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Resilience and Perseverance

In this feature, we have chosen problems designed to promote a positive attitude to challenging mathematical situations. The article, Getting into and Staying in the Growth Zone is packed with information and advice on helping your students become less anxious and more resilient.

Getting into and Staying in the Growth Zone

In this article for teachers, Clare Lee and Sue Johnston-Wilder explain how the Growth Zone model can help develop resilience in our learners.

Caterpillars
Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level

These caterpillars have 16 parts. What different shapes do they make if each part lies in the small squares of a 4 by 4 square?

Find the Difference
Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level

Place the numbers 1 to 6 in the circles so that each number is the difference between the two numbers just below it.

Inside Triangles
Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level

How many different triangles can you draw on the dotty grid which each have one dot in the middle?

Ladybird Box
Age 5 to 11
Challenge Level

Place six toy ladybirds into the box so that there are two ladybirds in every column and every row.

Twenty Divided Into Six
Age 7 to 11
Challenge Level

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?

Which Scripts?
Age 7 to 11
Challenge Level

There are six numbers written in five different scripts. Can you sort out which is which?

Number Lines in Disguise
Age 7 to 14
Challenge Level

Some of the numbers have fallen off Becky's number line. Can you figure out what they were?

Domino Square
Age 7 to 11
Challenge Level

Use the 'double-3 down' dominoes to make a square so that each side has eight dots.

Number and algebra

Geometry and measure

Probability and statistics

Working mathematically

Advanced mathematics

For younger learners

Resilience and Perseverance