Summer Challenges

Fantastic, summer holidays are upon us! Fun, relaxing, resting and more in store. It’s a really long time to go without doing any mathematics and so the following are some suggestions of puzzles, problems and activities you can have a go at to keep your mind active! This has been offered to students at the International School of Toulouse but we would love it if we thought other people were using it too! Even better if some discussion opened up about some of these problems on this blog! Good luck and have great summer!

Games from around the world http://nrich.maths.org/8261 Try playing some of these when you are on the go, in the car or wherever! Strategy games are great brain activity and most of us like a good game.

Challenge area 1 – Logic puzzles

Logic puzzles are a lovely model for mathematics, so much of what happens in this subject boils down to logical deduction. Below is a selection of some great logic problems to challenge you!

• Whose Fish http://coudal.com/thefish.php
• Logic problems from nrich http://nrich.maths.org/8073
• Puzzlers paradise http://www.puzzlersparadise.com/page1034.html
• Logic Games http://www.mathplayground.com/logicgames.html
• Sudoku - Dont forget this classic puzzle and all its variations. There are hundreds of sources for this one.

If you come across some really good logic puzzles then please share them with us via this blog!

Challenge area 2 – Problems with geometry

You might need a computer with dynamic geometry to have a go at these so maybe it is not so easy on the go but they are great problems!

• Dr Who http://www.teachmaths-inthinking.co.uk/activities/dr-who.htm
• Kaleidoscope http://www.teachmaths-inthinking.co.uk/activities/kaleidoscope.htm
• Olympic Logos http://www.teachmaths-inthinking.co.uk/activities/olympic-rings-logo.htm
• Kite in a square http://nrich.maths.org/8301

Please, if you get any good solutions or animations you can share then do so via this blog!

Challenge area 3 – Number problems

Here are some good number problems to work on!

• Divisibility http://www.teachmaths-inthinking.co.uk/activities/divisibility.htm
• Concentric Magic Squares http://www.teachmaths-inthinking.co.uk/activities/concentric-magic-squares.htm
• Visualising indices http://www.teachmaths-inthinking.co.uk/activities/visualising-indices.htm=cl Cut to the chase with this one and try producing a work of art based on tis idea.
• 2012 Game – if you didn’t try this one already, see how far you can get! http://www.teachmaths-inthinking.co.uk/activities/2012-puzzle.htm

Challenge area 4 – Algebraic Sequences

• OXO – be ambitious and go for the 3D case, any length of line in any cuboid – a real challenge! http://www.teachmaths-inthinking.co.uk/activities/oxo.htm
• Fibs http://nrich.maths.org/537Loopy http://nrich.maths.org/475