This friendly, online, inter-school competition gives teams of Year 6 children the opportunity to apply their mathematics knowledge and teamwork skills to solve problems and answer challenging questions, putting their reasoning skills to the test.
Teams from any school, within Hertfordshire, across the UK and overseas, are warmly welcomed to take part in this competition as all heats and the final will be held remotely.
Teams will be able to join the competition from their own classrooms or school.
The hour-long heats will comprise of a set of 4 equally-weighted rounds. These rounds will include:
- questions with multiple parts
- problems in context
- visual estimation
There will also be some conundrums for teams to complete in school in advance of their heat.
Each team member will receive a certificate for taking part.
The top 20 scoring teams from across the heats will be invited to take part in the Grand Final. Every finalist will receive a certificate, and the winners will receive the trophy, engraved with their school name, to display proudly in school until the next year’s Year 6 Mathematics Challenge takes place.
As in the Year 3, Year 4 and Year 5 maths challenges, each round relies on much more than mere mathematical calculation. Teams will be challenged with problem-solving, reasoning, estimation, visualisation and arithmetic from across the maths curriculum.
Autumn 2025 Year 6 Maths Challenge – watch this space… dates coming soon
Schools can choose between four identical, live online heats in the autumn term. Schools may enter as many teams as they wish (and across any number of heats), at a cost of £35 per team.
To express an interest in joining the next Year 6 Maths Challenge competition, complete this short form and we will be in touch as soon as next year’s heats are open for team registration.
Download the HFL Education Year 6 Maths Challenge event guidance and practice questions for an explanation of structure of the event and a flavour of the types of questions and problems the Year 6 teams will work together to solve. There are hints and tips about how to solve different types of problem and about how to work well as a team. here are also free practice materials which can be downloaded.
In the live heats and final, teams will have a time limit in which to complete each question. This will usually be two or three minutes, depending on the complexity.
Congratulations to our previous Year 6 Maths Challenge Winners
Autumn 2024 Winners: Oxhey Wood Primary School, Watford, Hertfordshire
Summer 2024 Winners: Wood End School, Harpenden, Hertfordshire
The questions were really challenging, and it was a tense competition, but we trusted each other’s strengths and skills to work as a team. We were so amazed when we won!
Year 6 team, Wood End School
Feedback from our 2024 Year 6 finalists:
Our favourite question was the Roman Numerals question because we liked the combination of Roman Numerals and BIDMAS.
St Margaret Clitherow Catholic RC School, Stevenage, Hertfordshire.
Our top tip for teamwork would be to split the question into parts for each person to work out.
St Catherine’s Catholic Primary School, Barnet.
Our favourite question was the algebra and pie chart question. It was challenging but manageable and we could use our maths knowledge and skills to help us.
Chater Junior School, Watford, Hertfordshire.
Find out more about the HFL Education maths challenge events.
HFL Education Year 3 maths challenge
HFL Education Year 4 maths challenge
HFL Education Year 5 maths challenge
Sign up to our Primary Maths Newsletter for updates about the HFL Education Mathematics Challenge and from the wider world of primary maths.
For further information or for support with problem-solving and challenge in your school, contact the HFL Education Primary Maths Team at primarymaths@hfleducation.org.
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