Filter by: Content type: ALL Problems Articles Games Stage: All Stage 1&2 Stage 2&3 Stage 3&4 Stage 4&5 Challenge level:
Which is quicker, counting up to 30 in ones or counting up to 300 in tens? Why?
What is the lowest number which always leaves a remainder of 1 when divided by each of the numbers from 2 to 10?
Can you work out what a ziffle is on the planet Zargon?
Can you see how these factor-multiple chains work? Find the chain which contains the smallest possible numbers. How about the largest possible numbers?
Put operations signs between the numbers 3 4 5 6 to make the highest possible number and lowest possible number.
The clockmaker's wife cut up his birthday cake to look like a clock face. Can you work out who received each piece?
Work out Tom's number from the answers he gives his friend. He will only answer 'yes' or 'no'.
56 406 is the product of two consecutive numbers. What are these two numbers?
This big box multiplies anything that goes inside it by the same number. If you know the numbers that come out, what multiplication might be going on in the box?
Where can you draw a line on a clock face so that the numbers on both sides have the same total?
This magic square has operations written in it, to make it into a maze. Start wherever you like, go through every cell and go out a total of 15!
Zumf makes spectacles for the residents of the planet Zargon, who have either 3 eyes or 4 eyes. How many lenses will Zumf need to make all the different orders for 9 families?
Use 4 four times with simple operations so that you get the answer 12. Can you make 15, 16 and 17 too?
Find out what a Deca Tree is and then work out how many leaves there will be after the woodcutter has cut off a trunk, a branch, a twig and a leaf.
On the table there is a pile of oranges and lemons that weighs exactly one kilogram. Using the information, can you work out how many lemons there are?
This group activity will encourage you to share calculation strategies and to think about which strategy might be the most efficient.
On a calculator, make 15 by using only the 2 key and any of the four operations keys. How many ways can you find to do it?
There are 44 people coming to a dinner party. There are 15 square tables that seat 4 people. Find a way to seat the 44 people using all 15 tables, with no empty places.
There are three buckets each of which holds a maximum of 5 litres. Use the clues to work out how much liquid there is in each bucket.
Try adding together the dates of all the days in one week. Now multiply the first date by 7 and add 21. Can you explain what happens?
Rocco ran in a 200 m race for his class. Use the information to find out how many runners there were in the race and what Rocco's finishing position was.
The value of the circle changes in each of the following problems. Can you discover its value in each problem?
Katie had a pack of 20 cards numbered from 1 to 20. She arranged the cards into 6 unequal piles where each pile added to the same total. What was the total and how could this be done?
If the answer's 2010, what could the question be?
Find the next number in this pattern: 3, 7, 19, 55 ...
Number problems at primary level that may require determination.
Mr McGregor has a magic potting shed. Overnight, the number of plants in it doubles. He'd like to put the same number of plants in each of three gardens, planting one garden each day. Can he do it?
Number problems at primary level that require careful consideration.
This number has 903 digits. What is the sum of all 903 digits?
Use your logical reasoning to work out how many cows and how many sheep there are in each field.
If the numbers 5, 7 and 4 go into this function machine, what numbers will come out?
Using the statements, can you work out how many of each type of rabbit there are in these pens?
Amy has a box containing domino pieces but she does not think it is a complete set. She has 24 dominoes in her box and there are 125 spots on them altogether. Which of her domino pieces are missing?
Here are the prices for 1st and 2nd class mail within the UK. You have an unlimited number of each of these stamps. Which stamps would you need to post a parcel weighing 825g?
Can you arrange 5 different digits (from 0 - 9) in the cross in the way described?
On the planet Vuv there are two sorts of creatures. The Zios have 3 legs and the Zepts have 7 legs. The great planetary explorer Nico counted 52 legs. How many Zios and how many Zepts were there?
Use the information to work out how many gifts there are in each pile.
What is happening at each box in these machines?
This problem is based on the story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. Investigate the different numbers of people and rats there could have been if you know how many legs there are altogether!
The Scot, John Napier, invented these strips about 400 years ago to help calculate multiplication and division. Can you work out how to use Napier's bones to find the answer to these multiplications?
This multiplication uses each of the digits 0 - 9 once and once only. Using the information given, can you replace the stars in the calculation with figures?
All the girls would like a puzzle each for Christmas and all the boys would like a book each. Solve the riddle to find out how many puzzles and books Santa left.
Can you score 100 by throwing rings on this board? Is there more than way to do it?
What is the sum of all the three digit whole numbers?
Well now, what would happen if we lost all the nines in our number system? Have a go at writing the numbers out in this way and have a look at the multiplications table.
Using the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 once and only once, and the operations x and ÷ once and only once, what is the smallest whole number you can make?
Put a number at the top of the machine and collect a number at the bottom. What do you get? Which numbers get back to themselves?
Cherri, Saxon, Mel and Paul are friends. They are all different ages. Can you find out the age of each friend using the information?
Look at what happens when you take a number, square it and subtract your answer. What kind of number do you get? Can you prove it?
There are over sixty different ways of making 24 by adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing all four numbers 4, 6, 6 and 8 (using each number only once). How many can you find?