By National Museums Scotland,theorkneynews

Copyright theorkneynews

Glaitness, Firth and St Andrews primaries, Westray Junior High and Kirkwall Library are set to take part in this year’s Maths Week Scotland (22 – 28 September 2025), which has a theme of Wild Maths.

Funded by the Scottish Government and coordinated by National Museums Scotland, Maths Week Scotland is now in its ninth year and features over 75 events for families and schools across Scotland as well as almost 20 online webinars and competitions. All are aimed at turning Scotland into a maths-positive nation.

Kirkwall Library will host a maths inspired Bookbug session for babies, toddlers, pre-schoolers and their families featuring songs, stories and rhymes with a maths theme. Westray Junior High will hold a numeracy and maths coffee morning for parents and families while St Andrews, Glaitness and Firth primaries have organised a series of special activities for their pupils.

Digital Skills Education is expected to reach thousands of pupils through its Defend the Rhino with Maths and AI event, an interactive online experience where young people will see how data and machine learning can be used to tackle wildlife poaching. The University of Dundee’s Leverhulme Research Centre will challenge 150 S1 and S2 pupils to solve the case of a missing bird of prey in Operation Raptor Rescue which applies maths to tracking, biology and criminology.

This year’s Maths Week Scotland programme includes partnerships with conservation organisations including the Scottish Wildlife Trust, the RSPB, the Scottish Seabird Centre and the Marine Conservation Society, and features events in schools, museums and libraries as well as activities aimed at home learners.

In addition to the events in September, Maths Week Scotland also runs a supporting, year-round programme for schools, families, adults and community groups to encourage enthusiasm for maths across the country.

The National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh will play host to children’s author, David McPhail who will explore the myths, stories, wildlife and landscapes of Scotland, with hidden maths in Legends, Myths and Maths, a fun-filled, interactive talk for families. Museum on the Move school sessions at the National Museum of Scotland, the National Museum of Rural Life and the National Museum of Flight will teach pupils about the planning, weighing, measuring and teamwork involved in moving museum objects. For under 5s, the National Museum of Rural Life is hosting a maths-themed Tractors Tots taster session, and National Museum of Scotland is running Wild Maths for Wee Ones.

Holly Rumble, Maths Week Scotland coordinator at National Museums Scotland said;

“The Wild Maths theme of this year’s Maths Week Scotland programme illustrates that maths is all around us, not just in the classroom. Organisations from the Borders to the Highlands have developed an engaging set of events that we hope will encourage people of all ages to approach maths in new and exciting ways, from spotting patterns in bird migration on our islands to hunting for natural shapes in our local parks. School pupils will also have the opportunity to see how maths can be used to address a number of global conservation issues. It’s an inspiring line-up and we’re greatly looking forward to this year’s event.”

Other highlights from this year’s Maths Week Scotland line-up include Eigg and Muck Primary Schools’ partnership with the Scottish Wildlife Trust to study bird migration and weather data across the islands. The RSPB will host a webinar showing how the numbers gathered from its Big Schools Bird Watch can help monitor the health of birds in the UK. This session will also be available in Gaelic.

Cabinet Secretary for Education in the Scottish Government, Jenny Gilruth said;

“This Maths Week I am pleased to see there is so much opportunity for families, schools and the wider community to have fun with maths. Ensuring that our young people have the confidence, knowledge and skills to use maths in real life contexts remains a core part of our ongoing work to update the school curriculum. I’d encourage all young people to enjoy the activities on offer, use their learning from the classroom and see how much maths impacts on all our lives.”

Maths Week Scotland programme information is available at www.mathsweekscot