problem solving activities for ks2

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Problem Solving

 A selection of resources containing a wide range of open-ended tasks, practical tasks, investigations and real life problems, to support investigative work and problem solving in primary mathematics.

Problem Solving in Primary Maths - the Session

Quality Assured Category: Mathematics Publisher: Teachers TV

In this programme shows a group of four upper Key Stage Two children working on a challenging problem; looking at the interior and exterior angles of polygons and how they relate to the number of sides. The problem requires the children to listen to each other and to work together co-operatively. The two boys and two girls are closely observed as they consider how to tackle the problem, make mistakes, get stuck and arrive at the "eureka" moment. They organise the data they collect and are then able to spot patterns and relate them to the original problem to find a formula to work out the exterior angle of any polygon. At the end of the session the children report back to Mark, explaining how they arrived at the solution, an important part of the problem solving process.

In a  second video  two maths experts discuss some of the challenges of teaching problem solving. This includes how and at what stage to introduce problem solving strategies and the appropriate moment to intervene when children find tasks difficult. They also discuss how problem solving in the curriculum also helps to develop life skills.

Cards for Cubes: Problem Solving Activities for Young Children

Quality Assured Category: Mathematics Publisher: Claire Publications

This book provides a series of problem solving activities involving cubes. The tasks start simply and progress to more complicated activities so could be used for different ages within Key Stages One and Two depending on ability. The first task is a challenge to create a camel with 50 cubes that doesn't fall over. Different characters are introduced throughout the book and challenges set to create various animals, monsters and structures using different numbers of cubes. Problems are set to incorporate different areas of mathematical problem solving they are: using maths, number, algebra and measure.

Problem solving with EYFS, Key Stage One and Key Stage Two children

Quality Assured Category: Computing Publisher: Department for Education

These three resources, from the National Strategies, focus on solving problems.

  Logic problems and puzzles  identifies the strategies children may use and the learning approaches teachers can plan to teach problem solving. There are two lessons for each age group.

Finding all possibilities focuses on one particular strategy, finding all possibilities. Other resources that would enhance the problem solving process are listed, these include practical apparatus, the use of ICT and in particular Interactive Teaching Programs .

Finding rules and describing patterns focuses on problems that fall into the category 'patterns and relationships'. There are seven activities across the year groups. Each activity includes objectives, learning outcomes, resources, vocabulary and prior knowledge required. Each lesson is structured with a main teaching activity, drawing together and a plenary, including probing questions.

Primary mathematics classroom resources

Quality Assured Collection Category: Mathematics Publisher: Association of Teachers of Mathematics

This selection of 5 resources is a mixture of problem-solving tasks, open-ended tasks, games and puzzles designed to develop students' understanding and application of mathematics.

Thinking for Ourselves: These activities, from the Association of Teachers of Mathematics (ATM) publication 'Thinking for Ourselves’, provide a variety of contexts in which students are encouraged to think for themselves. Activity 1: In the bag – More or less requires students to record how many more or less cubes in total...

8 Days a Week: The resource consists of eight questions, one for each day of the week and one extra. The questions explore odd numbers, sequences, prime numbers, fractions, multiplication and division.

Number Picnic: The problems make ideal starter activities

Matchstick Problems: Contains two activities concentrating upon the process of counting and spotting patterns. Uses id eas about the properties of number and the use of knowledge and reasoning to work out the rules.

Colours: Use logic, thinking skills and organisational skills to decide which information is useful and which is irrelevant in order to find the solution.

GAIM Activities: Practical Problems

Quality Assured Category: Mathematics Publisher: Nelson Thornes

Designed for secondary learners, but could also be used to enrich the learning of upper primary children, looking for a challenge. These are open-ended tasks encourage children to apply and develop mathematical knowledge, skills and understanding and to integrate these in order to make decisions and draw conclusions.

Examples include:

*Every Second Counts - Using transport timetables, maps and knowledge of speeds to plan a route leading as far away from school as possible in one hour.

*Beach Guest House - Booking guests into appropriate rooms in a hotel.

*Cemetery Maths - Collecting relevant data from a visit to a local graveyard or a cemetery for testing a hypothesis.

*Design a Table - Involving diagrams, measurements, scale.

Go Further with Investigations

Quality Assured Category: Mathematics Publisher: Collins Educational

A collection of 40 investigations designed for use with the whole class or smaller groups. It is aimed at upper KS2 but some activities may be adapted for use with more able children in lower KS2. It covers different curriculum areas of mathematics.

Starting Investigations

The forty student investigations in this book are non-sequential and focus mainly on the mathematical topics of addition, subtraction, number, shape and colour patterns, and money.

The apparatus required for each investigation is given on the student sheets and generally include items such as dice, counters, number cards and rods. The sheets are written using as few words as possible in order to enable students to begin working with the minimum of reading.

NRICH Primary Activities

Explore the NRICH primary tasks which aim to enrich the mathematical experiences of all learners. Lots of whole class open ended investigations and problem solving tasks. These tasks really get children thinking!

Mathematical reasoning: activities for developing thinking skills

Quality Assured Category: Mathematics Publisher: SMILE

Problem Solving 2

Reasoning about numbers, with challenges and simplifications.

Quality Assured Category: Mathematics Publisher: Department for Education

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Maths - Key Stage 2 (7-11 year olds)

Problem solving.

Thinking of a Number

Children need to guess a number below 100 from clues on the clouds. Good for developing mathematical vocabulary.

Adding Time Word Problems

Word problems where you need to read the time on either an analogue or digital clock and then answer a word problem involving adding a given time.

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Play of the Wild

Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught. -Oscar Wilde

Outdoor Problem Solving Activities KS2- Learning Maths

Outdoor Problem Solving Activities KS2 – Learning Maths Outdoors

These are some ideas for outdoor problem solving activities for KS2 to help children with learning maths outdoors. One of the most critical aspects of teaching and learning maths is to be able to solve problems. While teaching maths in school, I found that it can become easy to get overly focused on teaching the rules and procedures for doing maths. These are essential tools that everyone needs, but the actual point is to be able to apply those skills in real life. Therefore, children must be given opportunities to practice problem-solving and make it purposeful.

I hope you find these outdoor problem solving activities for KS2 useful, and perhaps they will also inspire you to try other ideas. If you would like some other ways to take learning maths outdoors, you may also want to see my post, Outdoor Maths Activities KS2 .

Nim is a mathematical strategy game where two players take turns removing objects from a pile. Each player must take at least one object per turn. The goal is to either take or avoid taking the last item from the stack. Children can play nim with a pile of sticks or rocks.

Ordering natural objects by different features

Children can place in order objects such as rocks or pinecones based on the characteristic(s) they decide upon. It might be longest to shortest, least to the greatest circumference or smallest to greatest volume.

Observing the sun & moon

Children can explore and investigate the sun and moon, including changes that take place over time. They can try to figure out some of the following questions, and ask some of their own questions as well.

• What time does the sun set and rise? Does this ever change? How do you know?
• Where on the horizon do you first/last see the sun or the moon? Does this change? How do you know?
• Can you observe the phases of the moon- how does it change? Are there any patterns that you notice?

Measuring circles

Children can measure circles (such as flower pots, tree stumps or other circular objects found outside). They can measure the circumference, radius and diameter and then investigate the relationship between radius/diameter and circumference. What do children notice? Is there a pattern? They may even be able to ‘discover’ pi.

How tall is a tree?

Measure / calculate the height of a tree with the shadow & calculation method, triangle method and/or clinometer method.  If children try more than one method, do they get the same results?  Which method might be more accurate?

(ex. Estimating by height, clinometer method, looking through legs method, pencil method, meter stick method)

Different ways children can help with planning in a garden

Children can figure out how much space is available in the garden and how many different types of plants can be planted. Can they figure out how many of one kind of plant will fit into one planter box? Can they figure out how many different sized plants fit into the same planter box? Children would need to use their measuring skills to calculate the surface area of the garden. Then they would need to find out how much space each plant requires (e.g. from seed packets) and then determine how many and which of the plants can be used.

If a new planter box is purchased, children can help work out how many bags of compost would be needed to fill it. (They would need to measure, calculate the size, etc.) Will there be any leftover soil from one of the bags? How do you know?

If children grow crops such as pumpkins, they can do things like ordering them from heaviest to lightest. This way they might see which is the ‘prize-winning pumpkin’ in a harvest festival.

They might also consider how much each pumpkin could be sold for.  This would involve calculating each pumpkin’s cost, based on a price of £1.00 per kilo, £2.00 per kilo (or whatever reasonable price is determined). They might also try to figure out if larger pumpkins (or other crops like corn) always weigh more than smaller ones? *The children will have to define what is the larger, longer, or wider circumference.

Children could get involved with selling the crops they grow.  This will give them plenty of opportunities to use mathematical skills and handle money in real-life contexts. They will also need to plan the pricing of different vegetables based on weight, the number of vegetables, or selling them in combinations. Children could even try to figure out the appropriate amount to charge for each crop based on the cost of the seeds, the growing time, grocery store costs or any other factors.

If they do sell some of what they grow after school or possibly at a market, then the children can apply their maths skills to figure out how much each customer will need to pay when buying any particular fruit or vegetable.  

Monitoring Plant Growth

See if children can figure out how quickly different plants grow. Can they determine the rate of growth (e.g. mm per week)? Which seedlings / plants grow fastest? Is it a steady rate of growth, or does it change?

*To take this further, children might also conduct an experiment to compare different groups. They might compare the growth or the growth rate of plants whose seeds have been frozen vs those that have not, or something else.  

Making Shapes

How many shapes can you make (including shapes within shapes) using a set number of sticks (ex. 6 large sticks and 6 small sticks)? Is there a way to make more or fewer shapes using the same number of sticks?

Planning and holding a bake sale

(Some parts of this activity take place inside and some outside. This activity can be linked further to learning maths outdoors if children use some ingredients grown from a school garden).

Baking for a bake sale is a great way to give children hands-on practice solving problems in real contexts. For a baking project they will need to follow recipes and accurately use measuring cups and weighing scales. They might also want to make larger quantities and scale up recipes by doubling, tripling, or quadrupling them. The children will need to plan ahead and calculate how much of each ingredient they need to buy to make a set number of cookies, cupcakes, etc. They must also determine how many batches would be needed to make 200 cupcakes if the recipe makes 2 dozen.

Then when they hold an actual sale they will be using their maths skills to calculate how much to charge people.  They must also learn how to give people the proper change (just like selling vegetables above). They can setup a stall outside of school and sell them after school one day. 

Organizing and running a track & field event

Children can get involved in organizing a sports day or track and field event. They can first decide which events to include and then figure out how much space is needed for each activity (e.g. measuring the appropriate length and width required). The children can then help measure and set up the activities.

Once races are held, that data can be used to make calculations. For example – for a jumping event, children can measure how far people jump, and after several tries, figure out if there is improvement and how much (finding the difference). Children can time how far it takes them to run certain distances, e.g. 500 meters versus ½ a mile. They can figure out how fast they are running. They might then calculate how fast they ran different races (e.g. miles per hour) and then figure out when they ran faster or slower.  

Finding ways to approximate measurements

See if children can find different ways to measure the approximate distance between two far points with a meter stick and string. This might be the length of the playground or the distance between two trees, etc. Children might compare different ways of measuring the approximate distance such as measuring the length it takes them to take one step and then counting the number of steps between two points. They might also use the string to go between the two points and measure the string’s length. See if they can find any other ways to find the approximate distances.

I hope that you find these outdoor problem solving activities for KS2 helpful and it helps you take teaching and learning maths outdoors!

Arithmetic , Gardening , Geometry , Maths , Measurement , Number & Place Value , School Age , Sticks

hands-on learning , Learning Outdoors , learning outside , outdoor learning , Sticks

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Free Team Building Activities

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Free Team Building Activities For School

Marshmallow Towers

Group Size: Multiple groups of 4 – 5 Key Stages: KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Planning, Strategy, Communication Equipment: Balloons, Tape, Scissors, tape Measure https://youtu.be/YhOY9CM7qDg Use the link below to subscribe to our U Tube Channel: Subscribe Now Download Activity PDF Marshmallow towers requires small groups of 4

Group Size: Any Size,  space allowing Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills:  Concentration, Observation, Strategy, Agility Equipment: Ropes, Tape Or Chalk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVzEKAzDBmQ Use the link below to subscribe to our U Tube Channel: Subscribe Now Download Activity PDF Riverbank is a very easy team building activity

Team Tic Tac Toe

Group Size: Any Size,  space allowing Key Stages: KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Concentration, Observation, Strategy Communication Equipment: Stools Download Activity PDF https://youtu.be/g4pltPtYGHA Use the link below to subscribe to our U Tube Channel: Subscribe Now There are many ways to play Team Tic Tac Toe. This method

Take Action (Numbers & Actions)

Group Size: Any Size,  space allowing Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills:  Concentration, Following instructions, Speed Equipment: No Equipment Download Activity PDF https://youtu.be/88QLo21O8Xg Use the link below to subscribe to our U Tube Channel: Subscribe Now Take action is the perfect activity to energise your group.

Balloon Towers

Group Size: Multiple groups of 4 – 5   Key Stages: KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5   Team Building Skills: Planning, Strategy, Communication   Equipment: Balloons, Tape, Scissors, Tape Measure Download Activity PDF https://youtu.be/fx9cjm0Me_g Use the link below to subscribe to our You Tube Channel: Subscribe Now Balloon Tower requires small

Dig Dig Dig

Group Size:  10 – 30 Key Stages:  KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Communication, Observations,  Information Sharing Equipment: Chairs Download Activity PDF https://youtu.be/wSra18Xrvtw Use the link below to subscribe to our You Tube Channel: Subscribe Now Dig Dig Dig is the perfect activity for groups that are getting to

Group Juggle

Group Size: Up to 30 but the larger the number thelonger the ball takes to get to each student. Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Communication, Concentration Equipment: A selection of balls or beanbags. Download Activity PDF Use the link below to subscribe to our You

Newspaper Fashion Show

Group Size: Multiple groups of 4 – 5 Key Stages: KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Imagination, Planning, Strategy, Communication Equipment: Newspaper, String, Tape Download Activity PDF Newspaper Fashion Show will have your teams in tears of laughter. The participants will need to be arranged in groups of 4

Catch The Ball

Group Size: Multiple groups of 4 – 5 Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Co-operation, Competition Equipment: Different balls (Table tennis, Golf, Perforated), Drinking straws, Tape Download Activity PDF Catch The Ball is a fantastic exercise to get your groups thinking. With so many ways to

Move The Balloons

Group Size: 30 students plus (Space dependant) Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Coordination, Speed Equipment: Balloons – 1 per participant Move The Balloons is a fun fast paced game that will guarantee to have your students out of breath! The participants will need to be

Nosey Parker

Nosey Parker Group Size: Up to 13 players Key Stages: KS1 KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Concentration, Listening,  Communication Equipment: Pack of Playing cards Download Activity PDF This game is for up to 13 players as each player will need 4 cards from a pack of 52. If

Blindfolded Robots

Blindfolded Robots Group Size: 2 plus Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Communication, Trust Equipment:  Bean Bags, Screwed up pieces of paper Download Activity PDF Blindfolded Robots is a great team building challenge to help gain trust between two or more participants. The instructor / teacher

Caterpillar Tracks

Caterpillar Tracks   Group Size: 5 –unlimited space dependant Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Attention, Playing your role, Communication Equipment:  No Equipment Download Activity PDF Caterpillar Tracks is a fast paced fun team building activity for all ages. There are two ways to play: The

The White Brick Road

The White Brick Road Group Size: 5 – 30 space dependant Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Planning, Memory, Cooperation,  Trust Equipment:  A4 pieces of paper Download Activity PDF The White Brick Road is a great team building game that can be played in a few

Just A Minute

Just A Minute Group Size: Any Key Stages: KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Decision making, Communication, Planning. Equipment: A means of timing one minute accurately. Download Activity PDF Just A Minute is a very simple game that can be played in a few different ways. The first is

Burst The Balloons

Burst The Balloons Group Size: Any, although large groups may get a little hectic. Key Stages: KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Organisation, Trust, Communication Equipment: Balloons (cheap balloons work best) and sellotape Download Activity PDF For Burst The Balloons each Person will need to sellotape a balloon to

Mirror Mirror

Mirror Mirror Group Size: Work in group of 2 Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills : Cooperation, Focus, Attention to detail Equipment: No equipment needed Download Activity PDF Mirror Mirror is a very simple but very effective cooperation game. The students will need to work in groups of two.

The Silent Countdown

The Silent Countdown Group Size: 10 – 30 Key Stages: KS1 KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills : Concentration, Listening,  Communication Equipment: Blindfolds (possible without)  Download Activity PDF The Silent Countdown is the perfect activity if you want your group to think carefully about what is going on within a team. The

The Sitting Circle

The Sitting Circle Group Size: 10 – 30 Key Stages: Upper KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Trust, Communication Equipment: No equipment needed Download Activity PDF The Sitting Circle will require participants to be willing to get close to their team mates. The instructor / teacher will need to organise the team

Bridge Build

Group Size: 5 – 30 Key Stages: KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills : Planning, Communication, Generating Ideas Equipment: Newspaper, Cellotape Download Activity PDF Bridge Build is a great team building activity for generating ideas and putting them into practice. The students will need to be put of groups of approx 4-5.

The Steeple Chase

The Steeple Chase Group Size: 10 – 100 (space dependant) Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills : Group participation, Following a lead, Public speaking – if commentating Equipment: No equipment needed Download Activity PDF The Steeple Chase is certainly not a quiet circle game. The first thing that you

The Elephant Race

The Elephant Race Group Size: 10 – 100 (space dependant) Key Stages: KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills : Taking Part, Personal contact Equipment: No equipment needed Download Activity PDF The Elephant Race is a game that will have the participating teams laughing all the way to the finish line. The instructor

Fizz Buzz Group Size: 10 – 30 Key Stages: KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills : Concentration, Support Equipment: No equipment needed Download Activity PDF Fizz Buzz is a fast paced counting game…..with a twist. The group will need to sit in a circle. Decide where to start the game and that

How Are You Doing?, Just Fine Thanks!

Group Size: 10 – 16 Key Stages: KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills : Trust, Communication Equipment: Blindfolds Download Activity PDF To begin with the group will need to stand in a circle. The instructor / teacher will then to need to tell everyone to turn to the person on their right. They

Group Size: 10 – 30   Key Stages: KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5   Team Building Skills : Following instructions, Group participation   Equipment: No equipment Download Activity PDF Grand Prix is an active and often noisy circle game. The idea is that the participants are pretending to be a racing

Sleeping Lions

Sleeping Lions Group Size: 5 – 30 Key Stages –  KS1, KS2, KS3 Team Building Skills : Common Goal, Trust Equipment: No equipment Download Activity PDF If you have not discovered Sleeping Lions then you will be amazed. It is a brilliant activity to have up your sleeve. Some might say a life

Group Size: 10 – 30 Key Stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Getting to know each other,  communication Equipment: Paper and pens Download Activity PDF This is a great guessing game and a fantastic getting to know you game. Every participant will need to be given a small piece of

The River Group Size: Unlimited, although space dependant Key Stages:  KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Following instructions, Individual thinking Equipment: Chalk, tape or rope Download Activity PDF This activity is great for big groups. You will need to mark two parallel lines on the floor. This may be done using

The Teddy Chase

Size: 10 – 30 Key stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Co-operation, Team Spirit, public speaking if commentating Equipment: Two teddy bears, blindfolds if you are running a variation. Download Activity PDF This is a great team challenge for all ages. With the participants sat in a

Flap The Fish – Fast Paced Team Building Activity

Group Size – Unlimited – although space dependant Key stages –  KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills : Common aim, competitive Equipment – Newspapers, magazine, thick plastic bag. Download Activity PDF Split your students into the same sized groups of between 3 – 6 This fun fast paced fishy

Wizards, Knights and Maidens.

Group Size – 20 Key stages –  KS2, KS3, KS4  Team Building Skills : Working together, Following instructions  Equipment – No Equipment Required Download Activity PDF Students work in groups of 2. If the facilitator shout ‘Wizards’ the pair must assume the following position as fast as possible – both

Blindfold Pass – Free Blindfolded Team Building Activity

Group Size: 10 – 100 Key stages: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5  Team Building Skills : Co-operation, Trust Equipment: Bell or other noisy item Download Activity PDF For this blindfolded team building activity the group stand in a large circle. One member of the group stands in the middle of the circle. They need to wear

Battle of the Pen – Free Indoor Team Building Game

Group Size: 6+ Key stages:  KS2, KS3 , KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Communication,  Equipment: Pen, Coin and table and chairs  Download Activity PDF This is an indoor team building game played around a table. Ideally even sized teams sit in lines facing each other across a table. Sitting in chairs is

Fruit Salad – Free Team Building Game

For this team building activity everyone is required to stand in a circle. The bigger the group the better – Tricky at the time of print! Go around the circle and give all team members a name – Kiwi, lime, pineapple, banana. These names can be whatever you fancy, although

The Sky Is The Limit aka Newspaper Towers – Free Team Building Exercise

Group Size: Multiple Groups of 4 – 6 Key Stage: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5 Team Building Skills: Creativity; Verbal Communication; Decision Making Equipment: Newspapers; Cellotape Download Activity PDF The Sky is the Limit –  AKA: Newspapers Towers,  This activity is a great team building exercise where the equipment of old newspapers and

Free Team Problem Solving Activity – Back To Back aka Sketch It

Back to Back – Sketch it. Students will work in pairs and sit back to back. They will take it in turns to be the describer and the sketcher. The describer will describe a shape without saying the name whilst the sketcher will try to draw the described shape as

Free Team Building Activity – Alphabet Hunt

A great fun yet inexpensive team building activity. All that is required is some scissors a newspaper a piece of A4 paper and a glue stick or cellotape per team. We suggest that this activity is run in teams of 2-6. However larger teams will work. The aim of the

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KS2 Maths Investigations Based On Real Life In Primary School

Sophie Bessemer

It’s been a long week and it is time to hand out your latest ‘exciting’ KS2 maths investigations, carefully crafted problem solving investigations focused specifically on the work you’ve been doing this week.

But then you hear the the immortal words from your Year 6: ” What Does This Have To Do With The Real World?”

Any good teacher knows, of course, exactly how relevant maths is in the real world and how, without maths, modern society as we know it would never have existed.

The problem is, not all 11 year olds know it too – and you’re going to have a hard time convincing some of them.

In defence of 11 year olds, the curriculum – maths in particular – can sometimes feel all too distant from what’s ‘real’.

So the question then becomes, how do we show young learners how Maths intersects and dominates our day to day life?

How do we give our KS2 pupils maths investigations that inspire them, change their perceptions and help them to move beyond a fixed mindset to see maths problem solving as entirely relevant to what may come next in life?

If you’re just interested in maths investigations for Year 5 and Year 6 we’ve created jump to the end of the blog where they’re all listed by term.

KS2 Maths Investigations: Problem solving in context

Benefits of maths investigations at ks2, 5 top tips for creating your own ks2 maths investigations, year 5 and year 6 maths investigations.

We believe that one of the answers is putting your maths problem solving activities into a context that your pupils can relate to.

We call this Topical Maths, and we’ve used this idea as the source for several of our most popular Year 5 and Year 6 maths problem solving resources, all offering the kind of KS2 maths investigations we know your pupils will love!

KS2 Topical Maths Problems

25 real world maths investigations to practise reasoning and problem solving based on primary school calendar events

There are lots of benefits of course, but the most important as far as we’re concerned are these:

• Pupils are required to talk and reason about their maths
• The maths problem solving investigations cement higher order reasoning skills and problem solving
• Starting early with Year 5 maths investigations you can support familiarity with the sorts of questions that come up in Year 6 SATs.

To encourage you to give these KS2 maths investigations a go, we’ll first look at the benefits and principles of introducing them for your reasoning and problem solving at Year 5 and Year 6, we’ll then give you some ideas for how you can create these problem solving activities for the rest of KS2 yourself.

We guarantee you’ll see your pupils’ reasoning and problems solving skills improve!

1. KS2 Maths Investigations Involve Pupils Talking and Reasoning

Getting pupils to verbalise their numerical reasoning has a knock-on effect on pupils’ overall reasoning skills, which is why the core element of our  KS2 maths intervention  is mathematical reasoning; asking pupils to explain not just what they’re doing, but why they’re doing it.

As a teacher of a large class, it can be difficult to provide the teacher time necessary for each pupil to verbalise to you their reasoning.

The inherently collaborative nature of year 5 and year 6 maths investigations gives pupils the opportunities to to reason out loud and work on their maths problem solving skills.

2. KS2 Maths Investigations Cement Higher Order Reasoning Skills

Our experience teaching thousands of primary school pupils maths every week has shown us that at KS2, even by Year 5 or Year 6, pupils often have good procedural understanding, but struggle with higher order problem solving questions.

The problem solving element to these topical maths investigations naturally improves reasoning skills in Year 5 and Year 6 pupils, as they are more likely on reaching an answer to have to think about not just how but why that answer is correct.

By setting topical maths investigations at KS2 as group-work or a whole class activity, you can ensure that all pupils get to experience this deep level of reasoning.

Many of our topical maths investigations are open ended, but if you’re teaching a fully mixed ability class, we’ve also created some  low threshold high ceiling open ended maths investigations  specifically for mixed ability classes.

3. KS2 Maths Investigations Give Early Exposure To SATs Style, Reasoning Questions

Most, if not all, schools will provide their pupils with exposure to reasoning via SATs-style questions, but this often comes hand in hand with exams and assessment.

Yet, it is equally important to get pupils reasoning and problem solving in a low stakes classroom setting or as a group.

Creating a learning environment where the types of problem solving questions found in SATs just become part of  your lessons will help pupils feel comfortable with exam terminology, and ensures they are more at ease with being asked the same kind of question (say, multiplying and dividing fractions) in lots of different ways.

These maths problem solving investigations and downloadable resources enable you to include these type of SATs style questions in a way which is fun and confidence boosting.

More problem solving and reasoning articles

• Ultimate Guide to Maths Problem Solving Techniques
• Maths Investigations: How To Develop Mathematical Reasoning
• 35 Year 6 Maths Reasoning Questions .

You don’t need to create your own problem solving investigations – the links at the end of this article should provide you with everything you need. However if you do want to have a go these were our principles and, judging by the number of visits. to the date related articles and downloads of these resources we get every year, they’re still very popular.

1. Date-based themes for maths problem solving activities

Nothing solidifies maths in the real world quite like the real world. Nearly, if not everyday of the year holds some significance to someone.

February? Pancake day, Valentines Day, and Fairtrade Fortnight.

March? Red Nose Day, World Book Day, and Holi.

Why not spice your lesson up and throw in some Pancake Day Maths for ratios, or Bonfire Night Maths for measurements. Capitalise on special celebrations throughout the world to excite and enthuse young learners.

For example these  Christmas activities always prove popular with KS1 and KS2  or at a different time of year you could try these summer  holiday maths investigations  or any of these  maths activities .

2. Trends and pop-culture KS2 maths investigations

Peers and pop culture hold huge sway over most pupils, and the reason for this is that as growing persons we want to fit in and find friends.

Nothing achieves this more effectively than mutual interest. As a teacher, utilise it – whether this is measuring the speed of explosions in the latest Transformer film, or totalling the high notes in Disney’s Moana – you’ll have pupils hooked in no time.

For the exceptionally savvy teacher, you might want to capitalise on the latest fads and trends within your school. How about measuring amounts via the infamous bottle trick, or examining angles through the lens of the dab?

3. Simple stuff engages pupils with maths problem solving and reasoning

Sometimes when teachers link maths back to real world issues, politics, and the universe at large, it can still feel a little dissonant for the younger pupils.

Don’t be afraid to stick with the simple stuff and the smaller aspects of the world.

Everybody needs to know how much change they’ll have left over after a bus ride home, everyone wants to know exactly how many chocolate bars they can gorge themselves on with two pounds, and everyone wants to know how many times they can go on the log-flume with five tickets.

Keeping it simple can be one of the most effective ways to engage pupils by showing them the mathematics they will employ in every-day life.

4. Cool factor for primary teachers – even in maths

Generally – note this is a generalisation – as a secondary teacher, one can spend eternity being uncool. Luckily primary school teachers get an easier rap, and KS2 pupils are willing to be ‘wowed’. All students can be ‘wowed’ under the right circumstances, but with younger, more malleable minds it can be somewhat easier.

Astronauts, magicians, superheroes, cute animals, cartoons, all carry the power of enthusiasm. They can be your secret weapon for making percentages fun – you’re not halving a number, you’re a magician halving a 167cm person in a special box, etc.

5. Make your maths investigations REALLY relevant

Relevance can be highly underrated when it comes to linking seemingly abstract topics to the real world.

One trick is to instead of distributing your problem solving activity sheets with strangers’ names and unrelatable allegories in the questions, why not make those names and allegories about your class.

Instead of a stranger gathering four apples and eating three, make your pupil.

Instead of apples, why not their favourite snack?

Letting students pick names in questions gives them greater agency in their learning and can be highly engaging.

Better still, putting their names/hobbies/likes/dislikes will not only show them that you know them, and that you care, but it will establish clear links between the work they are doing and the world proper.

Here’s our complete list of topical maths investigations for year 5 and year 6.

Autumn Term maths investigations year 6 and year 5

• Autumn maths activities
• Halloween maths activities
• Bonfire Night maths activities
• Christmas maths activities

Spring Term maths investigations year 6 and year 5

• Heart Month Months activities
• Shrove Tuesday Maths activities
• Pancake Day Maths activities
• World Book Day Maths activities
• International Women’s Day Maths activities
• British Science Week Maths activities
• Holi Maths activities
• Easter/Lent Maths activities

Summer term maths investigations year 6 and year 5

• Share-a-Story Month activities
• FA Cup Maths activities
• Walk to School Week activities
• Ramadan Maths activities
• Child Safety Week activities

And if that’s not enough we’ve even got maths activities for Year 5 and Year 6 for events you’re likely to celebrate in primary school but don’t come round every year… 

• Red Nose Day Maths activities
• World Cup Maths activities
• Election Maths
• Jubilee Maths activities

We update these blog posts every year so keep an eye on your calendar, and let us know how you get on @thirdspacetweet.

DO YOU HAVE STUDENTS WHO NEED MORE SUPPORT IN MATHS?

Every week Third Space Learning’s specialist online maths tutors support thousands of students across hundreds of schools with weekly online 1 to 1 maths lessons designed to plug gaps and boost progress.

Since 2013 these personalised one to 1 lessons have helped over 169,000 primary and secondary students become more confident, able mathematicians.

Learn how the programmes are aligned to maths mastery teaching or request a personalised quote for your school to speak to us about your school’s needs and how we can help.

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Maths Problem Solving: Engaging Your Students And Strengthening Their Mathematical Skills

Free Year 7 Maths Test With Answers And Mark Scheme: Mixed Topic Questions

What Is A Number Square? Explained For Primary School Teachers, Parents & Pupils

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Home » Games » 17 Fun Problem Solving Activities & Games [for Kids, Adults and Teens]

17 Fun Problem Solving Activities & Games [for Kids, Adults and Teens]

Everyone should learn problem solving, as it is important in both our personal and professional lives. Problems occur all around us and many people react with spontaneous emotion. Instead, effective use of problem solving skills can lead to rational thinking, a component of any successful endeavor.

Creative problem involves using one or more of the basic steps of problem solving in exercises designed to challenge the thinking. Problem solving activities work for every age group. In this article, we will present problem-solving activities for adults and kids. We will also provide you with group and team building problem solving ideas.

Table of Contents

There are four basic steps in problem solving:

• define the problem
• generate possible solutions
• evaluate and select possible solutions
• implement solutions

Problem solving activities use one of more of these steps.

Group Problem Solving Activities

Group activities provide an effective way to learn problem-solving skills. The following list of activities present problem solving skills in the form of games, a non-threatening and fun way.

Divide your group into teams of equal numbers. Give each team a ball of yarn. Instruct the teams to create a web using only the yarn. Once the teams have finished (you may have to set an amount of time for completion), switch the teams around so that every team has a web other than their own. Each team then blindfolds one team member. The goal is for the blindfolded individual to unwind the web following the verbal instruction of their teammates. In order to be successful, team members must concentrate, and give/follow directions. The first team that has dismantled the web wins this game.

To Do Scavenger Hunt

This scavenger hunt game involves solving a list of problem activities. Begin by dividing your group into teams. Give each group a list of to do activities. The list should begin with some simple tasks, with increasingly more difficult activities. Some suggested activities are:

• Write a one hundred word poem on a given theme.
• Find an object readily available in the area in which you are playing
• Drink a whole can or glass of a liquid
• Solve a Sudoku or cross word puzzle
• Write out all the lyrics of a song (a Christmas carol works well at holiday time)

The team that completes all the activities first, wins.

Impromptu Skits

Prior to playing this game, write down a few appropriate situations that deal events in the venue in which you are playing. For example, for a group involved in customer service, use dealing with an angry customer on the phone. If you have a large group, divide them into teams of six to eight members. Have each group choose a folded piece of paper on which you have written the subject of a skit they must create.  Give a set amount of time to prepare the skit and then have each team present their skit to the group. If you have a small group, have each person create one side of a conversation dealing with the problem for presentation to everyone.

Block Duplicating

Build a model out of building blocks. Provide each group member (or divide into teams for a large group ) enough blocks to duplicate the model. Set a specific amount of time for completing the duplicated model. The team that is the first to finish – or gets the furthest on completing their model – wins. The more difficult the original model, the longer this task will take.

Team Building Problem Solving Activities

When choosing team building problem solving activities, make sure the game you use suits the group of people – their ages and interests. The activities we have listed will help with not only problem solving, but also build decision making, collaboration, and listening skills.

Tower Building

Although there are many variations to this game, this one using spaghetti and marsh mellows is our favorite. Divide you group into teams with an equal number of players. Provide each team with an equal amount of spaghetti and marsh mellows. The goal is to see which team can build the highest tower within a set amount of time.

Personalized Crossword

For this game to be effective, you need one or more teams of 8 to 10 people. Have each team list the first and last names of their group members. The goal is to create a crossword puzzle with clues composed of hints about the person, for example, if only one team member has red hair, the two clues for her first and last name could be, “Red hair,” and “Ginger.” It should take each team 20 to 30 minutes to complete their puzzle. When all the teams are finished, trade puzzles so that every team has a different one. Make sure you provide a list of names for the puzzle solvers.

Picture Pieces Puzzle Game

Prepare for this problem solving activity by choosing a well-known picture or cartoon full of detail. Cut the picture into equal sized squares and give one to each member of the group. You will need as many pieces as you have participants. Additionally, give each person a pencil, ruler for help enlarging the picture, colored markers, and a clean sheet of paper. Instruct them to make the puzzle piece five times larger.

Problem Solving Activities for Adults

Divide your group into two teams. Line up the two teams front to back. Have the two groups face each other. Using chalk, spray paint, or masking tape (depending on the play surface) mark a square space for each person to stand on with one extra empty space between the two facing rows. You may also use a piece of paper for each person. The goal is for the two facing lines of players to change places.

Place these restrictions on movement:

• Only one person may move at a time.
• A person may not move around anyone facing the same direction.
• A person may not move backward.
• A person may not move around more than one person on the other team at a time.

Playing Card Mix-up

Divide your group into teams of six to eight participants. Give each team two decks of cards randomly mixed together. Tell the group they must sort them out without talking. As they working at the task, after a few minutes, change the way in which they are doing so using one of the following:

• If a team is sorting by suits from ace to king (4 stacks), tell them to collect the suits together by number (13 stacks).
• If a team begins by collecting the suits together, i.e. all the ones, twos, threes, etc., tell them to sort the suits from ace to king.

The team(s) that do so successfully by the end of a given time (depending on the size of your group) share what methods they used to accomplish the task.

Blindfolded games are always fun and provide the perfect challenge for adult problem solving. We have provided two for you.

Blind Formations

Have your group of adults put on blindfolds and form a large circle. Tie the ends of a rope together and lay in it a circle in the middle of the group, close enough that each person can reach down and pick up the rope. Tell them they must create a shape – a square, triangle, pentagon, etc. If you have a very large group, divide them into teams and provide a rope for each team. Let them compete to see who forms a particular shape quickest.

Line up Blind

Blindfold everyone and number the group by whispering a number to each individual beginning at one. Tell them to line up in numerical order without talking. Variations are many, with some of the favorites not requiring the whispering step being to line up according to height, birthday, surname, color of hair, etc.

Balloon Tower

Divide you group into teams of three and provide ten balloons and four 3-foot long strips of masking tape for each team. The object of this problem solving activity is to build the tallest freestanding tower in ten minutes. They can break the balloons if they wish. However, they may not use any additional materials and the tower must be built on a table or the floor. If you wish, you may add the following instructions:

• No talking.
• Each team member may use only one hand.
• One team member may not touch the materials and only give directions.

You can use one or more of these limitations in 60-second intervals. The first team to complete their tower wins this challenge.

Problem Solving Activities for Kids

The purpose of problem solving activities for kids is to get kids to think about a problem in a different way and have fun while solving it. Children will develop their creativity as they seek to implement a solution.

Walking the Plank

For this problem solving activity for older kids or teens, you will need four 2×6 boards. Divide your group into two teams with an equal number of children on each team. Place two of the four boards end to end on the ground or floor. Set the other two parallel to the first two about two or three feet apart. The goal is for each team to pass one board forward while standing on the other board in single file. If someone steps off a board, the team must start over. The team that succeeds in passing the boards a set number of times, or reaches a predetermined spot is the winner.

“Laser” Web

Use a large ball of string to create a giant web from one end of a room to the other. The goal is for individuals or teams to move through the web without touching the string. If they do so, they have been “zapped by a laser” and must try again. For greater suspense and for older players, use blindfolds or turn off the lights, allowing players to touch the string, but not pull it down or out of its original shape.

Group Drawing

Divide your group of kids into teams of three. Each person on the team has a one of the following roles:

• Drawer . The drawer attempts to recreate a pre-drawn design they cannot see. They take directions from the talker. They stand with their back to the talker and viewer and may not talk.
• Talker . The talker describes the design to the drawer, without seeing the design. They may question the viewer. They may not use hand gestures.
• Viewer . The viewer sees the design. However, they are not allowed to talk and must communicate nonverbally to the talker.  Additionally, they must not draw the design in the air or actually show the design with their gestures.

The activity ends when the viewers say they are satisfied with the drawings. You may wish to award a prize to the best drawing.

Prior to playing this game, write on individual slips of paper the names of animal pairs, one name on each slip. Distribute the slips of paper to each group, instructing them not to share which animal name they received. The kids then move around performing activities their animal might do. The goal is for the kids to get into pairs successfully in a set amount of time without talking or making any noises. Suggest the following activities:

• Cleaning or grooming
• Eating and drinking
• Walking or running

Alphabet Game

Have your players sit or stand in a circle. The goal is to shout out words in alphabetical order. Give the kids one of the following categories (or choose your own):

If a player takes longer than five seconds to think of a word, they are out. The last player remaining wins the game.

People achieve more when they solve problems and make decisions together. Our problem solving activities teach participants how to work out a solution, a talent useful in many different environments. Problem solving:

• Improves team work
• Helps participants address complex situations
• Utilizes different thinking styles
• Increases creativity
• Collectively leads to decision making
• Teaches both negotiation and cooperation

After completing a problem solving activity, encourage participants to discuss what process(es) they used in the exercise. Even kids are able to participate in such discussions. Also ask what was learned and if they have any opinions about how they could have solved the problem more efficiently.

Team-building exercises can improve problem solving and decision making in a new or established team. They work with every age group and in many different environments. Use our exercises to help solve problems and have some fun doing so.

Susan majored in English with a double minor in Humanities and Business at Arizona State University and earned a Master’s degree in Educational Administration from Liberty University. She taught grades four through twelve in both public and private schools. Subjects included English, U.S. and world history and geography, math, earth and physical science, Bible, information technologies, and creative writing.

Susan has been freelance writing for over ten years, during which time she has written and edited books, newspaper articles, biographies, book reviews, guidelines, neighborhood descriptions for realtors, Power Point presentations, resumes, and numerous other projects.

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Thanks for your help!!

excellent ideas – thanks !

Excellent ideas.

Thank you. My students have requested we do team-building activities; I thought we would start with problem-solving.

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Team Building & Problem Solving

Subject: Physical education

Age range: 11-14

Resource type: Worksheet/Activity

Last updated

8 July 2013

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