Problem of the day: TES Maths Resource of the Week

To see all of the work I do for TES Maths, including Resource of the Week, Inspect the Spec, Pedagogy Place, Maths Newsletters and Topic Collections, please visit the TES Maths Blog here

What is it?
This year on Resource of the Week I have been making a conscious effort to dip into the wonderful world of primary maths resources – and I am so glad I have, because I have uncovered some classics that have gone down a storm with my Key Stage 3 and even Key Stage 4 students. Take this incredible resource, for example. It is the complete collection of the daily problems White Rose Maths shared with teachers in the build up to the 2017 Key Stage 2 SATs. The problems come complete with teacher notes and answers, they are beautifully presented, they cover a wide range of topics, and the quality of them is superb. What is not to like?   

How can it be used?
Regular exposure to unvoential problems (problems in context, questions asked in a weird way, problems that combine more than one topic, etc) is crucial to develop students’ confidence and ability to tackle them. Hence, this lovely selection could be used regularly with Year 7 and 8 classes. There are enough questions here to use a couple of times a week and last the full year. They could be used a starters, or included on homeworks or low-stakes quizzes. Students could first tackle them on their own, and then share their strategies and ideas with their classmates. They could also form part of a whole-schools Problem of the Week, and be stuck on a noticeboard in the maths corridor to encourage discussion of mathematics outside of lessons. However you choose to use these problems, I strongly encourage you to use them, as they are brilliant.   

Thanks so much for sharing
Craig Barton

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