Resources tagged with: Working systematically

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Broad Topics > Mathematical Thinking > Working systematically

Football Sum

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Find the values of the nine letters in the sum: FOOT + BALL = GAME

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

If you take a three by three square on a 1-10 addition square and multiply the diagonally opposite numbers together, what is the difference between these products. Why?

Cayley

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

The letters in the following addition sum represent the digits 1 ... 9. If A=3 and D=2, what number is represented by "CAYLEY"?

Two and Two

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

How many solutions can you find to this sum? Each of the different letters stands for a different number.

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Replace the letters with numbers to make the addition work out correctly. R E A D + T H I S = P A G E

Special Numbers

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

My two digit number is special because adding the sum of its digits to the product of its digits gives me my original number. What could my number be?

Colour in the Square

Age 7 to 16 Challenge Level:

Can you put the 25 coloured tiles into the 5 x 5 square so that no column, no row and no diagonal line have tiles of the same colour in them?

How Old Are the Children?

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

A student in a maths class was trying to get some information from her teacher. She was given some clues and then the teacher ended by saying, "Well, how old are they?"

LCM Sudoku

Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Here is a Sudoku with a difference! Use information about lowest common multiples to help you solve it.

Age 7 to 14 Challenge Level:

I added together some of my neighbours' house numbers. Can you explain the patterns I noticed?

Reach 100

Age 7 to 14 Challenge Level:

Choose four different digits from 1-9 and put one in each box so that the resulting four two-digit numbers add to a total of 100.

9 Weights

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

You have been given nine weights, one of which is slightly heavier than the rest. Can you work out which weight is heavier in just two weighings of the balance?

The Great Weights Puzzle

Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

You have twelve weights, one of which is different from the rest. Using just 3 weighings, can you identify which weight is the odd one out, and whether it is heavier or lighter than the rest?

American Billions

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Play the divisibility game to create numbers in which the first two digits make a number divisible by 2, the first three digits make a number divisible by 3...

Ben's Game

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

Ben, Jack and Emma passed counters to each other and ended with the same number of counters. How many did they start with?

Star Product Sudoku

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

The puzzle can be solved by finding the values of the unknown digits (all indicated by asterisks) in the squares of the $9\times9$ grid.

Sticky Numbers

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Can you arrange the numbers 1 to 17 in a row so that each adjacent pair adds up to a square number?

Oranges and Lemons, Say the Bells of St Clement's

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Bellringers have a special way to write down the patterns they ring. Learn about these patterns and draw some of your own.

Summing Consecutive Numbers

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

15 = 7 + 8 and 10 = 1 + 2 + 3 + 4. Can you say which numbers can be expressed as the sum of two or more consecutive integers?

Tea Cups

Age 7 to 14 Challenge Level:

Place the 16 different combinations of cup/saucer in this 4 by 4 arrangement so that no row or column contains more than one cup or saucer of the same colour.

Intersection Sudoku 1

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

A Sudoku with a twist.

Ratio Sudoku 1

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

A Sudoku with clues as ratios.

Coins

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

A man has 5 coins in his pocket. Given the clues, can you work out what the coins are?

Integrated Product Sudoku

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

This Sudoku puzzle can be solved with the help of small clue-numbers on the border lines between pairs of neighbouring squares of the grid.

Magic W

Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Find all the ways of placing the numbers 1 to 9 on a W shape, with 3 numbers on each leg, so that each set of 3 numbers has the same total.

A First Product Sudoku

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Given the products of adjacent cells, can you complete this Sudoku?

Crossing the Bridge

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Four friends must cross a bridge. How can they all cross it in just 17 minutes?

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

You need to find the values of the stars before you can apply normal Sudoku rules.

Twin Line-swapping Sudoku

Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

A pair of Sudoku puzzles that together lead to a complete solution.

Smith and Jones

Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Mr Smith and Mr Jones are two maths teachers. By asking questions, the answers to which may be right or wrong, Mr Jones is able to find the number of the house Mr Smith lives in... Or not!

Cinema Problem

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

A cinema has 100 seats. Show how it is possible to sell exactly 100 tickets and take exactly £100 if the prices are £10 for adults, 50p for pensioners and 10p for children.

Difference Sudoku

Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Use the differences to find the solution to this Sudoku.

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

Four small numbers give the clue to the contents of the four surrounding cells.

Ratio Sudoku 2

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

A Sudoku with clues as ratios.

The Naked Pair in Sudoku

Age 7 to 16

A particular technique for solving Sudoku puzzles, known as "naked pair", is explained in this easy-to-read article.

More on Mazes

Age 7 to 14

There is a long tradition of creating mazes throughout history and across the world. This article gives details of mazes you can visit and those that you can tackle on paper.

Pole Star Sudoku 2

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

This Sudoku, based on differences. Using the one clue number can you find the solution?

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

Four numbers on an intersection that need to be placed in the surrounding cells. That is all you need to know to solve this sudoku.

Colour Islands Sudoku

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

An extra constraint means this Sudoku requires you to think in diagonals as well as horizontal and vertical lines and boxes of nine.

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

This is a variation of sudoku which contains a set of special clue-numbers. Each set of 4 small digits stands for the numbers in the four cells of the grid adjacent to this set.

LCM Sudoku II

Age 11 to 18 Challenge Level:

You are given the Lowest Common Multiples of sets of digits. Find the digits and then solve the Sudoku.

Multiples Sudoku

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Each clue in this Sudoku is the product of the two numbers in adjacent cells.

Where Can We Visit?

Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Charlie and Abi put a counter on 42. They wondered if they could visit all the other numbers on their 1-100 board, moving the counter using just these two operations: x2 and -5. What do you think?

Window Frames

Age 5 to 14 Challenge Level:

This task encourages you to investigate the number of edging pieces and panes in different sized windows.

Difference Dynamics

Age 14 to 18 Challenge Level:

Take three whole numbers. The differences between them give you three new numbers. Find the differences between the new numbers and keep repeating this. What happens?

A Long Time at the Till

Age 14 to 18 Challenge Level:

Try to solve this very difficult problem and then study our two suggested solutions. How would you use your knowledge to try to solve variants on the original problem?

I've Submitted a Solution - What Next?

Age 5 to 18

In this article, the NRICH team describe the process of selecting solutions for publication on the site.

Olympic Logic

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

Can you use your powers of logic and deduction to work out the missing information in these sporty situations?

Product Sudoku

Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

The clues for this Sudoku are the product of the numbers in adjacent squares.

Latin Squares

Age 11 to 18

A Latin square of order n is an array of n symbols in which each symbol occurs exactly once in each row and exactly once in each column.