List

Visualising at KS2 - Primary Teachers

Young children are often good at imagining - in these tasks we ask them to use their imaginations in a mathematical way.

This collection is one of our Primary Curriculum collections - tasks that are grouped by topic.

Holes
problem
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Holes

Age
5 to 11
Challenge level
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I've made some cubes and some cubes with holes in. This challenge invites you to explore the difference in the number of small cubes I've used. Can you see any patterns?

How would we count?
problem
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How would we count?

Age
5 to 11
Challenge level
filled star empty star empty star

An activity centred around observations of dots and how we visualise number arrangement patterns.

Seeing Squares
problem
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Seeing Squares

Age
5 to 11
Challenge level
filled star empty star empty star

Players take it in turns to choose a dot on the grid. The winner is the first to have four dots that can be joined to form a square.

How Many?
problem
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How Many?

Age
5 to 11
Challenge level
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Have a look at these photos of different fruit. How many do you see? How did you count?
Hundred Square
problem
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Hundred Square

Age
5 to 11
Challenge level
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A hundred square has been printed on both sides of a piece of paper. What is on the back of 100? 58? 23? 19?

A Puzzling Cube
problem
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A Puzzling Cube

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
filled star empty star empty star

Here are the six faces of a cube - in no particular order. Here are three views of the cube. Can you deduce where the faces are in relation to each other and record them on the net of this cube?

Square Corners
problem
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Square Corners

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
filled star empty star empty star

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?

Odd Squares
problem
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Odd Squares

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
filled star empty star empty star

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?

Nine-Pin Triangles
problem
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Nine-Pin Triangles

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
filled star empty star empty star

How many different triangles can you make on a circular pegboard that has nine pegs?

Brush Loads
problem
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Brush Loads

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
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How can you arrange the 5 cubes so that you need the smallest number of Brush Loads of paint to cover them? Try with other numbers of cubes as well.

Twice as Big?
problem
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Twice as Big?

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
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Investigate how the four L-shapes fit together to make an enlarged L-shape. You could explore this idea with other shapes too.

Snake Coils
problem

Snake Coils

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
filled star empty star empty star
This challenge asks you to imagine a snake coiling on itself.
Tumbling Down
problem
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Tumbling Down

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
filled star empty star empty star

Watch this animation. What do you see? Can you explain why this happens?

Sponge Sections
problem
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Sponge Sections

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
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You have been given three shapes made out of sponge: a sphere, a cylinder and a cone. Your challenge is to find out how to cut them to make different shapes for printing.

Cut Nets
problem
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Cut Nets

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
filled star filled star empty star

Each of the nets of nine solid shapes has been cut into two pieces. Can you see which pieces go together?

Stringy Quads
problem
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Stringy Quads

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
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This practical problem challenges you to make quadrilaterals with a loop of string. You'll need some friends to help!

Overlapping Again
problem
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Overlapping Again

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
filled star filled star empty star
What shape is the overlap when you slide one of these shapes half way across another? Can you picture it in your head? Use the interactivity to check your visualisation.
Eight hidden squares
problem
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Eight hidden squares

Age
7 to 14
Challenge level
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On the graph there are 28 marked points. These points all mark the vertices (corners) of eight hidden squares. Can you find the eight hidden squares?
Baravelle
problem
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Baravelle

Age
7 to 16
Challenge level
filled star filled star empty star

What can you see? What do you notice? What questions can you ask?

Arranging cubes
problem
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Arranging cubes

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
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A task which depends on members of the group working collaboratively to reach a single goal.

Regular Rings 1
problem

Regular Rings 1

Age
7 to 11
Challenge level
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Can you work out what shape is made by folding in this way? Why not create some patterns using this shape but in different sizes?
Cubes within Cubes
problem
Favourite

Cubes within Cubes

Age
7 to 14
Challenge level
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We start with one yellow cube and build around it to make a 3x3x3 cube with red cubes. Then we build around that red cube with blue cubes and so on. How many cubes of each colour have we used?