|
|
Only One Present EachPlace the presents so that each Christmas tree has one present next to it and no two presents are next to each other. |
Tap a square to put a present in it. Tap it again for ✕ meaning "nothing goes here". Tap once more to clear it.
The grid shows a Christmas living room. The Christmas trees 🎄 are already there but the presents 🎁 are missing. Your job is to work out where every one of them goes.
Watch out for this one. A present may well end up sitting next to two Christmas trees. That is perfectly allowed. What matters is that when you have finished, the Christmas trees and the presents can be paired off one to one, with each pair sitting next to each other.
Look for a row or column with a 0 at the end: nothing goes in any of those squares, so mark them all with ✕ straight away. Then look for Christmas trees with only one empty square beside them, because you know at once what has to go there. After that, count carefully along the rows and columns whose numbers are nearly used up.
The Type menu lets you choose a bigger grid or a harder puzzle. Every puzzle you are given has exactly one answer, and you never have to guess — you can always reason your way to it.
This activity is based on the puzzle Tents from Simon Tatham's Portable Puzzle Collection, and uses a version of Simon's puzzle-generating and puzzle-solving logic, rewritten in jQuery for Transum. The original software is copyright © 2004–2024 Simon Tatham and is used, with thanks, under the terms of its MIT licence.
This is just one of the many activities that make up Transum's ChristMaths collection. So now it's the season to be jolly, why not have a go at something else?
|
|
||
Transum.orgThis web site contains over a thousand free mathematical activities for teachers and pupils. Click here to go to the main page which links to all of the resources available. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or questions.
|
More Activities: |
|
|
Mathematicians are not the people who find Maths easy; they are the people who enjoy how mystifying, puzzling and hard it is. Are you a mathematician? Comment recorded on the 26 March 'Starter of the Day' page by Julie Reakes, The English College, Dubai: "It's great to have a starter that's timed and focuses the attention of everyone fully. I told them in advance I would do 10 then record their percentages." Comment recorded on the 19 October 'Starter of the Day' page by E Pollard, Huddersfield: "I used this with my bottom set in year 9. To engage them I used their name and favorite football team (or pop group) instead of the school name. For homework, I asked each student to find a definition for the key words they had been given (once they had fun trying to guess the answer) and they presented their findings to the rest of the class the following day. They felt really special because the key words came from their own personal information." |
Each month a newsletter is published containing details of the new additions to the Transum website and a new puzzle of the month. The newsletter is then duplicated as a podcast which is available on the major delivery networks. You can listen to the podcast while you are commuting, exercising or relaxing. Transum breaking news is available on Twitter @Transum and if that's not enough there is also a Transum Facebook page. |
|
Featured ActivityTower of Hanoi Move the pieces of the tower from one place to another in the minimum number of moves. This puzzle was invented in 1883 but is still as captivating today as it was all those years ago. |
Numeracy"Numeracy is a proficiency which is developed mainly in Mathematics but also in other subjects. It is more than an ability to do basic arithmetic. It involves developing confidence and competence with numbers and measures. It requires understanding of the number system, a repertoire of mathematical techniques, and an inclination and ability to solve quantitative or spatial problems in a range of contexts. Numeracy also demands understanding of the ways in which data are gathered by counting and measuring, and presented in graphs, diagrams, charts and tables." Secondary National Strategy, Mathematics at key stage 3 |
|
Go MathsLearning and understanding Mathematics, at every level, requires learner engagement. Mathematics is not a spectator sport. Sometimes traditional teaching fails to actively involve students. One way to address the problem is through the use of interactive activities and this web site provides many of those. The Go Maths main page links to more activities designed for students in upper Secondary/High school. | ||
Teachers | ||
|
If you found this activity useful don't forget to record it in your scheme of work or learning management system. The short URL, ready to be copied and pasted, is as follows: |
Alternatively, if you use Google Classroom, all you have to do is click on the green icon below in order to add this activity to one of your classes. |
It may be worth remembering that if Transum.org should go offline for whatever reason, there are mirror site at Transum.info that contains most of the resources that are available here on Transum.org. When planning to use technology in your lesson always have a plan B! |
|
Do you have any comments? It is always useful to receive feedback and helps make this free resource even more useful for those learning Mathematics anywhere in the world. Click here to enter your comments. |
||
© Transum Mathematics 1997-2026
Scan the QR code below to visit the online version of this activity.
https://www.Transum.org/go/?Num=118
