THE 2020 YOUNG MATHEMATICAL STORY AUTHORS (YMSA)
COMPETITION
THE CINDY NEUSCHWANDER AWARD
(THE 12-15 YEARS OLD CATEGORY)
With 114 entries from 22 schools across 6 countries to judge, the Cindy Neuschwander Award (the 12-15 years old category) is very competitive this year.
The competition is also very inclusive with 73 female students and 41 male students participated.
Many congratulations to the authors of the winning, shortlisted and longlisted entries! The winner receives £100 and their school another £100. The Award is generously funded by Charlesbridge.
You can read these talented authors' mathematical stories, their inspiration for the stories, and the judges' comments below.
Feel free to share their works on social media using the #YMSAMaths hashtag.
We would like to thank all the authors for taking part in this year's YMSA competition and to their schools (and parents) for encouraging them to participate in the competition. Below is the list of this year's participating schools for this age category.
Archbishop Beck Catholic College (UK)
Brentford School for Girls (UK)
CHIREC International School (India)
Cullompton College (UK)
Delhi World Public School Bangalore (India)
Deutsche Schule Bombay International School (India)
Dulwich College Beijing (China)
Langley Grammar School (UK)
Hamden High School (Connecticut, USA)
King Edward VI School, Stratford-upon-Avon (UK)
King James I Academy (UK)
Koç School (Turkey)
Langley Grammar School (UK)
Liverpool College (UK)
Modern Middle East International School (Saudi Arabia)
Oak Middle School (California, USA)
Silver Oaks International School (India)
St. Benedict's Catholic High School (UK)
The Royal School Haslemere (UK)
The San Francisco School (California, USA)
Townley Grammar School (UK)
Trinity School Newbury (UK)
If you want to learn more about the winning, shortlisted and longlisted entries of our 2020 Stuart J. Murphy Award (the 8-11 years old category), click here.
If you want to learn more about our 2021 competition, click here.
If you want to learn more about our 2019 competition, click here.
WINNER
'The Tale of Daisy Rabbit and the Autumn Festival' by Ayal Kaffman (15 years old)
at Hamden High School (Connecticut, USA)
'The Tale of Daisy Rabbit and the Autumn Festival' by Ayal Kaffman (15 years old)
at Hamden High School (Connecticut, USA)
What the judges say:
"This was a terrific story that clearly explained and demonstrated both concepts and practical applications of trigonometry. The settings, characters, and unfolding actions in the story were authentic and gracefully demonstrated the uses of trig at an autumn fair. The writing was creative and the illustrations were exceptional. An excellent effort in every way and many congratulations, Ayal! You have certainly set a very high bar for the YMSA competition!" |
What the author says: "I am a student in the 10th grade at Hamden High School. My story was inspired mainly by the works of Beatrix Potter and Jill Barklem whose books I have read over and over. Creating this mathematical picture book was a delight from the very beginning. I love to draw and I love math, and this was the perfect combination of the two. I would certainly encourage as many students as I can to create a mathematical picture book and participate in this competition. Creating a book based on a specific mathematical concept, can, at any age, be beneficial because it is an excellent way to explore the concept thoroughly and ensure that you understand it completely. Creating a picture book based on a mathematical concept can help both you and your readers learn something new and well while being visually captivated." |
SHORTLISTED
'What If We Had the Same Birthday?' by Audrey Wen (12 years old)
at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
'What If We Had the Same Birthday?' by Audrey Wen (12 years old)
at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
What the judges say: "This fun story explored the mathematical possibilities of people who share the same birth date. Illustrations were very nice, along with clear diagrams and mathematical computations, making the mathematics clear and demonstrating the chances of sharing a birthday. Well done, Audrey!" |
What the author says: "When I found an article about the Birthday paradox, I I immediately wanted to research and create the story about this! Not only this topic was really interesting, it also kind of tells us that some things that seem impossible to happen can actually happen! I think creating this story book was really really fun, I really enjoyed making it! I learnt something that I never knew before, I got to write my own story and share it with other people, I also got to be creative and design what my book should look like! I'd definitely encourage other secondary students to create maths story picture books because doing this can help other people to learn more about maths and you can also get to practice your own math and creative skills! Also, picture books are really clear and easy to understand, anyone can create them, not only young kids!" |
What the judges say:
"This clever story incorporated Greek mythology with math concepts exploring area and perimeter. It characterized the gods humorously, as well as mathematically considering shapes such as a heart, a raindrop, a crescent, a circle, and a square. It was an enjoyable and educational read. Good job, Jolie!" |
What the author says: "The inspiration for this book comes from reading. The characters of my story are from Greek Mythology that I know from reading a fantastic and lovely series of fiction books. I really enjoyed creating this picture book. It helps me understand the idea of areas and perimeters better. I would also encourage other students to create their own maths story picture books, even those who think maths is not their thing. This is not only about making you understand maths better. It is really about enjoying what you do and learning from it at the same time. Many of us love books. And this could be the opportunity to find your passion for maths by linking it with books. You never know if you are going to like something until you try." |
SHORTLISTED
'Sanem's Statistical Schoolwork' by Alaa K. Siddiqui (12 years old)
at Modern Middle East International School (Saudi Arabia)
'Sanem's Statistical Schoolwork' by Alaa K. Siddiqui (12 years old)
at Modern Middle East International School (Saudi Arabia)
What the judges say: "This story very clearly explained elements of probability, including mean, median, mode, and range using the COVID-19 pandemic as a convincing and timely backdrop. It was illustrated with clear and convincing charts. Well done on your work, Alaa!" |
What the author says: "I got the inspiration to write this story when I came across this competition and was self-studying at home. I really enjoyed working on my first mathematical story picture book. I spent time doing research on the math terms, character names and also learned about COVID-19. Although, I miss my teachers and friends, when I finished writing my story, I felt as if I became friends with the main character, Sanem. I’d definitely encourage other secondary school students to write their own math stories and help others to understand math in an entertaining and easy way so no one ever suffers from math anxiety! I hope people will enjoy reading my story and learn the concepts too." |
SHORTLISTED
'Ramona's Celebration Party' by Alice Fang (15 years old)
at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
'Ramona's Celebration Party' by Alice Fang (15 years old)
at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
What the judges say: "This lovely story used trigonometry to determine the most efficient way to pick up people for a party. The diagrams used in this story were clear and supported the math in the story. A strong entry, Alice!" |
What the author says: "I like to go out with my friends, but no one wants to drive me there so I always have to carpool with my friends. I never hosted a carpool and I thought it would be cool so I thought about this story. Great right? Yeah, that’s what I think. In addition, creating a maths story picture book can be quite challenging, but it was fun, so it doesn’t matter. This also means that creating a picture book isn’t that easy! To all the secondary school students out there, you should give this fun yet challenging idea of creating maths story picture books a shot!" |
LONGLISTED ENTRIES
The judges would also like to offer congratulations to authors of the following entries which were longlisted for the 2020 Cindy Neuschwander Award!
‘From Zero to Hero’ by Elleanore Phillips (12 years old) at Townley Grammar School (UK)
‘Turnip the Beet’ by Emy Chen (12 years old) at Oak Middle School (California, USA)
‘The Ship that Got Nowhere Near the Lighthouse’ by Emma Yang (14 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘Ms. Anderson and Her Company’ by Anastasia Shi (12 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘The Decimals that Went Rogue’ by Millie Packard (13 years old) at The Royal School Haslemere (UK)
‘The Martian Census’ by Hannah Bennett (13 years old) at Townley Grammar School (UK)
‘Deadly Triangle’ by Richard Wang (14 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘Zone 3 The Unknown Degree’ by Issy Johnson (13 years old) at Trinity School Newbury (UK)
‘The Untold Story of Mrs. Uwem’ by Olivia Karawusa (14 years old) at Townley Grammar School (UK)
‘Stage!’ by Aviva Cai (14 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘A Meeting’ by Xiao En Lee (14 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘Graham and the Fiscal Footballers’ by Ila Banerji (14 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘Miss Numerals and the Exam Result Nightmare’ by Rufus Dhiman (12 years old) at King James 1 Academy (UK)
The judges would also like to offer congratulations to authors of the following entries which were longlisted for the 2020 Cindy Neuschwander Award!
‘From Zero to Hero’ by Elleanore Phillips (12 years old) at Townley Grammar School (UK)
‘Turnip the Beet’ by Emy Chen (12 years old) at Oak Middle School (California, USA)
‘The Ship that Got Nowhere Near the Lighthouse’ by Emma Yang (14 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘Ms. Anderson and Her Company’ by Anastasia Shi (12 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘The Decimals that Went Rogue’ by Millie Packard (13 years old) at The Royal School Haslemere (UK)
‘The Martian Census’ by Hannah Bennett (13 years old) at Townley Grammar School (UK)
‘Deadly Triangle’ by Richard Wang (14 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘Zone 3 The Unknown Degree’ by Issy Johnson (13 years old) at Trinity School Newbury (UK)
‘The Untold Story of Mrs. Uwem’ by Olivia Karawusa (14 years old) at Townley Grammar School (UK)
‘Stage!’ by Aviva Cai (14 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘A Meeting’ by Xiao En Lee (14 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘Graham and the Fiscal Footballers’ by Ila Banerji (14 years old) at Dulwich College Beijing (China)
‘Miss Numerals and the Exam Result Nightmare’ by Rufus Dhiman (12 years old) at King James 1 Academy (UK)