Cuisenaire Rods

These squares have been made from Cuisenaire rods. Can you describe the pattern? What would the next square look like?

Making Boxes

Cut differently-sized square corners from a square piece of paper to make boxes without lids. Do they all have the same volume?

Special 24

Find another number that is one short of a square number and when you double it and add 1, the result is also a square number.

A Right Charlie

Stage: 2 Challenge Level:

The following solution was offered by Trevor of Riccarton High School, Christchruch, New Zealand. Other correct solutions were received from Andrei (School 205, Bucharest), Mary (Birchwood Community High School), Rachel and Sebastian (Hethersett High School) and Claire.

Well first, I found all three digit numbers which are square numbers...

$10^2 = 100$
$11^2 = 121$
$12^2 = 144$
$13^2 = 169$
$14^2 = 196$
$15^2 = 225$
$16^2 = 256$
$17^2 = 289$
$18^2 = 324$
$19^2 = 361$
$20^2 = 400$
$21^2 = 441$
$22^2 = 484$
$23^2 = 529$
$24^2 = 576$
$25^2 = 625$
$26^2 = 676$
$27^2 = 729$
$28^2 = 784$
$29^2 = 841$
$30^2 = 900$
$31^2 = 961$

...then I searched for pairs of square numbers that when one is reversed, it will be the same as the second, but not including paladromic numbers...

pairs: $144$, $4414$169$,$961$...then the final clue is that Charle's car registration number is a four digit number which is also a square number as well, and is formed by repeating the last digit of the house number, and using the numbers which I have picked...$1444$,$44111699$,$9611$...I can pick a square number from here, if there is one......$1444$is a square of$38$! So that means that$144\$ is the
house number!