THE 2021 YOUNG MATHEMATICAL STORY AUTHORS (YMSA)
COMPETITION
THE STUART J. MURPHY AWARD
(THE 8-11 YEARS OLD CATEGORY)
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With 351 entries from 52 schools and homeschooling sites across 12 countries to judge, the Stuart J. Murphy Award (the 8-11 years old category) is very competitive this year.
The competition is also very inclusive with 220 female students and 131 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 HarperCollins.
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 (and homeschooling sites) for this age category.
Balmoral Intermediate (New Zealand)
Bearwood Primary School (UK)
Beaulieu Primary School (UK - Channel Islands)
Bexleyheath Academy (UK)
Bliss Carman Middle School (Canada)
Brentford School for Girls (UK)
Bucklands Beach Intermediate School (New Zealand)
Carlton Primary School (UK)
Claremont High School Academy (UK)
Colden Common Primary School (UK)
Cove Junior School (UK)
CS Academy (India)
Delhi World Public School Bangalore (India)
Dulwich College Beijing (China)
Frith Manor Primary School (UK)
Gateway Academy (UK)
Grazeley Primary School (UK)
Heckmondwike Grammar School (UK)
International School of Lund (Sweden)
International School of Nanshan Shenzhen (China)
International School of Paphos (Cyprus)
Jack L Weaver Elementary (California, USA)
James Dougherty Elementary School (California, USA)
King James 1 Academy (UK)
King Richard College (Spain)
Kingswood Primary School (UK)
Langley Grammar School (UK)
Macaulay CofE Primary (UK)
Mission Heights Junior College (New Zealand)
Nighitngale Primary School (UK)
Oberoi International School JVLR (India)
Pep School V2 (India)
Santa Sabina College (Australia)
Satit International School (Thailand)
Silver Oaks International School (India)
St Francis CE (UK)
St Gregory’s Catholic Primary School (UK)
St John’s Rowlands Castle Primary School (UK)
St John’s School (UK)
St Jude’s Catholic Primary (UK)
Sudbury Primary School (UK)
Thameside Primary School (UK)
The Grandeur International School (India)
The Grange Junior School (UK)
The Laurel Hill School (New York, USA)
Twyford St Mary’s Primary School (UK)
Utahloy International School (China)
Vigo Primary School (UK)
Warrandyte Primary School (Australia)
Zayed College for Girls (New Zealand)
Homeschooling (Canada)
Homeschooling (Ohio, USA)
If you want to learn more about the winning, shortlisted and longlisted entries of our 2021 Cindy Neuschwander Award (the 12-15 years old category), click here.
If you want to learn more about our 2022 competition, click here.
If you want to learn more about our 2020 competition, click here.
If you want to learn more about our 2019 competition, click here.
WINNER
‘The Owl’s Curse’ by Nayanika Das Roy (10 years old)
at James Dougherty Elementary School (California, USA)
‘The Owl’s Curse’ by Nayanika Das Roy (10 years old)
at James Dougherty Elementary School (California, USA)
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What the judges say: "This is an imaginative, complex and very creative story featuring a cursed village of owls. I especially enjoyed the problem-solving aspect of this tale as one of the owls tried to undo the curse. The visual models support the mathematics and are very effective in explaining the concept of determining areas. Congratulations, author and illustrator Nayanika, on an excellent job. I am delighted that you are this year’s winner of the Stuart J. Murphy Award!" |
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What the author says: "To get my story going, I thought, well I like math, but what's my favorite mathematical topic? I immediately came up with a topic, area. Owls are my favorite animal, I like adventure books and I love drawing and writing stories. So why not coop them up into one nice, big story? It was fun and exciting creating my own math story with the many things I enjoy. Participating in the competition taught me things I wouldn’t have looked into before. This experience will help you understand math concepts clearer and teach you new things. So give the competition a try, after all, you may be next year’s winner. I hope my story inspires you to go for the 2022 competition." |
SHORTLISTED
‘Ruby and the Art of Creating Colours’ by Charithra Lakshmi Chokka (11 years old)
at Silver Oaks International School (India)
‘Ruby and the Art of Creating Colours’ by Charithra Lakshmi Chokka (11 years old)
at Silver Oaks International School (India)
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What the judges say: "Clever, unique and accessible, this story is about using ratios to mix colors. The concept is beautifully developed as the reader advances from two to three ratios to achieve the perfect mixes. The visual models are nicely done, demonstrating an understanding of how ratios work. The ending is a special treat as ratios are used as part of a lovely sharing experience. It is not a surprise to learn that this author/illustrator was short-listed in last year’s competition with her story featuring the areas of two-dimentional shapes entitled Four Friends and the Teeny Soldiers. Charithra is well on her way to becoming a future maths children’s book author. Congratulations!" |
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What the author says: "I I am very happy and excited that my story got shortlisted for the second time in the YMSA competition. This means a lot to me. The inspiration behind writing this story is the video called 'Ratio in Colors' that I made on for my school’s graduation presentation. The positive feedback and the applause I received from my teachers and peers made me take a further step by choosing this as the gist of my mathematical story. It was very interesting for me to write this story picture book using creative pictures. It personally helped me to understand the topic in depth and I wish the same with the readers too. I would like to encourage other students to take part in the YMSA competition as the process of creatively presenting mathematical stories will help you to gain a deeper understanding of the topic too. Thanks a lot, YMSA, for providing us this opportunity." |
SHORTLISTED
‘The Cooking Competition’ by Ryan Kim (10 years old)
at Jack L Weaver Elementary (California, USA)
‘The Cooking Competition’ by Ryan Kim (10 years old)
at Jack L Weaver Elementary (California, USA)
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What the judges say: "The complex mathematical skill of multiplying fractions is seamlessly embedded in this story about a cooking competition. There are excellent visual representations of the mathematical concepts throughout the presentation. The buildup from simple representations to progressively more complex examples is especially well-handled. Adding to this is a thoughtful multicultural theme that underlies the story. Great work, Ryan!" |
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What the author says: "My story’s inspiration came from what I have learned over the past few years at school. In particular, Mrs. French taught me how to apply math in the real world, and to master concepts by teaching them to others. Mrs. Freedman-Finch inspired my love of learning and encouraged me to challenge myself. My story combines the concepts that I have learned in school with memories of a family trip to Italy where I made pasta from scratch. Although the writing process was challenging for me at first, the story eventually came together, and it was an exciting way for me to express my creativity. I would encourage other students to write math stories and participate in the YMSA competition because it is a fun learning experience that helps you further develop both your writing and your understanding of math concepts." |
SHORTLISTED
‘Lines United’ by Syed Daanish Hussain (10 years old)
at The Grandeur International School (India)
‘Lines United’ by Syed Daanish Hussain (10 years old)
at The Grandeur International School (India)
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What the judges say: "This unique and creative story takes place on an athletic field. Lines come together to form shapes and barriers to help win the game. Effective mathematical problem solving takes place throughout the story. The illustrations and visual models are engaging and the meshing of the maths concepts into the storyline is nicely achieved. Well done, Syed!" |
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What the author says: "My maths story picture book is inspired by my love towards football and my Mom who showed me to love math. I love to write stories. I enjoyed writing this book to show how math is all around us in so much of what we do. The story of "Lines United" is based on my love for football. It was a fun experience to visualize all the angles to kick a football and the lines that are formed during a game. I hope my story inspires everyone to apply Math in all aspects of life. Remember to call Mr Protractor before you kick a football! I thank my school, The Grandeur International School, who supported me all the time. I thank YMSA for providing a platform to exhibit my mathematical story globally. I would encourage other students to create mathematical story picture books and participate in the YMSA competition, because it can help them with mathematics, writing and drawing." |
SHORTLISTED
‘Mr Fractums and The Evil Maths Castle’ by Navya Agarwal (11 years old)
at Oberoi International School JVLR (India)
‘Mr Fractums and The Evil Maths Castle’ by Navya Agarwal (11 years old)
at Oberoi International School JVLR (India)
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What the judges say: "Converting fractions to decimals and understanding equivalent fractions are not easy tasks. But author Navya has managed to accomplish this in a lovely story about a group’s efforts to find their friend who is being detained in the Evil Maths Castle. There are a number of special “Did You Know” facts provided along the way to help in this quest. The maths concepts are clearly explained and nicely embedded into the storyline. Job well done, Navya!" |
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What the author says: "I love maths and enjoy all kinds of visual arts. I am a voracious reader and love reading fantasy and fiction. So, when I heard about the YMSA competition, I immediately signed up as it gave me the perfect opportunity to express myself. Fractions were a little challenging for me initially. Since I truly believe that the best way to learn something is to explain it to others, I decided to write a story on this very concept. This experience gave me confidence in my understanding of fractions. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole process of writing the story, illustrating it, and playing the role of a real-life author! I would like to encourage as many students as I can to take part in this competition so that you can understand mathematical concepts with much greater clarity while helping others get better at it too!" |
SHORTLISTED
‘The Sugar Fiasco’ by Lucy Burridge (8 years old) - homeschooling (Canada)
‘The Sugar Fiasco’ by Lucy Burridge (8 years old) - homeschooling (Canada)
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What the judges say: "What a charming storyline! A group is starting a new bakery, but they run out of sugar and must learn to extract sugar from sugarcane. As the story unfolds, a number of mathematical concepts are featured, including a nice variety of addition strategies and conversions. Well-constructed visual representations of the maths concepts are embedded throughout. The author also added a nice multicultural touch as the dessert that the group is creating is based on a Mexican recipe. Well done, Lucy!" |
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What the author says: "I got the idea for The Sugar Fiasco because me and my friend Nell were working on a bakery project and we needed a lot of sugar. I really love to bake! I learned that I need to know a lot of math to run a bakery, which is something I really want to do in real life. I loved making this mathematical story picture book and I thought it was very enjoyable and I've already thought of a new story idea for next year. I think other kids should participate in the YMSA competition because you can learn a lot from it and it is quite fun." |
LONGLISTED ENTRIES
The judges would also like to offer congratulations to authors of the following entries which were longlisted for the 2021 Stuart J. Murphy Award!
‘Mrs. Maple’s Measurement Mayhem’ by Anna McBride (11 years old) - homeschooling (Ohio, USA)
‘(Cube)!’ by Samuel Curnow (10 years old) at Warrandyte Primary School (Australia)
‘Fixing the Space Ship’ by Maria Sigoulaki (11 years old) at International School of Paphos (Cyprus)
‘Magic Bracelets’ by Maria Teyblyum (8 years old) at International School of Paphos (Cyprus)
‘Coins for Country’ by Naqsh Dhar (8 years old) at Silver Oaks International School (India)
‘The Three A's Go Skateboard’ by Anne Wang (10 years old) at Frith Manor Primary School (UK)
‘The Coordinate Pirates’ by Yazin Suluman (11 years old) at Gateway Academy (UK)
‘Measurement Land’ by Malakai Bah (11 years old) at Cove Junior School (UK)
‘The Division Farmer’ by Julian Park (8 years old) at Santa Sabina College (Australia )
‘The Chart Sale’ by Faith Liyuma (10 years old) at St Jude’s Catholic Primary (UK)
The judges would also like to offer congratulations to authors of the following entries which were longlisted for the 2021 Stuart J. Murphy Award!
‘Mrs. Maple’s Measurement Mayhem’ by Anna McBride (11 years old) - homeschooling (Ohio, USA)
‘(Cube)!’ by Samuel Curnow (10 years old) at Warrandyte Primary School (Australia)
‘Fixing the Space Ship’ by Maria Sigoulaki (11 years old) at International School of Paphos (Cyprus)
‘Magic Bracelets’ by Maria Teyblyum (8 years old) at International School of Paphos (Cyprus)
‘Coins for Country’ by Naqsh Dhar (8 years old) at Silver Oaks International School (India)
‘The Three A's Go Skateboard’ by Anne Wang (10 years old) at Frith Manor Primary School (UK)
‘The Coordinate Pirates’ by Yazin Suluman (11 years old) at Gateway Academy (UK)
‘Measurement Land’ by Malakai Bah (11 years old) at Cove Junior School (UK)
‘The Division Farmer’ by Julian Park (8 years old) at Santa Sabina College (Australia )
‘The Chart Sale’ by Faith Liyuma (10 years old) at St Jude’s Catholic Primary (UK)
