Filter by: Content type: ALL Problems Articles Games Stage: All Stage 1&2 Stage 2&3 Stage 3&4 Stage 4&5 Challenge level:
Are these statistical statements sometimes, always or never true? Or it is impossible to say?
Can you work out which spinners were used to generate the frequency charts?
This interactivity invites you to make conjectures and explore probabilities of outcomes related to two independent events.
Kaia is sure that her father has worn a particular tie twice a week in at least five of the last ten weeks, but her father disagrees. Who do you think is right?
The next ten people coming into a store will be asked their birthday. If the prize is £20, would you bet £1 that two of these ten people will have the same birthday ?
So which is the better bet? Both games cost £1 to play. Getting two heads and two tails for £3 or £2 for every six when three dice are rolled.
Six balls of various colours are randomly shaken into a trianglular arrangement. What is the probability of having at least one red in the corner?
7 balls are shaken in a container. You win if the two blue balls touch. What is the probability of winning?
Is this a fair game? How many ways are there of creating a fair game by adding odd and even numbers?
Identical discs are flipped in the air. You win if all of the faces show the same colour. Can you calculate the probability of winning with n discs?
Have a go at this game which involves throwing two dice and adding their totals. Where should you place your counters to be more likely to win?
In four years 2001 to 2004 Arsenal have been drawn against Chelsea in the FA cup and have beaten Chelsea every time. What was the probability of this? Lots of fractions in the calculations!
Given probabilities of taking paths in a graph from each node, use matrix multiplication to find the probability of going from one vertex to another in 2 stages, or 3, or 4 or even 100.
After transferring balls back and forth between two bags the probability of selecting a green ball from bag 2 is 3/5. How many green balls were in bag 2 at the outset?
Anna and Becky put one purple cube and two yellow cubes into a bag to play a game. Is the game fair? Explain your answer.
Which of these games would you play to give yourself the best possible chance of winning a prize?
Chris and Jo put two red and four blue ribbons in a box. They each pick a ribbon from the box without looking. Jo wins if the two ribbons are the same colour. Is the game fair?
Two brothers belong to a club with 10 members. Four are selected for a match. Find the probability that both brothers are selected.
It is believed that weaker snooker players have a better chance of winning matches over eleven frames (i.e. first to win 6 frames) than they do over fifteen frames. Is this true?
Before a knockout tournament with 2^n players I pick two players. What is the probability that they have to play against each other at some point in the tournament?
Predict future weather using the probability that tomorrow is wet given today is wet and the probability that tomorrow is wet given that today is dry.
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?
When two closely matched teams play each other, what is the most likely result?
A problem about genetics and the transmission of disease.
Imagine flipping a coin a number of times. Can you work out the probability you will get a head on at least one of the flips?
Engage in a little mathematical detective work to see if you can spot the fakes.
What statements can you make about the car that passes the school gates at 11am on Monday? How will you come up with statements and test your ideas?
What can you say about the child who will be first on the playground tomorrow morning at breaktime in your school?
You'll need to work in a group for this problem. The idea is to decide, as a group, whether you agree or disagree with each statement.
Try out the lottery that is played in a far-away land. What is the chance of winning?
Can you work out the probability of winning the Mathsland National Lottery? Try our simulator to test out your ideas.
If everyone in your class picked a number from 1 to 225, do you think any two people would pick the same number?
Imagine a room full of people who keep flipping coins until they get a tail. Will anyone get six heads in a row?
What is the chance I will have a son who looks like me?
A weekly challenge concerning combinatorical probability.
Calculate probabilities associated with the Derren Brown coin scam in which he flipped 10 heads in a row.
By tossing a coin one of three princes is chosen to be the next King of Randomia. Does each prince have an equal chance of taking the throne?
How could you compare different situation where something random happens ? What sort of things might be the same ? What might be different ?
When five dice are rolled together which do you expect to see more often, no sixes or all sixes ?
Which of these ideas about randomness are actually correct?
Can you generate a set of random results? Can you fool the random simulator?
This set of resources for teachers offers interactive environments to support probability work at Key Stage 4.
Think that a coin toss is 50-50 heads or tails? Read on to appreciate the ever-changing and random nature of the world in which we live.
This package contains environments that offer students the opportunity to move beyond an intuitive understanding of probability. The problems at the start will suit relative beginners to the topic;. . . .
This article, for students and teachers, is mainly about probability, the mathematical way of looking at random chance and is a shorter version of Taking Chances Extended.
This article, for students and teachers, is mainly about probability, the mathematical way of looking at random chance.
Heads or Tails - the prize doubles until you win it. How much would you pay to play?
Terry and Ali are playing a game with three balls. Is it fair that Terry wins when the middle ball is red?
In this game you throw two dice and find their total, then move the appropriate counter to the right. Which counter reaches the purple box first? Is this what you would expect?
Some relationships are transitive, such as `if A>B and B>C then it follows that A>C', but some are not. In a voting system, if A beats B and B beats C should we expect A to beat C?
