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Advanced mathematics

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For younger learners

  • Early Years Foundation Stage

Position and Direction

These activities are part of our Primary collections, which are problems grouped by topic.

Poly Plug Pattern

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow star

Create a pattern on the small grid. How could you extend your pattern on the larger grid?

Turning Man

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow star

Use the interactivity to find out how many quarter turns the man must rotate through to look like each of the pictures.

Turning

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow star

Use your mouse to move the red and green parts of this disc. Can you make images which show the turnings described?

Walking Round a Triangle

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow star

This ladybird is taking a walk round a triangle. Can you see how much he has turned when he gets back to where he started?

Repeating Patterns

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow star

Try continuing these patterns made from triangles. Can you create your own repeating pattern?

Cover the Camel

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow star

Can you cover the camel with these pieces?

Domino Patterns

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow star

What patterns can you make with a set of dominoes?

En-counters

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow star

This task requires learners to explain and help others, asking and answering questions.

A City of Towers

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow star

In this town, houses are built with one room for each person. There are some families of seven people living in the town. In how many different ways can they build their houses?

Break it Up!

Age 5 to 11
Challenge Level Yellow star

In how many different ways can you break up a stick of seven interlocking cubes? Now try with a stick of eight cubes and a stick of six cubes. What do you notice?

Circles, Circles

Age 5 to 11
Challenge Level Yellow star

Here are some arrangements of circles. How many circles would I need to make the next size up for each? Can you create your own arrangement and investigate the number of circles it needs?

Triple Cubes

Age 5 to 11
Challenge Level Yellow star

This challenge involves eight three-cube models made from interlocking cubes. Investigate different ways of putting the models together then compare your constructions.

Olympic Rings

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow starYellow star

This problem is intended to get children to look really hard at something they will see many times in the next few months.

Caterpillars

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow starYellow star

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?

Three Ball Line Up

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow starYellow star

Use the interactivity to help get a feel for this problem and to find out all the possible ways the balls could land.

Triangle Animals

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow starYellow star

How many different ways can you find to join three equilateral triangles together? Can you convince us that you have found them all?

2 Rings

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow starYellow star

The red ring is inside the blue ring in this picture. Can you rearrange the rings in different ways? Perhaps you can overlap them or put one outside another?

Hundred Square

Age 5 to 11
Challenge Level Yellow starYellow star

A hundred square has been printed on both sides of a piece of paper. What is on the back of 100? 58? 23? 19?

School Fair Necklaces

Age 5 to 11
Challenge Level Yellow starYellow star

How many possible symmetrical necklaces can you find? How do you know you've found them all?

Tangram Tangle

Age 5 to 7
Challenge Level Yellow starYellow starYellow star

If you split the square into these two pieces, it is possible to fit the pieces together again to make a new shape. How many new shapes can you make?

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The NRICH Project aims to enrich the mathematical experiences of all learners. To support this aim, members of the NRICH team work in a wide range of capacities, including providing professional development for teachers wishing to embed rich mathematical tasks into everyday classroom practice.

NRICH is part of the family of activities in the Millennium Mathematics Project.

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