Numbers crunched

A GROUP of S1 and S2 pupils from Lerwick’s Anderson High School have done the north of Scotland proud competing in the annual UK Mathematical Trust’s Junior Team Maths Challenge.

Coming up against strong competition from private schools and selective schools, the clever Shetland quartet managed to come 64th out of 80 teams.

Jack Tait from Tingwall, Fyntan Shaw from Fair Isle, Lois Ross and Louise Cluness, both from Lerwick, had qualified after winning the regional contest in Aberdeen in March.

On Monday they were in London busy solving tricky math problems throughout the day.

Principal maths teacher Graham Dorrat said there were only five schools from Scotland. the Anderson High the only one  run by a local authority.

“The main thing is that they won the north of Scotland heat in Aberdeen, so as well as representing the school and Shetland, they were effectively also representing the north of Scotland.

“We are delighted that they were happy to take part, that they enjoyed it and that they did spend some of their lunch time practicing some of the previous year’s questions.

“We are really pleased for them and the school that they managed to get so far,, they got further than any group previously,” he said.

The final winner was the City of London School, a private school for boys.