Filter by: Content type: ALL Problems Articles Games Stage: All Stage 1&2 Stage 2&3 Stage 3&4 Stage 4&5 Challenge level:
Arrange the shapes in a line so that you change either colour or shape in the next piece along. Can you find several ways to start with a blue triangle and end with a red circle?
Are all the possible combinations of two shapes included in this set of 27 cards? How do you know?
Your challenge is to find the longest way through the network following this rule. You can start and finish anywhere, and with any shape, as long as you follow the correct order.
Using the statements, can you work out how many of each type of rabbit there are in these pens?
This activity investigates how you might make squares and pentominoes from Polydron.
In how many ways could Mrs Beeswax put ten coins into her three puddings so that each pudding ended up with at least two coins?
How could you put eight beanbags in the hoops so that there are four in the blue hoop, five in the red and six in the yellow? Can you find all the ways of doing this?
This magic square has operations written in it, to make it into a maze. Start wherever you like, go through every cell and go out a total of 15!
Lolla bought a balloon at the circus. She gave the clown six coins to pay for it. What could Lolla have paid for the balloon?
Suppose we allow ourselves to use three numbers less than 10 and multiply them together. How many different products can you find? How do you know you've got them all?
Find your way through the grid starting at 2 and following these operations. What number do you end on?
Ram divided 15 pennies among four small bags. He could then pay any sum of money from 1p to 15p without opening any bag. How many pennies did Ram put in each bag?
There is a clock-face where the numbers have become all mixed up. Can you find out where all the numbers have got to from these ten statements?
Roll two red dice and a green dice. Add the two numbers on the red dice and take away the number on the green. What are all the different possibilities that could come up?
What do the digits in the number fifteen add up to? How many other numbers have digits with the same total but no zeros?
How many different ways can you find to join three equilateral triangles together? Can you convince us that you have found them all?
There are 44 people coming to a dinner party. There are 15 square tables that seat 4 people. Find a way to seat the 44 people using all 15 tables, with no empty places.
Using the cards 2, 4, 6, 8, +, - and =, what number statements can you make?
Investigate all the different squares you can make on this 5 by 5 grid by making your starting side go from the bottom left hand point. Can you find out the areas of all these squares?
Find the product of the numbers on the routes from A to B. Which route has the smallest product? Which the largest?
Choose four different digits from 1-9 and put one in each box so that the resulting four two-digit numbers add to a total of 100.
What is the greatest number of counters you can place on the grid below without four of them lying at the corners of a square?
Can you put the numbers 1 to 8 into the circles so that the four calculations are correct?
Kate has eight multilink cubes. She has two red ones, two yellow, two green and two blue. She wants to fit them together to make a cube so that each colour shows on each face just once.
Find all the different shapes that can be made by joining five equilateral triangles edge to edge.
Can you substitute numbers for the letters in these sums?
Ben has five coins in his pocket. How much money might he have?
Add the sum of the squares of four numbers between 10 and 20 to the sum of the squares of three numbers less than 6 to make the square of another, larger, number.
An investigation involving adding and subtracting sets of consecutive numbers. Lots to find out, lots to explore.
There are 4 jugs which hold 9 litres, 7 litres, 4 litres and 2 litres. Find a way to pour 9 litres of drink from one jug to another until you are left with exactly 3 litres in three of the jugs.
This problem is based on the story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. Investigate the different numbers of people and rats there could have been if you know how many legs there are altogether!
Ten cards are put into five envelopes so that there are two cards in each envelope. The sum of the numbers inside it is written on each envelope. What numbers could be inside the envelopes?
Can you make square numbers by adding two prime numbers together?
This problem is based on a code using two different prime numbers less than 10. You'll need to multiply them together and shift the alphabet forwards by the result. Can you decipher the code?
Can you put plus signs in so this is true? 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 = 99 How many ways can you do it?
Use your logical-thinking skills to deduce how much Dan's crisps and ice-cream cost altogether.
The discs for this game are kept in a flat square box with a square hole for each disc. Use the information to find out how many discs of each colour there are in the box.
Can you find which shapes you need to put into the grid to make the totals at the end of each row and the bottom of each column?
What can you say about these shapes? This problem challenges you to create shapes with different areas and perimeters.
What do you notice about the date 03.06.09? Or 08.01.09? This challenge invites you to investigate some interesting dates yourself.
This 100 square jigsaw is written in code. It starts with 1 and ends with 100. Can you build it up?
There are 78 prisoners in a square cell block of twelve cells. The clever prison warder arranged them so there were 25 along each wall of the prison block. How did he do it?
Find all the numbers that can be made by adding the dots on two dice.
Two children made up a game as they walked along the garden paths. Can you find out their scores? Can you find some paths of your own?
Tom and Ben visited Numberland. Use the maps to work out the number of points each of their routes scores.
Sweets are given out to party-goers in a particular way. Investigate the total number of sweets received by people sitting in different positions.
How could you arrange at least two dice in a stack so that the total of the visible spots is 18?
What happens when you add three numbers together? Will your answer be odd or even? How do you know?
Have a go at this well-known challenge. Can you swap the frogs and toads in as few slides and jumps as possible?
In this problem it is not the squares that jump, you do the jumping! The idea is to go round the track in as few jumps as possible.