Becoming a Better Mathematician

Becoming a Better Mathematician

In this feature, we invite you to think about What Makes a Good Mathematician. Once you've reflected on your mathematical strengths and weaknesses, you might like to have a go at the problems in each of the sections below, which challenge you to collaborate, be systematic, and find opportunities to generalise.

In this article for students, we outline what we believe are the five key ingredients that make a successful mathematician. Where are your strengths? What might you want to work on?

Learning to Collaborate 

Age 11 to 16
Challenge Level
These problems demonstrate the value of approaching problems in more than one way

Learning to Be Systematic 

Age 11 to 16
Challenge Level
These problems encourage you to work systematically

Learning to Generalise 

Age 11 to 18
Challenge Level
These problems give you lots of opportunities to generalise