This hands-on activity helps students develop spatial sense and scaling concepts. Students use interlocking cubes to build first a chair and then a table of appropriate size for the chair. The student goes on to build two other sets of chairs and tables to make three different sizes in all. The Teachers' Notes page includes suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, and ideas for extension.

The Big6 is a six-stage model to help anyone solve problems or make decisions by using information. Students can use this model to guide them through the research process. This resource is a science fair project checklist that utilizes the Big6 model.

The Big6 is a six-stage model to help anyone solve problems or make decisions by using information. Students can use this model to guide them through the research process. This resource is an assignment checklist that utilizes the Big6 model.

The Big6 is a six-stage model to help anyone solve problems or make decisions by using information. Students can use this model to guide them through the research process. This resource is a writing checklist that utilizes the Big6 model.

The Big6 is a six-stage model to help anyone solve problems or make decisions by using information. Students can use this model to guide them through the research process. This resource is a writing checklist that utilizes the Big6 model.

In this activity students develop fraction concepts by reasoning about what choices they would make in order to get the most chocolate. Students determine how much candy they would receive as they enter one at a time and sit at one of three tables holding different amounts of candy which get shared equally. The activity includes the problem, tips for getting started, a teacher resource page, and a printable page of the problem.

The Big6 is a six-stage model to help anyone solve problems or make decisions by using information. Students can use this model to guide them through the research process. The Super3 is a simplified version of the model for younger students. This article shared ideas for helping younger students learn citation and crediting skills.

This problem is an investigation into combinations of a number of cubes. It is a practical activity which involves working systematically, and visualizing and relating 3D shapes to their representation on paper. Children are asked how many different towers are possible using seven cubes on a base of two of them. The Teachers' Notes page includes suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, ideas for extension and support, and printable handouts (word/pdf).

This activity helps students become familiar with positional words and develop systematic thinking. Students use the clues provided to arrange six colored squares in an array, either on paper or with the interactive Flash applet that is provided. The Teachers' Notes page includes suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, ideas for extension and support and a printable sheet (doc). Students may be asked to create a similar problem for others to solve.

This activity allows students to explore reflective symmetry. They are asked to color a given arrangement of triangles in symmetric patterns using specific numbers of colors. The Teachers' Notes page includes suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, ideas for extension and support, and printable sheets

In this investigation students explore the concept of ratios and their relationship with factors and multiples. Given an assortment of cogs (gears) with different numbers of teeth, solvers are asked to find which pairs allow for each tooth of one to fit into every gap of the other, and to form conjectures regarding which pairs would work generally. The problem is well-suited for group work. The Teachers' Notes page offers suggestions for implementation, key questions, student sheets, and links to articles, videos, and an interactive Cog Environment (cataloged separately).

This problem gives children an opportunity to explore an increasing pattern and then generalize the results with a rule. Students begin with a single counter, surround it by a ring of other counters and then each new ring is surrounded with more counters. Solvers record results as they replicate the pattern and make predictions about many counters there will be in any given ring. The Teachers' Notes page offers suggestions for implementation, key discussion questions, ideas for extension and support.

Solvers of this problem apply number sense and logical reasoning to determine the numbers of cows and sheep in each of five fields by using clues about how many cows and sheep can be seen by each animal. The problem includes questions for getting started, suggestions for implementation and differentiation, a printable student page, and sample solutions.

This problem requires some visualization and knowledge of 3D shapes. It gives children experience of identifying shapes from pictures of them in different positions and orientations. Ideas for implementation, extension and support are included along with a printable sheet of shape cards.

The Word documents linked on this web page identify resources from the NRICH collection that have been mapped to the strands (Number, Algebra, Shape and Space, and Handling Data) of the framework for teaching mathematics in the United Kingdom. These resources promote the development of content knowledge as well as mathematical thinking and problem-solving (process) skills. The stage 1 mapping is most useful for K-2, while the stage 2 document is for grades 3-6.

This activity asks students to recognize differences in shapes and sort them. They are given a set of 15 shape cards that they can sort by the criteria of color, size and shape. Ideas for implementation, extension and support are included along with a printable sheet of the cards.

In this article the author suggests three ways teachers can support learners to become confident and competent problem solvers. Each suggestion is discussed in detail with links to NRICH tasks and articles to provide further understanding of this complex process. The article can also be downloaded as a PDF.

This article offers advice to educators on developing learners' collaboration skills through problem solving. The author presents six categories of tasks, each of which addresses a set of teamwork skills (e.g. listening, sharing, reflecting) and includes several tasks which could serve as the vehicle. Links to the tasks, printable materials, and other resources are included.

This 13-page article presents eight aspects to consider when creating a classroom culture that supports problem solving. The article identifies each of the eight aspects and then goes into more detail suggesting activities that can be done in the classroom to promote more student discourse and problem solving. Throughout the article are links to supportive math activities, research articles and professional development activities.

This article helps educators answer questions about geometric thinking and the activities that develop it. It outlines the 3 levels of thinking about shape and space and the 5 phases of activities known as the van Hiele model. The tangram puzzle provides a vehicle for describing these phases and the types of thinking students achieve in each one. The article concludes with a suggestion about followup activity.