Five years ago, I had no idea that there was an entire subculture of competitive speedcubers out there. My son purchased a Rubik’s Cube brand cube and taught himself to solve it during the summer between Grade 6 and 7. It seemed like a fun party trick and he was also really into magic at the time so it just became part of his act. As he improved his skill on the cube, he discovered that he could compete against other people! The short version of this story is that I started travelling with my son so he could participate in these Speedcubing Competitions through the World Cube Association.
Fast forward a few years and I decided to let my son teach me how to solve a 3×3 cube. He gave me one of his cubes and we spent our Christmas holiday practicing until I was able to successfully solve the cube! I was very proud of myself, even though my average solving time was over 2:00. In the world of speedcubing, that’s practically an eternity! For reference, my son’s average time is around 0:10.
I decided to enter my first competition and, as expected, finished dead last! Later in the year, I entered a second competition and finished second last. I had improved! Take a look at my competition stats:
This year, I will enter my third competition which takes place on March 22. My goal for this assignment is to use online tools including YouTube videos and tutorials, apps for my phone and blogs from cubers to learn new algorithms and tips to improve my times so I can consistently solve a cube in under one minute.
One of my driving forces to improve my solving time and understanding of the cube is my school’s Rubik’s Cube Club. I have been encouraging students at my school to learn to solve a cube and since September, we have met one recess a week to help and encourage each other. This is proving to be a great way to interact with students that I otherwise would not have connected with and it is nice to see the students helping each other and enjoying the small victories of completing a new step in the solving process!
What an incredible skill to learn!
I can totally relate – I was briefly introduced to the fascinating world of speedcubing by a couple of students last semester. I don’t even remember how the conversation began, but the class ended up sharing some of our unique or unusual skills.
Wishing you the best of luck in your competition – I’m excited for you!
Hi Carol, what a great way to connect with your son AND your students. It’s so important to bond with them over shared interests, and it’s fantastic that you’ve actually begun to thrive in this unexpected community! I can’t wait to hear about your progress and your competition results. Good luck!
Hi Carol!
This is an amazing story! I have seen how much something as simple as solving a rubik’s cube can affect a student’s confidence. I had one student that had a triangle prism rubik’s cube that only he could solve. He was so proud and showed me how fast he could solve it almost every week.
I think it is fantastic that your school has a club for this. I hope it builds a supportive community for those students who love puzzles.