Baffled parents stumped by ‘simple’ maths exam question… for 10-YEAR-OLDS

A MIND-BOGGLING maths problems has left kids and parents stumped after it was given to primary school pupils as homework.

Year 5 students at a school in Glossop, Derbyshire were asked to answer the question as part of a two-page paper - but flummoxed parents branded it "impossible".

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The question, which was part of a section on calculating the perimeters of a series of rectilinear shapes, asks pupils to work out the perimeter of a shape with two sides labelled 12cm and 10cm.

However, a small portion of the shape is extended - confusing both the children and their parents, as it's not obvious how you would work out the length of the smaller edges.

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The section also included another difficult question, which labelled three edges but still gave no indication as to how the other edges could be calculated on the irregular shape.

One dad left baffled by the question posted it on his Facebook page, asking for help.

The 43-year-old father - who has an A-Level in maths - told the : “My son’s grandma had spent a while helping him with his homework and most of it was straightforward but this one question left her stumped.

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“I then spent an hour or so trying to work it out but found it impossible.

“I even sent it to a friend who got a 1st class degree in economics and they were baffled by it as well.
 “A couple of friends are maths teachers too so I’ve sent it to them but so far I’ve heard nothing back.

He added: “I really do think it is impossible and it is certainly not something a ten-year-old can answer.
“It just does not make sense.”

The tough assignment comes in the wake of many parents raising concerns that SATs - which are compulsory for Year 2 and Year 6 pupils - are too difficult for the majority of kids.

But one primary school in Cornwall decided to go against the grain and give their pupils a different kind of homework over half term, last week.

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Instead of setting impossible maths problems, teachers at St Stephen's Community Primary School instructed their Year 1 and Year 2 pupils to "play outside", "have a water fight" and "have fun".

In a letter to parents, staff wrote: “We have come to the end of a very tiring term where the children have worked extremely hard.

“The Year 2s have had their national tests and the year ones have made lots of progress in their phonics and maths.

“We want the children to really relax and enjoy their holiday, so here is our holiday ‘home learning’.”