Being Curious - Geometry

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Blue and white

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

Identical squares of side one unit contain some circles shaded blue. In which of the four examples is the shaded area greatest?

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Arclets

Age

14 to 16

Challenge level

Each of the following shapes is made from arcs of a circle of radius r. What is the perimeter of a shape with 3, 4, 5 and n "nodes".

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Marbles in a box

Age

11 to 16

Challenge level

How many winning lines can you make in a three-dimensional version of noughts and crosses?

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Hexy-metry

Age

14 to 16

Challenge level

A hexagon, with sides alternately a and b units in length, is inscribed in a circle. How big is the radius of the circle?

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Three by one

Age

16 to 18

Challenge level

There are many different methods to solve this geometrical problem - how many can you find?

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Triangles and petals

Age

14 to 16

Challenge level

An equilateral triangle rotates around regular polygons and produces an outline like a flower. What are the perimeters of the different flowers?

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On the edge

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

If you move the tiles around, can you make squares with different coloured edges?

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Sending a parcel

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

What is the greatest volume you can get for a rectangular (cuboid) parcel if the maximum combined length and girth are 2 metres?

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Where to land

Age

14 to 16

Challenge level

Chris is enjoying a swim but needs to get back for lunch. How far along the bank should she land?

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Right angles

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

Can you make a right-angled triangle on this peg-board by joining up three points round the edge?

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Trapezium four

Age

14 to 16

Challenge level

The diagonals of a trapezium divide it into four parts. Can you create a trapezium where three of those parts are equal in area?

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Can they be equal?

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

Can you find rectangles where the value of the area is the same as the value of the perimeter?

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Curvy areas

Age

14 to 16

Challenge level

Have a go at creating these images based on circles. What do you notice about the areas of the different sections?

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Fit for photocopying

Age

14 to 16

Challenge level

Explore the relationships between different paper sizes.

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Vector journeys

Age

14 to 18

Challenge level

Charlie likes to go for walks around a square park, while Alison likes to cut across diagonally. Can you find relationships between the vectors they walk along?

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Perimeter possibilities

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

I'm thinking of a rectangle with an area of 24. What could its perimeter be?

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Circles in quadrilaterals

Age

14 to 16

Challenge level

Explore when it is possible to construct a circle which just touches all four sides of a quadrilateral.

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Triangle midpoints

Age

14 to 16

Challenge level

You are only given the three midpoints of the sides of a triangle. How can you construct the original triangle?

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Tilted squares

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

It's easy to work out the areas of most squares that we meet, but what if they were tilted?

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Cola can

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

An aluminium can contains 330 ml of cola. If the can's diameter is 6 cm what is the can's height?

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Cuboid challenge

Age

11 to 16

Challenge level

What's the largest volume of box you can make from a square of paper?

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Square coordinates

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

A tilted square is a square with no horizontal sides. Can you devise a general instruction for the construction of a square when you are given just one of its sides?

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Opposite vertices

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

Can you recreate squares and rhombuses if you are only given a side or a diagonal?

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Which solids can we make?

Age

11 to 14

Challenge level

Interior angles can help us to work out which polygons will tessellate. Can we use similar ideas to predict which polygons combine to create semi-regular solids?

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Semi-regular tessellations

Age

11 to 16

Challenge level

Semi-regular tessellations combine two or more different regular polygons to fill the plane. Can you find all the semi-regular tessellations?

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For younger learners

Being Curious - Geometry

Blue and white

Arclets

Marbles in a box

Hexy-metry

Three by one

Triangles and petals

On the edge

Sending a parcel

Where to land

Right angles

Trapezium four

Can they be equal?

Curvy areas

Fit for photocopying

Vector journeys

Perimeter possibilities

Circles in quadrilaterals

Triangle midpoints

Tilted squares

Cola can

Cuboid challenge

Square coordinates

Opposite vertices

Which solids can we make?

Semi-regular tessellations