Topics: Starter | Logic | Puzzles

• Mr James, Hertfordshire
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• 1441, Brilliant starter! Really gets them to use their logical side!
• N Cox, Ipswich
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• Great number idea based on the Mastermind game. I have also used a developed version of this with pupils where they get a dot if they have a right digit in the wrong place and a star for the right digit in the right place. They play this in pairs as a starter.
• SFBS 4M 2010, Seoul
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• We think it's 1432. Where's the answer page?
• Mrs. Smith, Florida
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• My student's think it is 2444. What is the answer?
• Mrs. Smith, Florida
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• Ah...nevermind. It changes each time the page is reloaded.
• Anna Chapman, St Leonards East Sussex
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• My 10-11 year olds found this hard because they don't have experience of the original game. Tips for a strategy might have helped.
• Miss. Jane Smith, New Jersy
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• It was good but needed to be easier,never mind my class did'nt get it..... again...
• Steve Scanlon, Adult Numeracy Tutor
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• Interesting the references to the 'original game'. My maths teacher taught me this game at the end of the 1960s as "Cows and Bulls". A Cow was the right number in the wrong place and a Bull was the right number in the right place (I know, sexist language). This was several years before "Mastermind".
• Mrs G, NZ
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• My classes love Mathstermind and many students ask for it every day. Awesome thanks!! (just press f5 for a new one and work it out before they do - using the numbers with NO ticks is easiest!).
• Mr B, Reading UK
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• It was a great Starter. My class seemed to understand the logic. We got 2423.
• Brice Hudson, DanielCenter Math And Science NC
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• My students think its 2413.
• Transum,
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• Just a quick reminder that this puzzle changes every time the page is loaded so don't worry if you don't get the same answers as mentioned in the comments above! There is a suggested strategy below.
• Mrs Peters, Snowdon Y4, 5 And 6
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• We found this really difficult becathe ticks didn't make sense, for example Mia had no ticks and Destiny has 3 ticks, but both shared some of the same numbers and in the same places. However, we are going to play try the Mastermind game in class.
• Red Hill Field Primary School, Twitter
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• Y5/6 working hard on the @Transum starter of the day. Fabulous maths reasoning and thinking skills. We love maths! pic.twitter.com/erhZztb4Nc

  — Red Hill Field PS (@redhillfield) May 27, 2016

• Kelly, Manchester
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• The answer must be 2134. The best strategy is to decide which numbers can not be by looking at the answers the children have submitted with no ticks. This, in most cases, only leave the possible solution.
• Louisa, Greentrees School
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• It was ok but a little bit easy my class whizzed through it the best strategy is to look at the numbers without ticks and see what it cant be that brings you he answer. love this starter but maybe a bit more tricky, as it changes each time my class did one yesterday and one today both times it was completed quickly and efficiently. but thank you for this starter Transum

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