RULERS and calculators may not have been allowed, but Bathurst students proved to have the formula to rule the school in the Newcastle Permanent Primary School Mathematics Competition.
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More than 330 schools in the state participated in the competition, where they were challenged to complete 35 questions.
Based on their results, all participating students could receive a high distinction, distinction, merit, or participation certificate, with the top title being a District Award.
Two Bathurst students managed to take out the title of District Award winners - Ameer Al-Zubaidi from Scots All Saints College and Peter Bellamy from St Philomena's.
Ameer was the year 5 award recipient, and he was equally shocked and excited when he added together the evidence, and realised the common denominator.
"I felt really shocked because the way I found out was pretty weird," he said.
"I was going to grab a laptop for another test but then my teacher told me he had a surprise for me and I was shocked. It was a very random surprise and I was just astonished."
As well as feeling very surprised, he also felt a large fraction of pride.
"I feel great, I feel very smart, I feel like I'm the best," Ameer said.
Ameer was feeling especially great about the result considering the difficulty of the competition, which he said was progressively challenging.
"In the beginning, I thought the test was pretty good, pretty easy, and I thought I would get through it pretty quickly, but as it went on I thought it was getting harder," he said
"But I just tried my best and tried to focus on what the questions were asking."
And it's clear that Ameer performed to the best of his abilities, but he knows that this achievement could only be statistically possible thanks to the support of his friends, family and teachers.
"I just want to thank my parents for everything they've done for me," he said.
"It's been a long journey, I was born in Iraq and I travelled to Australia, and I just want to thank all of my teachers for teaching me well enough to get this award.
"Thank you to my friends ... and to my brother, who has been with me every day of my life, and thank you to everyone who has been there for me."
Ameer said he was also thankful to Newcastle Permanent, who provided a morning tea at a special awards ceremony, where both Ameer, and Peter Bellamy were in attendance.
Peter Bellamy the year 6 District Award recipient from St Phil's, said he felt really good about his results.
"I'm very, very, very proud of myself," he said.
As well as being proud of himself, Peter said that he was very proud of his peers who achieved high results in the competition.
Approximately 20 students from St Philomena's received distinction results, despite the test being quite challenging.
Peter is hoping that he continues to develop his skills in mathematics as he heads off to Stannies in 2024 for his high school education.
This is all so he can solve the equation, and find the answer to things happening in space, by working on rocket ships.
