THE 2026 YOUNG MATHEMATICAL STORY AUTHORS (YMSA)
COMPETITION
THE KERSTI WORSLEY AWARD
(THE 4-7 YEARS OLD CATEGORY)
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With 371 entries from 191 girls (51.5%) and 180 boys (48.5%) across 18 countries to judge, the Kersti Worsley Award (the 4-7 years old category) has proven to be both competitive and remarkably successful in its second year.
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 Oxford University Press.
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 are grateful to all the winning, shortlisted and longlisted authors, as well as their parents, for giving us permission to share their work under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA licence.
We would also 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 49 participating schools (including two homeschooling sites) for this age category.
Afeefuddin School (Maldives)
Al Dhafra Private Schools Abu Dhabi (UAE)
Alif Alif Atoll Education Centre (Maldives)
Aminiya School (Maldives)
Amstelland International School (Netherlands)
Bangkok Patana School (Thailand)
Barton Elementary School (USA)
BrainWorks International School (Myanmar)
Dair House School (UK)
Daubeney Primary School (UK)
Dhiggaru School (Maldives)
DPS Modern Indian School (Qatar)
French International School Hong Kong (China)
GA Atoll School (Maldives)
GA Nilandhoo School (Maldives)
Ghiyasuddin International School (Maldives)
Harrow International School Hong Kong (China)
Hiriya School (Maldives)
Homeschooling (Indonesia)
Homeschooling (UK)
Hornsby House School (UK)
Huravee School (Maldives)
ICS (Vietnam)
Imaduddin School (Maldives)
International School of Creative Science (UAE)
Jamaluddin School (Maldives)
Keelonith Primary School (Australia)
Lh Atoll School (Maldives)
Manarat Al Riyadh School (Saudi Arabia)
Merryland International School (UAE)
Mohamed Qasim Preschool (Maldives)
My Myanmar International School (Myanmar)
Oberoi International School OGC (India)
Panaga School (Brunei)
Rehendhi School (Maldives)
Salaahuddin School (Maldives)
Satit Kaset IP (Thailand)
SEK International School Qatar (Qatar)
Sharafuddin School (Maldives)
Silver Oaks International School (India)
Sophia High School (UK)
St Declan's Catholic Primary School (Australia)
Tanglin Trust School (Singapore)
Thaajuddeen School (Maldives)
The British School of Milan (Italy)
Truro School Prep (UK)
Whitehouse Primary School (UK)
Xavier School San Juan (Philippines)
Yeading Infant School (UK)
Homeschooling (Indonesia)
Homeschooling (UK)
To read the winning, shortlisted and longlisted entries of
our 2026 Stuart J. Murphy Award (the 8-11 years old category), click here.
To read the winning, shortlisted and longlisted entries of
our 2026 Cindy Neuschwander Award (the 12-16 years old category), click here.
If you want to learn about our upcoming 2027 competition, click here.
To read the winning, shortlisted and longlisted entries from our past competitions, click on a year of interest:
2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019.
WINNING ENTRY
‘The Day Maths Saved the Eid Libaas’
by Yuna Nasfaan Shiham (7 years old)
at Lh. Atoll School (Maldives)
‘The Day Maths Saved the Eid Libaas’
by Yuna Nasfaan Shiham (7 years old)
at Lh. Atoll School (Maldives)
Click here to read this story
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What the judges say: "This story weaves together tradition, problem-solving, family and maths. It’s the tale of the busy Eid preparations in Nisha’s house, where Grandma is stitching a beautiful traditional Maldivian dress. The pattern repeats, but a cheeky crow breaks it! Nisha uses her mathematical knowledge to fix it. Solving a maths problem can indeed be as creative as sewing a beautiful dress! The attention to detail in both the maths and the illustration is beautiful, and the story is so engaging. You have also done an excellent job of meaningfully aligning your mathematical story with United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 11, demonstrating that maths can be found even in our cultural heritage. Superb, Yuna! You’re a well-deserved winner of this year's Kersti Worsley Award!" |
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What the author says: "I love the beautiful kasabu shapes (shapes created by using a traditional Maldivian embroidery technique) on our traditional dresses. This inspired me to write this mathematical story. Before this, I didn't know about the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While creating this mathematical story picture book, I also learned about SDG 11, which tells us to protect our cultural heritage. My story shows that maths can help us save our traditions. Creating this mathematical story picture book taught me that math isn't just inside a school textbook. It is actually everywhere - even on our clothes and in our culture. Now I love math even more! I think Maths teachers everywhere should let their students create their own mathematical story picture books as it makes learning about maths so much fun and helps kids see the magic of maths in the real world!" |
SHORTLISTED ENTRY
‘The Coconut Problem’
by Adam Aveen Saddah Naseer (7 years old)
at Huravee School (Maldives)
‘The Coconut Problem’
by Adam Aveen Saddah Naseer (7 years old)
at Huravee School (Maldives)
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What the judges say: "Ali and his friends decide to have a picnic but there’s only one coconut. The children find a way to share with friends using their knowledge of fractions. The quality of the illustrations in this story is superb. The demonstration of the maths problem is secure, with a good understanding of fractions. This story has real strength in being presented clearly, with accurately demonstrated mathematics. Fantastic, Adam!" |
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What the author says: "I was inspired to write this mathematical story because coconuts, islands, and sharing with friends are part of everyday life in the Maldives. I wanted to show how maths can help solve problems in a fun way while also sharing a small part of my country with others around the world. Creating this mathematical story picture book helped me understand fractions better because I learned how maths can be used in real-life situations, like sharing food equally with friends. Drawing the island scenes and writing the story made maths more fun and meaningful for me. I encourage Maths teachers around the world to give students opportunities to create mathematical story picture books because they help children connect maths with creativity, culture, and everyday life. Stories and pictures can make maths exciting, enjoyable, and easier to understand." |
SHORTLISTED ENTRY
‘The Hermit Crab Parade!’
by Nooh Inshau (6 years old)
at Ghiyasuddin International School (Maldives)
‘The Hermit Crab Parade!’
by Nooh Inshau (6 years old)
at Ghiyasuddin International School (Maldives)
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What the judges say: "Laavi and Yooha head to the beach where they help some hermit crabs pair up. The story has the maths problem throughout, and is well structured alongside beautiful illustrations. It’s an uplifting tale of partnership and odd and even numbers, and finishes with some clever, humorous wordplay. This story is equally strong in both being an engaging story and demonstrating the maths within the tale. Amazing, Nooh!" |
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What the author says: "I got the idea for my story because my cousins and I love finding hermit crabs at the beach and watching them crawl and race on the sand. I thought it would be funny to make a crab parade with pairs of crabs. Making my maths story helped me understand odd and even numbers better because I could see which crabs had a partner and which crab was left alone. Odd numbers are my favourite numbers, so I really liked making a story about them. I also liked drawing the crabs and making the story funny and colourful. To all Maths teachers, creating mathematical story picture books is really fun because children can learn maths while writing stories and drawing pictures, so children can smile, laugh and enjoy learning maths!" |
SHORTLISTED ENTRY
‘The Anchor of Radient Hill’
by Yumaan Jawaadh Ali (7 years old)
at Lh. Atoll School (Maldives)
‘The Anchor of Radient Hill’
by Yumaan Jawaadh Ali (7 years old)
at Lh. Atoll School (Maldives)
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What the judges say: "Stanley the square spots some other shapes having a lot of fun – rolling by. So Stanley sets about trying to join in. After some uncomfortable yet admirably determined attempts, Stanley sees the speedy circles in the roundabout family get into some trouble, so he and his square friends make a safety wall to stop them all rolling into the duck pond. This is an energetic and uplifting tale of kindness and fun, with a strong story structure and mathematics central to the tale. Well done, Yumaan!" |
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What the author says: "I enjoy numbers and love exploring them. I began counting up to 100 at the age of 3, and by the age of 4, I had learned large numbers such as 2,000,000. When my mother informed me about the competition, I immediately wanted to write about numbers. However, she encouraged me to explore something new, so I decided to focus on shapes, which are actually my second favourite topic. I believe stories are one of the best tools for learning, especially for auditory learners like me. Since I enjoy mathematics, creating stories has helped me develop my mathematical thinking and creativity. Through storytelling, mathematical ideas become more meaningful, interesting, and easier to understand. I would like to encourage all mathematics teachers to allow their students to create their own mathematical story picture books to learn mathematics more creatively." |
SHORTLISTED ENTRY
‘The Mystery of the Mango Tree’
by Aishath Yooly Asad (7 years old)
at Salaahuddin School (Maldives)
‘The Mystery of the Mango Tree’
by Aishath Yooly Asad (7 years old)
at Salaahuddin School (Maldives)
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What the judges say: "This is a lovely story about sharing with friends (and some cheeky crows). It sounds like this is something that could really happen! Three hopeful friends decide to share the mangos they find, but when they go to share them, three are missing! This story uses division to demonstrate fair sharing of the remaining nine mangos, alongside pictorial representations. Well done for shaping the story so well around the mathematics, with some beautiful illustrations. Congratulations, Aishath!" |
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What the author says: "My inspiration for this story came from sharing delicious mangoes with my friends, which made me realize how often we use Maths in real life. This mathematical story was an amazing experience because turning subtraction and division into a mystery helped me understand how these concepts work outside the classroom. The process of creating this mathematical story picture book really deepened my understanding of Maths because visualizing subtraction and division in a story made the steps clear and easy to remember. I encourage Maths teachers around the world to ask their students to create their own mathematical story picture books in their classrooms. It is a fantastic way to make Maths lessons exciting, meaningful, and unforgettable for everyone!" |
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What the judges say: "Some resourceful bees set about building their home, and think carefully about how to store the most honey. With a combination of tessellation and knowledge of the stability of shapes, this story shows great real-life problem-solving with a range of solutions and choice of the best to suit the bees’ needs. There are some lovely observations and very clearly laid out illustrations in this story, with a fabulous happy ending. Well done, Wai!" |
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What the author says: "In school STEAM week, I learnt about how important bees are for pollinating plants. So I wanted to build a beehive on my balcony to attract bees to come pollinate my plants and make lots of honey for me. This made me think about why bees build their homes in a hexagon shape. Making the book was fun because I got to draw the bees and test which shape worked best and this made me realise bees are so clever to use hexagons. Writing this maths story also made me think that bees can be maths teachers too. If maths teachers let their students create their own mathematical story picture books, they might not need to have to work so hard to teach us maths!" |
SHORTLISTED ENTRY
‘Pico the Penguin's Long Journey Home’
by Kiasha Goyal (7 years old)
at Tanglin Trust School (Singapore)
‘Pico the Penguin's Long Journey Home’
by Kiasha Goyal (7 years old)
at Tanglin Trust School (Singapore)
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What the judges say: "This is a story about a sweet and clever penguin who uses division and multiplication to make sure she has enough fish to get her home! This story shows the maths concept clearly throughout, with explicit modelling of the methods used through well-chosen illustrations and calculations. It also has a good sense of character with a clear goal, too. Well done, Kiasha!" |
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What the author says: "I love making little books, drawing, and solving Maths problems, so this exercise was really fun for me. I liked turning a Maths problem into a story with pictures. Making this mathematical story picture book helped me think more carefully about the mathematical problem and understand it better. It also made Maths feel more fun and creative. To all Maths teachers, I think other children would enjoy making maths storybooks too because it makes learning more exciting and fun. I hope more Maths teachers give students opportunities to learn Maths in creative ways through creating mathematical story picture books." |
SHORTLISTED ENTRY
‘Molly and Mickey's Shopping Day’
by Yenjai Emprasertsuk (7 years old)
at Bangkok Patana School (Thailand)
‘Molly and Mickey's Shopping Day’
by Yenjai Emprasertsuk (7 years old)
at Bangkok Patana School (Thailand)
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What the judges say: "The cats Mickey and Molly help their mother by setting off for the supermarket to stock up on everything she needs to make fishcakes for the villagers. This sweet story is based on the real-life dilemma of having a list of ingredients and items arranged in quantities that don’t match! With beautifully laid out representations of the mathematics, gorgeous illustrations and a surprise hungry bear at the end, the combination of words, numbers and drawings gives an engaging, brilliant story. Well done, Yenjai!" |
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What the author says: "Creating story picture books is my favourite hobby. One day, Mommy and I went shopping and we had a problem about pack sizes. That was the idea for this story. Creating this mathematical story picture book helped me see how math can solve problems in real life. Math is so important. I think Maths teachers everywhere should know that other students should be able to create their own mathematical story picture books too, because it is fun. It helps us share our math ideas and it helps readers understand math more easily." |
SHORTLISTED ENTRY
‘Happy Mothers Day’
by Aminath Zaka Shujau (5 years old)
at Mohamed Qasim Preschool (Maldives)
‘Happy Mothers Day’
by Aminath Zaka Shujau (5 years old)
at Mohamed Qasim Preschool (Maldives)
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What the judges say: "Izzy and Amy are thoughtful daughters who plan a surprise party for Mother’s Day. They check the cupboards and use their addition and subtraction knowledge to plan their list, before adding up how much money they have to pay for it all. The representations on the page demonstrate the mathematical problem solving well. It’s great that writing this story has made this young author want to write more like this! They should! It's a strong story with real life maths and lots of fun. What a lucky mum! Well done, Aminath!" |
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What the author says: "This mathematical story is based on a true story. Me and my sister planned a surprise party for mommy. I always loved writing stories. This is my first mathematical story. I enjoyed mixing up English and maths. To all maths teachers, creating this mathematical story picture book made me realise how fun maths can be. I hope to write more mathematical stories like this one!" |
LONGLISTED ENTRIES
The judges would also like to offer congratulations to authors of the following entries which were longlisted for the 2026 Kersti Worsley Award!
The judges would also like to offer congratulations to authors of the following entries which were longlisted for the 2026 Kersti Worsley Award!
‘The Mystery of the Vanishing Lanterns’ by Zarlala Ali Qazi (6 years old) at GA Nilandhoo School (Maldives)
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‘The Bowl Tower Mystery’ by Alison Ng (6 years old) at French International School Hong Kong (China)
‘Henny Hen's Lost Eggs’ by Lisa Mohamed (7 years old) at Ghiyasuddin International School (Maldives)
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‘Cinema Seats’ by Tsz Yau Hannah Ng (6 years old) at Harrow International School Hong Kong (China)
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‘Alook's Tally Marks Adventure’ by Mohamed Ahyan Ahmed Ihusan (6 years old) at Huravee School (Maldives)
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‘The Fun Journey of Number Blocks’ by Yousef Amgad (6 years old) at Merryland International School (UAE)
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‘Puffy's Missing Marshmallows’ by Patrada Patamathamakul (6 years old) at Satit Kaset International Program (Thailand)
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‘The Magic of Skip Counting’ by Kyara Binthi Mohamed Uzail (7 years old) at Thaajuddeen School (Maldives)
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