UKMT, the United Kingdom Mathematics Trust, is a name familiar to many. Known for their fiendishly difficult Maths Challenges distributed amongst each academic year, they are a charity based in Leeds with a noble aim to help advance the education of maths as a subject in the UK, and to diversify the face of maths itself. For 26 years, millions have been exposed to ‘the breadth and depth of mathematics, and this is just one of the many opportunities students are provided with.

 

Every year, around 150 students are randomly chosen to attend the multiple National Maths Summer Schools organised by UKMT as a result of successes in the Intermediate Maths Challenge. I was grateful to be one in a rather multitudinous amount of students from Years 9-11. As is the tradition to do so, three separate schools are held within the span of a few weeks, and 2022’s NMSSs were the first few to be held in-person after the pandemic. With 50 others, I attended NMSS 60, and had a truly math-tastic time here!

 

Having completed a five hours’ journey, I finally reached Woodhouse Grove School, this year’s venue. Set in the Leeds-Bradford fringe and surrounded by an abundance of frondescence, the location was nothing short of spectacular. Upon entrance, newcomers were greeted by staff, allocated to one of 8 groups named after renowned mathematicians (mine being Archimedes!), and were handed over our very own UKMT logo tote bags – quite environmentally forward! From there onwards, we were escorted to the Christ Church-esque dining hall where, seated in our teams, we met one another for the first time. On the same day, we settled into our dorms and met those we shared rooms with, and headed over to the ice-breaker session to get to know others.

 

For the entirety of the week, a structure was followed that governed our time here. This consisted of daily Number Theory and Geometry sessions, followed by smaller classes that covered a plethora of riveting yet enigmatic topics such as Graph Theory and combinatorics, which were held by the Seniors (Year 13 attendees). Furthermore, every evening was dedicated to an array of fun activities.

 

The morning sessions of Number Theory and Geometry were by far the most puzzling and intriguing, mainly since these were probably my weakest fields in maths. This, however, did not stop me from exploring the subjects. Being able to discuss problems as a team allowed me to flourish with my own ideas based on what my peers already knew. The most memorable moment was when we were made to explore the centre of a triangle in various ways, some of which included physical experimenting to prove our hypotheses right.

 

As aforementioned, there were many different afternoon sessions. Usually, there would be a brief introduction to the topic, which was often presented in layman’s terms. Then, a problem sheet was handed to all students to attempt, whether alone or together with others. Proof is quite a crucial aspect of maths, and this was one of the first topics we were taught. Due to this, later lessons were based off knowledge acquired in previous lessons. In this, we also had opportunities to take a more hands-on approach to various fields. For example, the game theory session explored how to always win a game, and how to assess if this is always the case. Within this class, I had the chance to try out my new tricks with opponents. To me, this was an excellent way of displaying the applications of maths to the real world. Another time, attendees were introduced to polyhedra – 3-Dimensional shapes with many faces – by constructing our own shapes. Here, links were made with the sciences due to how carbon fullerenes had similar structures to some shapes we built. Joseph Wong, an Archimedes team member, stated how he “loved the polyhedra session because it showed how simple yet complex maths can be”.

 

It could unanimously be agreed, however, that the evening activities were the most fun and enjoyable. A movie night showing a mathematical BAME genius served as much needed inspiration, and this was followed by a bowling trip where groups were shuffled round, allowing us to socialise with new people. The games and craft evening was equally as popular.

 

In the final few hours, there was a book stall filled to the brim with books relating to maths, science and everything in between. Shortly after, we all said our goodbyes and left the school with memories, a plentiful amount of worksheets, and a just as numerous amount of mathematical goodies! This was a genuinely immersive and fascinating one-week experience I will never forget!