Topics: Starter | Creativity | Fun | Logic | Multiple Intelligences | Problem Solving

• Transum,
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• This make a change! Quite a different Starter Of The Day requiring logic, sequencing and lateral thinking (not necessarily in that order!). We envisage pupils working on this puzzle at their desks using items from their pencil cases to represent the locomotives and carriages. They will need to devise a system of recording their solution so that they don’t forget it and can explain it to others.
  
  If one objective of the Starter Of The Day is to engage pupils right from the very beginning of the lesson we hope this puzzle will fit the bill. It is one or many shunting problems that have proved popular with problem solvers for many years. These challenges are also known as railway shunting puzzles or railroad switching puzzles.
  
  Don’t forget to show the Flash animation of our solution further down the page.
• Jason, Louisville
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• Where do I find the solution?
  
  [Transum: The answers are below but you need to be signed in to your Transum account to see them. You can sign up for an account here.]
• Mrs Roberts, Sydney, Australia
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• This looks awesome.
• Somerton Primary,
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• Thank you Transum - for taking our maths lesson in a completely different direction. What an amazing problem solving session. The buzz was fantastic in class.

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