List

Special Numbers

In some senses, all numbers are special, though some are perhaps given more attention than others...

The Special Numbers pathway on wild.maths.org invites students to take a closer look at some familiar categories of number and operations, and perhaps discover that there's a lot more to averages, fractions and square numbers than they might have initially thought.

The collection of related NRICH tasks below are ideal for teachers who want to promote creativity in the classroom. They are designed for classroom use, with accompanying Teachers' Notes and Resources.

m, m and m
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M, M and M

Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
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If you are given the mean, median and mode of five positive whole numbers, can you find the numbers?

Keep it simple
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Keep it simple

Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
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Can all unit fractions be written as the sum of two unit fractions?
Wipeout
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Wipeout

Age
11 to 16
Challenge level
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Can you do a little mathematical detective work to figure out which number has been wiped out?
Unequal Averages
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Unequal Averages

Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
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Play around with sets of five numbers and see what you can discover about different types of average...
Egyptian Fractions
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Egyptian Fractions

Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
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The Egyptians expressed all fractions as the sum of different unit fractions. Here is a chance to explore how they could have written different fractions.

Peaches today, Peaches tomorrow...
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Peaches today, Peaches tomorrow...

Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
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A monkey with peaches, keeps a fraction of them each day, gives the rest away, and then eats one. How long can his peaches last?
Twisting and Turning
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Twisting and Turning

Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
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Take a look at the video and try to find a sequence of moves that will untangle the ropes.
Searching for mean(ing)
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Searching for mean(ing)

Age
11 to 16
Challenge level
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If you have a large supply of 3kg and 8kg weights, how many of each would you need for the average (mean) of the weights to be 6kg?
Power mad!
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Power mad!

Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
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Powers of numbers behave in surprising ways. Take a look at some of these and try to explain why they are true.

Big Powers
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Big Powers

Age
11 to 16
Challenge level
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Three people chose this as a favourite problem. It is the sort of problem that needs thinking time - but once the connection is made it gives access to many similar ideas.
the greedy algorithm
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the greedy algorithm

Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
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The Egyptians expressed all fractions as the sum of different unit fractions. The Greedy Algorithm might provide us with an efficient way of doing this.
Hollow Squares
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Hollow Squares

Age
14 to 16
Challenge level
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Which armies can be arranged in hollow square fighting formations?
Generating Triples
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Generating Triples

Age
14 to 16
Challenge level
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Sets of integers like 3, 4, 5 are called Pythagorean Triples, because they could be the lengths of the sides of a right-angled triangle. Can you find any more?
Plus Minus
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Plus Minus

Age
14 to 16
Challenge level
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Can you explain the surprising results Jo found when she calculated the difference between square numbers?
Fair Shares?
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Fair Shares?

Age
14 to 16
Challenge level
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A mother wants to share a sum of money by giving each of her children in turn a lump sum plus a fraction of the remainder. How can she do this in order to share the money out equally?
What's Possible?
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What's Possible?

Age
14 to 16
Challenge level
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Many numbers can be expressed as the difference of two perfect squares. What do you notice about the numbers you CANNOT make?