Student Activities
Problem Solving Competition (March)
For more than 40 years, the Mathematical Association of Tasmania has conducted this Competition for Tasmanian students in Years 7 – 12 in March. In 2018, MAT extended the competition to include students in Years 5 and 6. There are usually 8 – 12 questions for each of the four divisions: Primary (5/6), Junior (7/8), Intermediate (9/10) and Senior (11/12) which are undertaken within a 2-hour time frame (1.5 hours for Primary).
The questions are designed to elicit mathematical thinking and may require students to apply their mathematical skills to topics outside of the standard curriculum or to link together different mathematics topics that are traditionally taught separately. Each question may require some experimentation and different approaches before a student makes significant headway.
Through this Competition, some outstanding Mathematics students have been identified. For other students, the competition has sparked an interest in Mathematics. For each question, students need to explain their reasoning and show their working (using English as well as Mathematics as necessary) to gain full marks. Students may not be able to complete all questions fully in the time frame but they will receive a better mark if they answer some questions very well rather than many questions poorly.
The cost is $10 per student. For further information, contact Brett Stephenson bstephenson@gyc.tas.edu.au
To register, please click here.
Past Problem Solving Competition results are available HERE
Maths Relays (September)
The MAT Mathematics Relays are held annually at three locations across the state for students in Years 5 – 12. The relays see teams of four students take on mathematical problems of increasing difficulty as they race to beat other competitors and the clock. It’s an exciting day to be part of! Each team is accompanied by an adult who will be a marker to check students’ answers against the answer sheet.
For further information contact Vanessa Wright vwright@mrc.tas.edu For updates and registration details, see our Facebook account.
Past Maths Relay results are available HERE
Sample past Maths Relay questions are available.
Years 5 & 6
Years 7 & 8
Years 9 & 10
Years 11 & 12
ML Urquhart Mathematics Competition (September)
National Mathematics Summer School (January 2026)
The National Mathematics Summer School is a two-week summer school for approximately 64 gifted mathematics students from around Australia. The program is run by the Australian National University (ANU) in Canberra and the AAMT in January each year and is aimed at Year 11 students who will complete the summer school at the start of Year 12.
A former participant Will Baird, wrote about his time at NMSS:
NMSS was a fantastic opportunity, hands down the single best experience I’ve had in my schooling so far. The mathematics that you are introduced to is fascinating and completely unlike anything you will ever see in any mathematics classes at school. There’s a lot of emphasis on the ‘productive struggle’ (as it was put to us) of mathematics, the tutors won’t solve the problems for you, and the answers aren’t in the back of the book. It forces you to come to some really interesting conclusions about maths by yourself, which was very rewarding. Even in the online setting, the social aspect was fantastic. You’ll meet some of the most wonderful & talented people at NMSS and I’ve made some very close friends through it that I’m still in contact with. If you’re anything like me and have a love for puzzles, mathematics or problem solving, I cannot recommend NMSS highly enough.
Some reflections from past graduates
Applications for NMSS 2026 will open in April or May and close in July or August 2025
Further information can be found on the NMSS website https://nmss.edu.au/ or contact kathybunton@bigpond.com