test during an inter-house competition yesterday.

Students won points for their houses by solving various mathematical problems within a 25-second time limit.

Each morning, representatives from Tatem, Wilson and Robinson Houses answered questions geometry, multiplication, division, addition and subtraction.

After the week-long battle, Tatem House came out on top with a tally of 57 points.

But, Wilson and Robinson were right on their heels, each with a score of 56.

"The math-a-thon was a tremendous success,'' said Spice Valley principal Patricia Holder. "The students really enjoyed it and it gave a lot of them more confidence in their ability to solve math problems.'' Explaining the math-a-thon was the school's first inter-house event, Mrs.

Holder added: "It definitely encouraged team spirit and helped the students to feel more confident in front of a large audience of peers. That is very important at their age.'' As a reward for their victory, all Tatem House members will be able to wear casual clothes during a winners' grub day, which will be announced later.

The triumphant Tatem team consisted of pupils Maneka Butterfield, Jordan Colosimo, Kristal Davis, Sean DeZilva, Eneye Jatto, Adrian Miller, Tyrika Simmons, Cahlil Symonds and Tylise Tear.