Simply 'having a go' is a great way to make a start on a mathematical problem. Whatever happens, you will have learnt more about the situation and can then tweak your approach. These activities all lend themselves to this 'trial and improvement' way of working.
This collection is one of our Primary Curriculum collections - tasks that are grouped by topic.
Two-digit targets
You have a set of the digits from 0 to 9. Can you arrange these in the five boxes to make two-digit numbers as close to the targets as possible?
Five steps to 50
Use five steps to count forwards or backwards in 1s or 10s to get to 50. What strategies did you use?
One big triangle
Make one big triangle so the numbers that touch on the small triangles add to 10.
Find the difference
Place the numbers 1 to 6 in the circles so that each number is the difference between the two numbers just below it.
Starfish spotting
How many starfish could there be on the beach, and how many children, if I can see 28 arms?
Heads and feet
On a farm there were some hens and sheep. Altogether there were 8 heads and 22 feet. How many hens were there?
Four colours
Eggs in baskets
There are three baskets, a brown one, a red one and a pink one, holding a total of 10 eggs. How many eggs are in each basket?
The tall tower
As you come down the ladders of the Tall Tower you collect useful spells. Which way should you go to collect the most spells?
4 dom
Use these four dominoes to make a square that has the same number of dots on each side.
The Brown family
Use the information about Sally and her brother to find out how many children there are in the Brown family.