Mathematical Challenges for Able Pupils in Key Stages One and Two

This book of challenges for more able students from the National Numeracy Strategy contains puzzles and problems. These are accessible to a wide range of students. There are three parts covering Years One and Two, Years Three and Four, and Years Five and Six.

The problems are intended to challenge students and extend their thinking. Whilst some of them may be solved fairly quickly, others will need perseverance and may extend beyond a single lesson. Students may need to draw on a range of skills to solve the problems. These include working systematically, sorting and classifying information, reasoning, predicting and testing hypotheses, and evaluating the solutions.

Many of the problems can be extended by asking ‘What if ....?’. Problems can also be extended by asking students to design similar problems of their own to give to their friends or families.

The introduction deals with aspects of classroom organisation, fitting the problems and puzzles into the termly planning, and the three part lesson.

Learning objectives appropriate to each problem are indicated so relevant problems can be integrated into the main teaching programme. Solutions are given at the end of the book.

Further paragraphs suggest other sources of enrichment activities and help for more able students.

Two exemplar activities are included Palindromic numbers (Year 4) and Alternative multiplication (Year 6).

• URL: http://stem.org.uk/rx6v6