# Resources tagged with: Creating and manipulating expressions and formulae

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### There are 131 results

Broad Topics > Algebraic expressions, equations and formulae > Creating and manipulating expressions and formulae

### Consecutive Squares

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

The squares of any 8 consecutive numbers can be arranged into two sets of four numbers with the same sum. True of false?

### Perfectly Square

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

The sums of the squares of three related numbers is also a perfect square - can you explain why?

### Enriching Experience

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Find the five distinct digits N, R, I, C and H in the following nomogram

### Pair Products

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Choose four consecutive whole numbers. Multiply the first and last numbers together. Multiply the middle pair together. What do you notice?

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Surprising numerical patterns can be explained using algebra and diagrams...

### Fibonacci Surprises

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Play around with the Fibonacci sequence and discover some surprising results!

### Unusual Long Division - Square Roots Before Calculators

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

However did we manage before calculators? Is there an efficient way to do a square root if you have to do the work yourself?

### Pythagoras Perimeters

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

If you know the perimeter of a right angled triangle, what can you say about the area?

### Lower Bound

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

What would you get if you continued this sequence of fraction sums? 1/2 + 2/1 = 2/3 + 3/2 = 3/4 + 4/3 =

### Chocolate Maths

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Pick the number of times a week that you eat chocolate. This number must be more than one but less than ten. Multiply this number by 2. Add 5 (for Sunday). Multiply by 50... Can you explain why it. . . .

### Terminology

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Given an equilateral triangle inside an isosceles triangle, can you find a relationship between the angles?

### The Simple Life

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

The answer is $5x+8y$... What was the question?

### Always the Same

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Arrange the numbers 1 to 16 into a 4 by 4 array. Choose a number. Cross out the numbers on the same row and column. Repeat this process. Add up you four numbers. Why do they always add up to 34?

### There and Back

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Brian swims at twice the speed that a river is flowing, downstream from one moored boat to another and back again, taking 12 minutes altogether. How long would it have taken him in still water?

### Think of Two Numbers

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Think of two whole numbers under 10, and follow the steps. I can work out both your numbers very quickly. How?

### Always Perfect

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Show that if you add 1 to the product of four consecutive numbers the answer is ALWAYS a perfect square.

### Perimeter Expressions

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Create some shapes by combining two or more rectangles. What can you say about the areas and perimeters of the shapes you can make?

### Chocolate 2010

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

First of all, pick the number of times a week that you would like to eat chocolate. Multiply this number by 2...

### Regular Hexagon Loops

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Make some loops out of regular hexagons. What rules can you discover?

### Harmonic Triangle

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Can you see how to build a harmonic triangle? Can you work out the next two rows?

##### Age 7 to 14 Challenge Level:

Think of a number and follow the machine's instructions... I know what your number is! Can you explain how I know?

### More Mathematical Mysteries

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Write down a three-digit number Change the order of the digits to get a different number Find the difference between the two three digit numbers Follow the rest of the instructions then try. . . .

### Reversals

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Where should you start, if you want to finish back where you started?

### Algebra from Geometry

##### Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

Account of an investigation which starts from the area of an annulus and leads to the formula for the difference of two squares.

### Puzzling Place Value

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Can you explain what is going on in these puzzling number tricks?

### The Number Jumbler

##### Age 7 to 14 Challenge Level:

The Number Jumbler can always work out your chosen symbol. Can you work out how?

### Training Schedule

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

The heptathlon is an athletics competition consisting of 7 events. Can you make sense of the scoring system in order to advise a heptathlete on the best way to reach her target?

### Difference of Two Squares

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

What is special about the difference between squares of numbers adjacent to multiples of three?

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Robert noticed some interesting patterns when he highlighted square numbers in a spreadsheet. Can you prove that the patterns will continue?

### Square Number Surprises

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Think of a number and follow my instructions. Tell me your answer, and I'll tell you what you started with! Can you explain how I know?

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Think of a number, add one, double it, take away 3, add the number you first thought of, add 7, divide by 3 and take away the number you first thought of. You should now be left with 2. How do I. . . .

### Beach Huts

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Can you figure out how sequences of beach huts are generated?

### Algebra Match

##### Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

A task which depends on members of the group noticing the needs of others and responding.

### Magic Sums and Products

##### Age 11 to 16

How to build your own magic squares.

### Never Prime

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

If a two digit number has its digits reversed and the smaller of the two numbers is subtracted from the larger, prove the difference can never be prime.

### ' Tis Whole

##### Age 14 to 18 Challenge Level:

Take a few whole numbers away from a triangle number. If you know the mean of the remaining numbers can you find the triangle number and which numbers were removed?

### Card Trick 1

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Can you explain how this card trick works?

### Number Rules - OK

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Can you convince me of each of the following: If a square number is multiplied by a square number the product is ALWAYS a square number...

### What's Possible?

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Many numbers can be expressed as the difference of two perfect squares. What do you notice about the numbers you CANNOT make?

### Good Work If You Can Get It

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

A job needs three men but in fact six people do it. When it is finished they are all paid the same. How much was paid in total, and much does each man get if the money is shared as Fred suggests?

### Even So

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

Find some triples of whole numbers a, b and c such that a^2 + b^2 + c^2 is a multiple of 4. Is it necessarily the case that a, b and c must all be even? If so, can you explain why?

### Series Sums

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Let S1 = 1 , S2 = 2 + 3, S3 = 4 + 5 + 6 ,........ Calculate S17.

### Archimedes and Numerical Roots

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

The problem is how did Archimedes calculate the lengths of the sides of the polygons which needed him to be able to calculate square roots?

### Fair Shares?

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

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?

### Quick Times

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

32 x 38 = 30 x 40 + 2 x 8; 34 x 36 = 30 x 40 + 4 x 6; 56 x 54 = 50 x 60 + 6 x 4; 73 x 77 = 70 x 80 + 3 x 7 Verify and generalise if possible.

### Sums of Pairs

##### Age 11 to 16 Challenge Level:

Jo has three numbers which she adds together in pairs. When she does this she has three different totals: 11, 17 and 22 What are the three numbers Jo had to start with?”

### Sum Equals Product

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

The sum of the numbers 4 and 1 [1/3] is the same as the product of 4 and 1 [1/3]; that is to say 4 + 1 [1/3] = 4 � 1 [1/3]. What other numbers have the sum equal to the product and can this be so. . . .

### Boxed In

##### Age 11 to 14 Challenge Level:

A box has faces with areas 3, 12 and 25 square centimetres. What is the volume of the box?

### Diophantine N-tuples

##### Age 14 to 16 Challenge Level:

Can you explain why a sequence of operations always gives you perfect squares?