
Delight your friends with this cunning trick! Can you explain how it works?

Only one side of a two-slice toaster is working. What is the quickest way to toast both sides of three slices of bread?

Can you see why 2 by 2 could be 5? Can you predict what 2 by 10 will be?

Can you dissect an equilateral triangle into 6 smaller ones? What number of smaller equilateral triangles is it NOT possible to dissect a larger equilateral triangle into?

A package contains a set of resources designed to develop pupils’ mathematical thinking. This package places a particular emphasis on “generalising” and is designed to meet the. . . .

Can you work out how to win this game of Nim? Does it matter if you go first or second?

Watch this film carefully. Can you find a general rule for explaining when the dot will be this same distance from the horizontal axis?

A game for two people, or play online. Given a target number,say 23, and a range of numbers to choose from, say 1-4, players take it in turns to add to the running total to hit their target.

Take a look at the multiplication square. The first eleven triangle numbers have been identified. Can you see a pattern? Does the pattern continue?

Using the same starter numbers 2, 1, 4 and 6 can you get a larger total at the top of the pyramid? What is the largest total you can get?

In each of the pictures the invitation is for you to: Count what you see. Identify how you think the pattern would continue.

Try adding together the dates of all the days in one week. Now multiply the first date by 7 and add 21. Can you explain what happens?

For this challenge, you'll need to play Got It! Can you explain the strategy for winning this game with any target?
The NRICH team are always looking for new ways to engage teachers and pupils in problem solving. Here we explain the thinking behind maths trails.

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

Take a counter and surround it by a ring of other counters that MUST touch two others. How many are needed?

What are the areas of these triangles? What do you notice? Can you generalise to other "families" of triangles?

Place the numbers from 1 to 9 in the squares below so that the difference between joined squares is odd. How many different ways can you do this?

In a Magic Square all the rows, columns and diagonals add to the 'Magic Constant'. How would you change the magic constant of this square?

Use your addition and subtraction skills, combined with some strategic thinking, to beat your partner at this game.

Can you find an efficient method to work out how many handshakes there would be if hundreds of people met?

Four bags contain a large number of 1s, 3s, 5s and 7s. Pick any ten numbers from the bags above so that their total is 37.

Find out what a "fault-free" rectangle is and try to make some of your own.

In this problem we are looking at sets of parallel sticks that cross each other. What is the least number of crossings you can make? And the greatest?

Continue this pattern made from squares and equilateral triangles. Can you describe the patterns?

Do you notice anything about the solutions when you add and/or subtract consecutive negative numbers?

Use the interactivity to investigate what kinds of triangles can be drawn on peg boards with different numbers of pegs.

Charlie and Lynne put a counter on 42. They wondered if they could visit all the other numbers on their 1-100 board, moving the counter using just these two operations: x2 and -5. What do you think?

While we were sorting some papers we found 3 strange sheets which seemed to come from small books but there were page numbers at the foot of each page. Did the pages come from the same book?

Think of a number add 3 double add 4 halve take away the number you started with ? What did you end up with? Now try again starting with a different number. Try again? Try starting with a fraction. . . .

We can show that (x + 1)² = x² + 2x + 1 by considering the area of an (x + 1) by (x + 1) square. Show in a similar way that (x + 2)² = x² + 4x + 4

Can you find the value of the circles when you know what's in the squares?

An investigation that gives you the opportunity to make and justify predictions.

The aim of the game is to slide the green square from the top right hand corner to the bottom left hand corner in the least number of moves.

How could Penny, Tom and Matthew work out how many chocolates there are in different sized boxes?

An article for teachers and pupils that encourages you to look at the mathematical properties of similar games.

You can solve frogs on the computer, using counters, or acting it out. Start with frogs in a line on one side, and toads on the other, with a space in between. They need to change places.

Choose four consecutive whole numbers. Multiply the first and last numbers together. Multiply the middle pair together. What do you notice?

Triangle numbers can be represented by a triangular array of squares. What do you notice about the sum of identical triangle numbers?

Think of a number, square it and subtract your starting number. Is the number you’re left with odd or even? How do the images help to explain this?

One block is needed to make an up-and-down staircase, with one step up and one step down. How many blocks would be needed to build an up-and-down staircase with 5 steps up and 5 steps down?

Think of a number, add one, double it, take away 3, add the number you first thought of, add 7, divide by 3 and take away the number you first thought of. You should now be left with 2. How do I. . . .
This article for teachers describes several games, found on the site, all of which have a related structure that can be used to develop the skills of strategic planning.

Can you find sets of sloping lines that enclose a square?

In how many ways can you arrange three dice side by side on a surface so that the sum of the numbers on each of the four faces (top, bottom, front and back) is equal?

Put the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 into the squares so that the numbers on each circle add up to the same amount. Can you find the rule for giving another set of six numbers?

What would be the smallest number of moves needed to move a Knight from a chess set from one corner to the opposite corner of a 99 by 99 square board?

You can work out the number someone else is thinking of as follows. Ask a friend to think of any natural number less than 100. Then ask them to tell you the remainders when this number is divided by. . . .