Children and parents at Upton Junior School in Broadstairs have been super sleuths for the day, cracking a series of crazy codes.
They faced a puzzling scenario that needed a variety of maths skills to unravel.
Deputy head teacher Dave Walker had forgotten his four digit code to a padlock that unlocks a chest containing important possessions he urgently needed in time for the Upton ‘colour run’ event.
Being an ex-code breaker, Mr Walker ensured he had a fail-safe set of puzzles that, when solved, would reveal the four digits needed to unlock the chest.
Parents of Year 3, 4 and 5 children worked to solve five puzzles in order to obtain the answers – these included simple code breaking using a key, some addition, Algebra, and plotting coordinates to make shapes.
Inside the chest was a variety of silly items, such as huge goggles, a magic whistle and a king’s crown (for Mr Walker).
Hayden Stevens, Upton’s maths lead, said: “The overall purpose of the event was to demonstrate how maths can be fun.
“At Upton the subject is rooted in problem solving, where children can apply the maths they are learning on a day to day basis.
“The secondary purpose was to explore how everyone can be learning through the same task, and about the additional challenges that can keep even the brightest and fastest mathematicians fully engaged.”