The Ateneo Mathematics Society (AMS) welcomed its newest members through the Sets System, a week-long integration program designed to help new members transition smoothly into the organization. Holding two key events on September 23 at the Colayco Pavilion and September 30 for the culminating activity, the program connected students with a strong support network through their assigned subgroups, fondly called “sets.” With eight sets formed, each led by their respective set heads, the initiative focused on community-building, collaboration, and igniting the AMS spirit among its fresh faces.

The first day, known as the Sets System Plenary, featured dynamic team-building games and spirited competition. The event opened with the Big Cheermaking Competition, where sets were given ten minutes to compose and perform their own 15-30 second cheers. Teams were scored on creativity, energy, and execution, setting a high-energy tone for the afternoon.

Next came “Ipatong Mo!”, a cup-stacking challenge that required members to take turns building a tower using only one hand. The seemingly simple task quickly turned competitive as sets strategized their way to balance and precision. This was followed by a game they named as “Putukan Na!”, which is a math-based balloon-popping game. Sets raced to solve questions, find the corresponding numbered balloons, and pop them by sitting. The game brought a lively mix of brainwork and chaos.

Outside the synchronous activities, sets were also tasked to complete the asynchronous challenge called “1, 2, 3, Shoot!” Each group creatively captured photos representing digits from 0 to 9, using team poses, surroundings, or props. These photos were compiled into a post on the AMS Facebook page, where members cast their votes using Facebook reactions. The twist is that a like on the post equates to a point, a sad face subtracted one, and an angry reaction took away three. Members had to strategize not just in creating content but also in voting wisely.

The Sets System Culminating Activity took place a week later and featured the much-anticipated final games. The event began with “And, And, Or-ay!”, a play on Hep Hep Hooray, where participants had to respond to verbal cues with precise arm gestures mimicking the set symbols for union and intersection. The last person standing earned an advantage for their set in the final game.

Next, adding a twist to Pinoy Henyo, the sets faced off in a tournament-style guessing game, relying only on “oo,” “hindi,” and “pwede” to communicate. Laughter definitely filled the room as guessers tried their best to decode clues under pressure.

Finally, the event closed with “The Roll to the Big Night,” a life-sized board game that is inspired by Snakes and Ladders. Sets created dice whose faces summed up to 21, then took turns rolling and advancing through a virtual board. Random challenges and face-offs along the way determined the results, with stakes rising at every tile.

After two days of exciting events, “Nakakata-2-t” emerged as the overall champion, followed by “Trinity times 2” and “Group 67”. The Sets System was not just a week of fun and games, but also a powerful reminder of AMS’s core: a community built on camaraderie, learning, and shared growth from day one.