Mathematics
Recently, I gave my Year 8 class a mathematics problem titled ‘Many Matildas’ taken from the NRICH website (nrich.maths.org), a site full of great resources. I thought it was quite fitting considering the Kilbreda production for this year is Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical and I also have a ‘Matilda’ in my class, who I am very excited to see in addition to all of the students taking part.
The mathematics problem the students had to solve was:
The name Matilda is written repetitively like this:
MatildaMatildaMatilda…
What is the 1000th letter?
The purpose of this task was for students to identify the pattern, and to think of a strategy that did not involve writing 1000 letters although this would seem like a suitable punishment from Miss Trunchbull.
Many people may identify Matilda with Roald Dahl who was the author of the book that the musical is based on. But perhaps you are a little less familiar with Tim Minchin, the man behind the music and lyrics of the musical.
Minchin is Australian and has been recognised countless times for his contribution to the Arts, and in 2013, the University of Western Australia awarded Minchin an honorary Doctor of Letters degree for his contribution to the arts, recognising his outstanding achievements and worldwide acclaim as a composer, lyricist, actor, writer and comedian. In 2015, he was awarded a second honorary Doctor of Letters degree from Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. He was also appointed a member of the Order of Australia last year.
In his commencement speech to the 2013 graduating class at the University of Western Australia, Minchin gave the following advice which I think is timely for our students, especially for our senior students who are starting to consider their pathways beyond secondary school. “…life is best filled by learning as much as you can about as much as you can, taking pride in whatever you’re doing, having compassion, sharing ideas, running, being enthusiastic…”
As Dahl writes, “Somewhere inside all of us is the power to change the world that is, if we believe that we can change the world, we will absolutely do great things.” Dahl tells us that we all have the potential, intelligence and drive to accomplish it.
Life is full of opportunities and although we may feel quite limited by the current pandemic, there is still so much to learn and to experience. For the moment, enjoy the company of your friends and family. Learn through conversation and by observing the world around you. Admire the beauty of the sky and relish in the satisfaction of solving a challenging mathematics problem.
And if you are interested in the answer to the ‘Many Matildas’ problem, the letter is ‘D’.
Karen McMullen
Learning Leader:
Mathematics