Triplets

Find as many sets of three numbers
as possible which add up to 36

20 15 9 22
36 6 7 14
19 17 7 10
8 18 21 23
They don't add up to 36

Click three numbers above that add up to 36. How many different sets of three numbers adding up to 36 can you find? For this activity the order matters (so 1+2+3 would be a different triplet to 3+1+2 for example). You can earn a Transum Trophy if you can find 30 triplets. Do not use a calculator.

You might also enjoy the Magic Square Puzzle.

 

Transum.org

This web site contains over a thousand free mathematical activities for teachers and pupils. Click here to go to the main page which links to all of the resources available.

Please contact me if you have any suggestions or questions.

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Mathematicians are not the people who find Maths easy; they are the people who enjoy how mystifying, puzzling and hard it is. Are you a mathematician?

Comment recorded on the 23 September 'Starter of the Day' page by Judy, Chatsmore CHS:

"This triangle starter is excellent. I have used it with all of my ks3 and ks4 classes and they are all totally focused when counting the triangles."

Comment recorded on the 1 February 'Starter of the Day' page by Terry Shaw, Beaulieu Convent School:

"Really good site. Lots of good ideas for starters. Use it most of the time in KS3."

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Featured Activity

Pentransum

Pentransum

Answer multiple choice questions about basic mathematical ideas. If you get a number of questions correct you will be invited to post a question of your own. The bank of questions grows larger every day.

Numeracy

"Numeracy is a proficiency which is developed mainly in Mathematics but also in other subjects. It is more than an ability to do basic arithmetic. It involves developing confidence and competence with numbers and measures. It requires understanding of the number system, a repertoire of mathematical techniques, and an inclination and ability to solve quantitative or spatial problems in a range of contexts. Numeracy also demands understanding of the ways in which data are gathered by counting and measuring, and presented in graphs, diagrams, charts and tables."

Secondary National Strategy, Mathematics at key stage 3

Go Maths

Learning and understanding Mathematics, at every level, requires learner engagement. Mathematics is not a spectator sport. Sometimes traditional teaching fails to actively involve students. One way to address the problem is through the use of interactive activities and this web site provides many of those. The Go Maths main page links to more activities designed for students in upper Secondary/High school.

Teachers

If you found this activity useful don't forget to record it in your scheme of work or learning management system. The short URL, ready to be copied and pasted, is as follows:

Alternatively, if you use Google Classroom, all you have to do is click on the green icon below in order to add this activity to one of your classes.

It may be worth remembering that if Transum.org should go offline for whatever reason, there are mirror site at Transum.info that contains most of the resources that are available here on Transum.org.

When planning to use technology in your lesson always have a plan B!

Transum,

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

"This interactive activity is the pupil version of the whole class lesson starter for 10th December. As well as doing this activity individually it is also worthwhile to do it as a class. As Morriss (Montgomery High School) comments, 'We spend 5 mins individually and then gathered our answers together and got 16 as a class! We really enjoyed this task and got pretty competitive between ourselves and the rest of the Schools that commented!'."

Do you have any comments? It is always useful to receive feedback and helps make this free resource even more useful for those learning Mathematics anywhere in the world. Click here to enter your comments.

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