Puzzles Starters:9:50 Puzzle: A little lateral thinking might help you solve this puzzle. All for 100: Can you write an expression for 100 which uses all the digits 1 to 9? Alphanumbetical: A challenge to find the number which when written as a word has all the letters in alphabetical order. Bridge Crossing: The classic puzzle of finding a route which crosses each bridge once. Broken Calculator 34: Some keys are missing from this calculator. Just how useful is it? Christmas Ornaments: A Maths Starter activity requiring students to arrange Christmas ornaments in a square box. Coins On The Table: A problem about the number of coins on a table given information about fractions of them. Don't Touch!: A number placing puzzle. Eleven Plus Two: Rearrange the letters in the expression "Eleven Plus Two" to make another expression with the same value. Freemason's Cipher: Find symmetric words in this ancient cipher. House Numbers: The numbers on five houses next to each other add up to 70. What are those five numbers? How Do You Do?: A little lateral thinking will help you solve this number puzzle. How Many Squares? 1: Work out how many squares are there altogether in the given pattern. How Many Squares? 2: How many squares can be found by joining four dots on the grid? Intents Excitement: Work out the mathematical words missing from the story about buying a tent. Lemon Law: Change the numbers on the apples so that the number on the lemon is the given total. Letter Clue Calculations: Work out what the calculations might be from the letter clues. Lucky Lake: Match the fractions to their decimal equivalents. Lucky Numbers: Arrange the numbers so that the totals of the three numbers along any line are the same. Match Fish: A classic matchstick puzzle designed to challenge your spacial awareness. Maths Crossword: A small crossword puzzle containing mathematical words. Maths In School: Find mathematical words which can be made by using the letters in the name of your school? Mathster Mind: Guess the four digit number with help from the clues. Mirror Maths: The bottom half of some symmetrical calculations are shown above. Can you work out the answers? Missing Pound: A puzzle about a restaurant bill. Missing Square Puzzle: The missing square puzzle is an optical illusion used to help students reason about geometrical figures. Missing Terms: Find the missing terms from these linear sequences. Mix and Match: Work out which team played which from the information given. Mystery Numbers: Can you recognise the mystery numbers from the clues? News Common: Follow the compass directions given in the squares to find where the route starts? No Partner: Find which numbers in a given list do not combine with other numbers on the list to make a given sum. Not Too Close: This activity, sometimes known as 'Keep Your Distance' requires eight students to sit non consecutively on a grid of chairs. Noughts and Crosses: In how many different ways can the first X and O by placed on the grid? One Digit 100: How many ways can you write an expression for 100 which only uses the same digit repeated and any operations? Online Psychic: Work out why subtracting a two digit number from its reverse gives a multiple of nine. Plus: A number puzzle suitable for children with a wide range of abilities. Roundabout: Go around the roundabout performing each of the operations. Which starting point gives the largest answer? Route to Las Vegas: Work out the cheapest route from Los Angeles to Las Vegas by choosing the best route and adding up the given numbers. Rows of Roses: Can you draw 4 straight lines, without taking your pencil off the paper, which pass through all 9 roses? Separated Twins: Can you find a 14 digit number containing two each of the digits one to seven which obeys the rules given? Sequences 2: Continue the sequences if you can work out the rule. Small Satisfaction: Arrange the digits one to nine in the grid so that they obey the row and Column headings. Square Pairs: Arrange the numbered trees so that adjacent sums are square numbers. Squared Animals: Separate three rows of three animals using three squares. Sudoku Sum: What is the sum of the numbers missing from the given Sudoku puzzle? Sum of the Signs: Each traffic sign stands for a number. Some of the sums of rows and columns are shown. What numbers might the signs stand for? Sum Square: Arrange the numbers one to eight into the calculations to make the totals correct.. THOAN: THOAN stands for 'Think of a number' Tools: Place the numbers on the triangle so that the totals along each of the sides are equal. Two Twins and Tim: A tricky problem set on a coordinate grid. Upside Number: Work out the phone number from the clues given. What are they?: A starter about sums, products, differences, ratios, square and prime numbers. Word Search: Create your own mathematical word search very easily. Word Sum: Each letter stands for a different digit. Can you make sense of word sum?
Featured ActivityRiver Crossing Three interactive versions of the traditional river crossing puzzles. |
Notes:Engaging and addictive, puzzles have been an irresistible lure for inquisitive minds throughout history. This topic introduces students to some interesting puzzles. Puzzles Teacher Resources:Broken Calculator (3 and 4): How can you make use of a calculator if it only has two number buttons. Keep your Distance: Arranging numbers so that consecutive numbers don't end up together. Magic Square: Each row, column and diagonal should prouce the same sum. Match Fish: A matchstick puzzle Online Psychic: Work out why subtracting a two digit number from its reverse gives a multiple of nine. Plus: A number arranging puzzle Prime Square: Drag the numbers into the red cells so that the sum of the three numbers in each row and each column is a prime number. Satisfaction: A number properties investigation Satisfy: A number properties problem Stick Squares: Arrange the matches to form four squares instead of five. Tools: In how many different ways can the numbers be arranged to give the same totals? Unmagic Square: Like the magic square but all of the totals should be different. Puzzles Activities:Addle: Arrange the numbers from 1 to 14 in the spaces to make the sums correct. All The Nines: Use the digits 1 to 9 to make three 3 digit numbers which add up to 999 Broken Calculator (2 and 3): How can you make use of a calculator if it only has two number buttons. Broken Calculator (3 and 4): How can you make use of a calculator if it only has two number buttons. Broken Calculator (4 and 5): How can you make use of a calculator if it only has two number buttons. Calculator Words: Turn your calculator upside down to make words out of the answers to these questions. Centexpression: Arrange the numbers from 1 to 9 to make an expression with a value of 100. Clue Sudoku: A different way to complete a Sudoku puzzle with clues available at every stage. Code Cracker: Crack the code by finding out which letters replace the encrypted letters in the text given. There are lots of hints provided about code breaking techniques. Digivide: Arrange the numbers from 1 to 6 in the spaces to make the calculation correct. Frustration: A logical challenge requiring a strategy to update each of the numbers in a grid. How Many Squares?: How many different sets of four dots can be joined to form a square? Jugs: Can you make 4 litres if you only have 7 and 5 litre jugs? Keep your Distance: Arranging numbers so that consecutive numbers don't end up together. Largest Product: Arranging digits to produce the largest product Lemon Law: Change the numbers on the apples so that the number on the lemon is the given total. Magic Square: Each row, column and diagonal should prouce the same sum. Maths Crossword: A short crossword containing mathematical words. Mine Find: Find where the mines are hidden without stepping on one. Mixpressions: Arrange the cards to create a valid mathematical statement. No Partner: Find which numbers in a given list do not combine with other numbers on the list to make a given sum. Not Too Close: The students numbered 1 to 8 should sit on the chairs so that no two consecutively numbered students sit next to each other. One Digit Only: Find expressions using only one digit which equal the given targets. Online Psychic: Work out why subtracting a two digit number from its reverse gives a multiple of nine. Pattern Clues: Use the given clues to reconstruct the colourful pattern. Plane Numbers: Arrange numbers on the plane shaped grid to produce the given totals Plus: A number arranging puzzle Prime Square: Drag the numbers into the red cells so that the sum of the three numbers in each row and each column is a prime number. Pyramid Puzzle: Numbers in the bricks are found by adding the two bricks immediately below together. Can you achieve the given target? Quad Areas: Calculate the areas of all the possible quadrilaterals that can be constructed by joining together dots on this grid. River Crossing: The traditional River Crossing challenge. Can you do it in the smallest number of moves? Satisfaction: A number properties investigation Satisfy: A number properties problem Separated Twins: Can you find a 6 digit number containing two each of the digits one to three which obeys the rules given? Squorder: The Transum version of the traditional sliding tile puzzle. Tools: In how many different ways can the numbers be arranged to give the same totals? Unmagic Square: Like the magic square but all of the totals should be different. Vowelless: Vowels have been taken out of mathematical words. Can you recognise them? Window View: Drag the 20 flowers into the gardens so that 9 flowers are visible from each window of the house. Word Search: Find the ten mathematical words in the grid of letters. Xmas Ornaments: A hands on activity requiring students to arrange Christmas ornaments in a square box. Xmas Presents: Work out the cost of the Christmas presents from the information given. Puzzles Investigations:Frustration: A logical challenge requiring a strategy to update each of the numbers in a grid. How Many Rectangles?: Investigate the number of rectangles on a grid of squares. What strategies will be useful in coming up with the answer? Jugs: Can you make 4 litres if you only have 7 and 5 litre jugs? Tetrominoes: A tetrominoe is a shape made of four squares joined edge to edge. How many different tetrominoes are there? The Four Rules: See if you can make all of the numbers from 0 to 10 using four threes Window View: Drag the 20 flowers into the gardens so that 9 flowers are visible from each window of the house. SearchThe activity you are looking for may have been classified in a different way from the way you were expecting. 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