FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

The founder is Nicola Vragalis. Read her story about the origins of Maths Club here.

While traditional teachers and tutors help children learn maths fundamentals, Right Angle Maths Club goes beyond the classroom, enabling inquisitive minds to investigate the bigger ‘galaxies’ of the maths universe. And learn critical and creative thinking skills to navigate and succeed in 21^st century careers.

Unlike large classrooms and generic curriculum that can be uninspiring for aspiring maths students, Right Angle Maths Club sessions are limited to just 6 students, with individual attention to engage each child at their level, so every child flourishes.

Working in mixed-ability groups fosters growth. Students learn to listen to one another, express their ideas and develop better communication and teamwork skills. It helps them to understand other people’s learning styles too. Some students have a strong number sense, whereas other students can instantly see patterns. Others have great communication skills to explain things and are a whizz at breaking down the questions. This can open students’ minds to see that everyone brings their own unique strengths and weaknesses to any task.

Additionally, during sessions, students will be asked at times to work with a new partner they haven’t worked with that session to help them develop resilience in regards to change. 

To further enhance learning opportunities and build neurological pathways, we do not tell students the answers but rather use thoughtful questions and carefully crafted hints to lead them to come to the solutions. This enables the brain to adapt to the learning required, so every student explores their true potential.

The philosophy underpinning maths club learning activities is based on current research which shows that:The philosophy underpinning maths club learning activities is based on current research which shows that:

• intelligence is not fixed but can be grown through challenging activities
• learning happens when students are moving their hands and have the creative side of their brain engaged
• success at anything in life comes down to perseverance more than to talent
• a person’s mindset about their ability to learn a new task affects how well they learn
• learning ability grows the most when activities are within their ability to understand with some effort

Students will gain:

•  greater self confidence in their abilities¢ skills in communicating ideas with others
• increased ability to persevere when the going gets tough¢ an “I can do it” attitude
• enhanced critical thinking and mathematical reasoning The primary aim of Maths Club is to help students develop life skills via fun exploration of Maths.

Students in Grade 5 or Grade 6 are welcome to come to Right Angle Maths Club. Classes will not separate out the students into their grade levels, but mix Grade 5 and Grade 6 students in together. Students of this age are able to engage in abstract thinking tasks and the sessions are planned so there is no disadvantage for younger students.

Children at this age are beginning to develop skills in abstract reasoning, deductive thinking and hypothetical reasoning. The lessons in Maths Club aim to encourage and build these skills further, equipping them with valuable life skills.

Maths Club aims to develop perseverance in a safe environment.

Lessons aim to build a mindset in students that they can cope with the increased academic challenges ahead of them when they enter high school.

Right Angle Maths Club welcomes all students who have a love of learning and of Maths. The maths required to do the problems is very simple arithmetic at about a Grade 4 level. If more complex arithmetic is required, students will be given calculators so they can spend time thinking about the problem, rather than the arithmetic. The challenge of the problems presented is that they will push students to “think outside the square”.

Students who are their year level standard in Maths at school or above (Grades of A, B or C), will be able to participate and enjoy the activities on offer.

Since Right Angle Maths Club aims to build critical thinking skills, anyone who wants a challenge will enjoy the activities on offer.

However, the lessons do not work through the topics in the Australian Curriculum for Grade 5 and Grade 6, so students will not be helped in the same way that a tutoring service would help a student. Your child will be welcome to come to Right Angle Maths Club since improving critical thinking skills will help them grow academically. However, there are probably some gaps in their maths knowledge that can be covered with individual tutoring, which we don’t offer.

The sessions will very occasionally touch on topics in high school maths, but approached only with the maths tools that an upper primary child is already familiar with.

The focus is to provide activities that will increase mathematical thinking and stimulate curiosity in the students, as opposed to taking them further into the curriculum.

The activities in the sessions have varying degrees of difficulty. This is necessary to grow resilience and confidence through overcoming challenges. Students will realise they are not alone in finding it hard.

The main this is, the teaching will support students to learn together in an encouraging and positive atmosphere. Hints will be given as needed and/or questions asked to help students discover the answer themselves. If necessary, the answer will be shown to students after they have had a chance to see if they can work out the solutions themselves.

The learning environment will be positive, encouraging and relaxed. Students will experience the joy that comes from grappling with a tough problem and solving it for themselves. The very last thing we want is for your child to feel discouraged.

Some of the activities that children will experience at Right Angle Maths Club are:Some of the activities that children will experience at Right Angle Maths Club are:

• Solving word and numeric problems that have a mathematical solution.
• Learn about different number systems.
• Explore other number bases such as binary.
• Play strategy-based games that are thousands of years old and from various cultures such as Korea, Nigeria, China, ancient Rome.
• Look at the relationships in Pascal’s triangle.
• Explore Mobius strips
• Explore number patterns and relationships.
• Solving problems using methodology that is used in the much-acclaimed Singapore Maths Curriculum.
• Problems that develop computational thinking.
• Work with compasses to do geometric constructions.

The idea is to create a team environment and allow for students to receive individual attention.

Session run for an hour. Each lesson has been designed to have some easier tasks as well as more difficult tasks. This is so that students will not become too mentally tired from the effort required. There is just one session a week, so your child will come once a week to Right Angle Maths Club.

There is no catch! There will be no obligation or pressure to continue after the free session.

The free session allows your child to experience the fun activities on offer at Right Angle Maths Club to decide for themselves if they would like to join.  If your child does continue, they will stay in the session they did the free trial in.

Sessions are run in term time only following the Queensland State Schools term calendar. Sessions will run after school in the afternoon as well as on Saturday. 

Additionally, there are daytime sessions for home-schooled students.

A block of sessions (or unit) will run for five weeks. Units will run from Week 1 to Week 5 of the state school term and then the next Unit will run from Week 6 to Week 10 of the state school term.

A student my join in with a unit at any time during the term as lessons do not build on each other (and the invoice will be pro-ratered).

Yes. You will be put into a session that suits your family schedule and will stay in that session for the unit (5-week block of lessons). The aim is to keep the same students together as much as possible, so those students come to understand how each other learn and form an informal team together as they problem-solve. 

Naturally, schedules change and if students need to switch to another timeslot, every effort will be made to accommodate.

Sessions are held in Coorparoo, Brisbane.

No. Parents and guardians will need to drop off and collect their child at the door. There are several supermarkets and cafes locally should parents need to wait in the area for their child. We are certain your child will tell you all about it after the session.

There will be no computers or ipads used in the sessions. Students can get caught up in their own world looking at the screen which is counter-productive to the Maths Club goals of growing communication skills and critical thinking through collaboration.

Children will work out answers by using pencils, paper, whiteboards and pens as they discuss solutions together in pairs, or as a group, or work individually.

Everything will be supplied in class. Your child may bring a water bottle and anything necessary for medical purposes.

Currently, there is enough learning material five-week blocks (units) for your child to participate in Right Angle Maths Club for one year.

More learning sessions are being written and with the intention to deliver in the future two year programme, broken into five-week blocks (units).