🌟哈羅香港國際學校 Brandan 的數學突破之路

Among parents, "Olympiad Math" is often mistakenly believed to be only for children who are naturally gifted in mathematics. However, in the many real-life cases of Olympiad Math that we have encountered, many students have actually built their mathematical advantages step by step through systematic training.

Today we're sharing a case study of Berdan from Harrow Hong Kong International School, a case that parents should seriously consider. 👇

🎯 Real-life case study in math olympiad: Berdan, with a powerful right brain

When I first met Berdan, he gave the impression of a typical gifted student: polite, calm and reserved, completely unlike what people usually imagine international school students to be.

Further investigation revealed that he excelled in music. Students of this type typically have stronger right-brain development, which may cause concern for some parents.

Will a strong right brain affect logic?
Is someone good at music necessarily weaker at math?

In fact, this is precisely the important insight that many real-life cases of math olympiads bring us.

🔍 Diagnostic Test Observation: The Advantages of Cautious Thinking

During the approximately 15-minute Diagnostic Test, Berdan displayed a very distinct personal style:

✅ Answers very carefully ✅ Habitually uses a lot of rough calculations and sketches ✅ Not hasty, but proceeds step by step

Although he did not employ any particularly "aggressive" problem-solving strategies, his overall performance was stable and solid, and his final score reached above average, slightly higher than his peers at Harrow International School.

👉 This once again proves that different problem-solving styles do not mean a lack of mathematical potential.

🚀 Classroom Adaptation Period: The Advantage of Cautious Students' Slow Start (Extension of Real-Life Case Studies in Math Olympiad)

During the first month of the course, Berdan actually went through an adjustment period.

Because many students in the class come from international schools and the Harrow system, the overall learning pace is relatively fast. When faced with some "explosive" high-level problems, we observed a very interesting phenomenon—a common difference in many real-world math Olympiad cases.

The typical path for many mathematically gifted students is:

⚡ Hypothesis → Modeling → Quickly Locate the Answer (extremely fast, but not always completely accurate)

Berdan, however, took a completely different approach.

Free Olympiad Math Problems (Part 1)

🔬 Berdan's problem-solving pace

When faced with a difficult problem, he usually:

🧠 First, carefully recall the math olympiad tools you've learned in this lesson (we systematically teach 48 kinds of math olympiad tools). 👀 Then observe the different strategies your classmates use. 🪶 After a period of reflection and thought, ✏️ finally, carefully write down your answers.

The entire process presents a very distinct picture:

Thinking → Observing → Reflecting → Answering

This kind of pace is often underestimated in traditional mathematical environments that prioritize speed.

🏅 Competition Result: An Unexpected Breakthrough

With his mother's encouragement, Berdan tried to participate in the North American Grey Wolf Math Competition.

The original goal was simply to gain experience, but the result was surprisingly good.

✨ Successfully won the bronze medal

For a student known for his right-brain dominance and who is not a traditional "fast, ruthless, and accurate" type of student, this is a remarkable achievement.

This real-life case from the International Mathematical Olympiad once again illustrates:

📌 Mathematical ability can be precisely cultivated and amplified.

Free Olympiad Math Problems (Part 2)

🧠 Parents should know: Mathematics ≠ Single arithmetic ability

Many parents tend to simplify "good at math" to "fast at counting." In fact, comprehensive mathematical ability encompasses eight major areas:

1️⃣ Numbers and Operations 2️⃣ Patterns and Functions 3️⃣ Word Comprehension 4️⃣ Measurement and Time 5️⃣ Equations 6️⃣ Geometry 7️⃣ Statistics 8️⃣ Probability

Careful analysis will reveal:

👉 Not all areas rely heavily on the left brain 👉 The right brain's spatial awareness and holistic perception are actually very advantageous in geometry and advanced problems.

This is why, in many real-life cases of math olympiads, right-brain dominant students have a very strong stamina.

🛠️ Systematic training: truly amplifying strengths

When dealing with children with different characteristics, a single training method often has limited effect.

Therefore, we adopted the following approach in our course design:

📘 Paper-based logic training 🧪 Math experiment time 🧩 Spatial reasoning activities 🎯 Strategic thinking guidance

Let the students:

✔ Strengths continue to grow
✔ Weaknesses were addressed
✔ Develop cross-disciplinary mathematical abilities

Through systematic training, students are more likely to develop into well-rounded, multi-faceted mathematical talents.

🔬 Quick Overview of Left and Right Brain Functional Characteristics

Left brain functions (rationality | logic | analysis)

Language processing
Logical reasoning
Detailed analysis

Right brain functions (sensibility | spatial awareness | creativity)

Image and spatial sense
Art and Music
Overall perception
Intuitive judgment

👉 The truly ideal development in mathematics involves the coordinated operation of both hemispheres of the brain, rather than a single dominant one.

✅ Three lessons for parents from real-life math Olympiad cases

🔹 Students have different temperaments, and therefore different paths to success. 🔹 Mathematical ability can be strategically cultivated. 🔹 Early diagnosis systematic training is more crucial than mere rote memorization.

Berdan's story perfectly illustrates that as long as the method is right, children can definitely find their own path to academic success.