Being Curious - Primary

Being Curious - Primary is part of our Developing Mathematical Habits of Mind Primary collection.  You can see the full collection by scrolling down to the bottom of the Primary Curriculum page.

Good thinkers are curious and ask good questions. They are excited by new ideas and are keen to explore and investigate them. 

How do we encourage our learners to become more curious mathematicians?

These problems will exploit learners' natural curiosity and provoke them to ask good mathematical questions.

You can browse through the Number, Measures, Geometry or Statistics collections, or scroll down to see the full set of problems below.

Stage: 1 and 2 Challenge Level: Challenge Level:1

Being Curious - Primary Number

Number problems for inquiring primary learners.

Stage: 1 and 2 Challenge Level: Challenge Level:1

Being Curious - Primary Measures

Measure problems for inquiring primary learners.

Stage: 1 and 2 Challenge Level: Challenge Level:1

Being Curious - Primary Geometry

Geometry problems for inquiring primary learners.

Stage: 1 and 2 Challenge Level: Challenge Level:1

Being Curious - Primary Statistics

Statistics problems for inquiring primary learners.

Five Steps to 50

KS 1 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

Use five steps to count forwards or backwards in 1s or 10s to get to 50. What strategies did you use?

Repeating Patterns

KS 1 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

Try continuing these patterns made from triangles. Can you create your own repeating pattern?

Robot Monsters

KS 1 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

Use these head, body and leg pieces to make Robot Monsters which are different heights.

Eggs in Baskets

KS 1 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:2 Challenge Level:2

There are three baskets, a brown one, a red one and a pink one, holding a total of 10 eggs. Can you use the information given to find out how many eggs are in each basket?

Mixed-up Socks

KS 1 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:2 Challenge Level:2

Start with three pairs of socks. Now mix them up so that no mismatched pair is the same as another mismatched pair. Is there more than one way to do it?

Chain of Changes

KS 1 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:2 Challenge Level:2

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?

Little Man

KS 1 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:2 Challenge Level:2

The Man is much smaller than us. Can you use the picture of him next to a mug to estimate his height and how much tea he drinks?

If the World Were a Village

KS 1 & 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

This activity is based on data in the book 'If the World Were a Village'. How will you represent your chosen data for maximum effect?

How Many Times?

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

On a digital 24 hour clock, at certain times, all the digits are consecutive. How many times like this are there between midnight and 7 a.m.?

A Puzzling Cube

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

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?

Brush Loads

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

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.

Torn Shapes

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

These rectangles have been torn. How many squares did each one have inside it before it was ripped?

Cows and Sheep

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

Use your logical reasoning to work out how many cows and how many sheep there are in each field.

Tricky Track

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

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?

National Flags

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

This problem explores the shapes and symmetries in some national flags.

Number Detective

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

Follow the clues to find the mystery number.

Coded Hundred Square

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

This 100 square jigsaw is written in code. It starts with 1 and ends with 100. Can you build it up?

Two Clocks

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:2 Challenge Level:2

These clocks have only one hand, but can you work out what time they are showing from the information?

Sealed Solution

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:2 Challenge Level:2

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?

Three Neighbours

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:2 Challenge Level:2

Look at three 'next door neighbours' amongst the counting numbers. Add them together. What do you notice?

Dice in a Corner

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:3 Challenge Level:3 Challenge Level:3

How could you arrange at least two dice in a stack so that the total of the visible spots is 18?

Curious Number

KS 2 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:3 Challenge Level:3 Challenge Level:3

Can you order the digits from 1-3 to make a number which is divisible by 3 so when the last digit is removed it becomes a 2-figure number divisible by 2, and so on?

Nice or Nasty

KS 2 & 3 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

There are nasty versions of this dice game but we'll start with the nice ones...

Dicey Operations

KS 3 Challenge Level:

 Challenge Level:1

Who said that adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing couldn't be fun?

The NRICH Project aims to enrich the mathematical experiences of all learners. To support this aim, members of the NRICH team work in a wide range of capacities, including providing professional development for teachers wishing to embed rich mathematical tasks into everyday classroom practice. More information on many of our other activities can be found here.
Copyright © 1997 - 2018. University of Cambridge. All rights reserved.
NRICH is part of the family of activities in the Millennium Mathematics Project.