The contest, organized by The Actuarial Foundation, the Institute of Competition Sciences and the New York Life Foundation, challenges students in grades 6 to 8 to solve multistep, grade-specific math problems. Some students like Friedman and Bugaj chose to answer questions from multiple grade levels.
Friedman, along with Oliver Buck ’31, Nicholas Bugaj ’30 (who completed grade 7 and 8 level problems), Sparrow Essed ’30, Eli Goldfine ’30, Angus McCallum ’29, Jake Tang ’29 and Alexander Xia ’29 are advancing to the next round. The middle school community celebrated their achievements during a recent middle school gathering.
“It is important that middle school students have opportunities to participate in these types of activities that challenge their thinking,” said Donna Komosinksi, middle school math coordinator. “They encourage students to think critically and approach problems differently than what they might encounter in a textbook. They foster creative thinking while allowing students the opportunity to push through obstacles.”
Essed entered the contest for two reasons: “A: We had it as a homework assignment, and B: I thought it was going to be interesting because math is fun to me.”
Komosinski said the next level is “more challenging” because “students need to submit an organized guide to how they came to their solution. The students use many skills from data analysis, percentages and proportions to budgeting and more. This year's theme was connected to staying healthy through diet and exercise.”
Friedman has started the process and said “now in the second round, it is definitely ramped up and I can see the change in difficulty.”
The deadline to submit Challenge 2 answers is March 2, and winners will be announced in May. Prizes include a laptop and funds for college.
“I feel we have opportunities to celebrate when our students take on challenges especially when the student pursues something difficult that will require thought and resilience,” said Komosinski.
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