Printable Math Puzzles and Games

A collection of activities I've created and used as an math center instructor.

Instructions

Print and Play: Put a plastic sleeve around the puzzles/games. Draw with whiteboard marker.

Or Stay Virtual: Download Math Puzzles - pdf format and annotate with a program like Kami, Adobe Reader, or Foxit.

Solitaire Activities:

[All Ages] Rectangle Fill is a set of 24 visual puzzles about exploring the different ways of factoring numbers.

[All Ages] Subtraction Pyramid is a quick little solitaire game. What's the highest score you can get?

[Ages 12+] Addition Pyramid puzzles can be found anywhere. However, I designed these to require algebra! The first puzzle uses basic arithmetic. The second can be solved through trial and error, though algebra is recommended. The third and fourth are nearly impossible without algebra. Hint: Call the missing bottom block N. The ones above it can be labeled like N + 5.

[All Ages] Spooky Houses is a geometric Halloween activity with room for creativity. (Note: Not tested thoroughly.)

[Ages 12+] Grocery Mystery is a way to make Systems of Equations puzzles for 2 or 3 variables. If all you know is how much 3 people paid for groceries, can you figure out what the price of each item is?

2-Player Game:

[Ages 4+] Journey to 40 is a simple Parcheesi-like game that uses the rules below:

• Use 2 pawns per player and 2 dice. (Use 1 pawn or 1 die for a simpler game.
  
• Each player puts 2 pawns on Start. The goal is to get both pawns to 40 by exact count (if your pawn is on 36, you must roll a 4 on one of your dice to get it home).
• On your  turn, roll the dice. Each die lets you move one of your pawns that many spaces ahead. If you land on an opponent's piece that isn't on a Safe spot (0, 10, 20, 30, or 40), they are sent back to the previous safe spot.
Example turn: You roll 4 and 3. You move one of your pawns from 22 to 26 and land on both of your opponent's pawns! They are both sent back to 20. Now you can move either of your pawns 3 spaces.