Number puzzles are a great way of getting your child to practise core numeracy skills – and have fun at the same time!
Number puzzles your primary school child will love
In this section you can read about all the benefits of number puzzles, discover the best maths board games for children and 10 ways playing cards helps children with maths.
You'll also find lots of printable number puzzles and maths challenges, each of which focuses on a core maths skill, such as times tables, time, money maths, proportion, addition and Venn diagrams. We've also got some KS1 and KS2 Sudoku puzzles. And you'll find even more PDF puzzles in our maths puzzle packs for KS1 and KS2 as well as cool maths games for kids.
Want to keep your child busy on a rainy day or long car journey? Have a game of number dominoes or Battleships. Fancy something a bit different? We've also got number puzzles for each school year, number bond crosswords, addition and subtraction board games and fraction flash cards. Try a place value quiz or a maths magic square, a times tables trail or grid coordinates treasure hunt.
With these primary school number puzzles, you'll make maths enjoyable and boost their numeracy skills and confidence!
Articles
12 great benefits of maths challenges
Maths activities could give your child’s learning a boost in many ways, and help them engage with numbers (and enjoy it!) from a young age. Lucy Dimbylow offers 12 reasons to give number puzzles a go today.
Everyday ways to make maths fun
Want to instil a love and appreciation of maths in your primary school child? You can with our practical suggestions to help make numbers fun.
What are mathematical investigations?
We explain what types of mathematical investigations children will carry out in primary school and give examples of complex investigations they might be asked to solve in KS2.
Worksheets
Arrow route calculations
Starting at the green circle at the top, can you follow the arrows and complete each calculation to get to the final solution? Write it in the pink rectangle.
Addition number puzzle
Mark has eight cards and he needs to arrange them in this grid so that there is a card in every square, except the middle one. They need to be arranged so that each column and each row of numbers adds up to 10. Can you work out how to do it?
Guess the number quick puzzles
Are you smart enough to work out this number puzzle? Challenge mum or dad and see if they can do it quicker than you.
Also see:
Sudoku for kids
Print off these easy Sudoku puzzles for your child to get to grips with how the game works; they'll only use numbers 1-4 and 1-6:
Trying to make maths enjoyable for your child? Compiled by deputy headteacher Matt Revill and packed with 20 games, our fantastic maths learning pack covers all the key skills your child will need to master as part of the primary numeracy curriculum.
Make a cup of tea, print out a board game (or two) and settle down for some cozy, round-the-kitchen-table fun your children will be asking you to make time for. As well as play value, each game in the Cool maths games for kids learning pack offers huge learning opportunities, so pick a skill to revise, print out the game rules, board and counters and get playing!
Are you ready to uncover dastardly deeds and confront super-evil villains, armed just with your mathematical skills and lots of courage? Join Oscar Octo and Penelope Penta, agents for the Geometric World Spy Agency, to track down a mysterious nemesis. There'll be a few (ok, a load!) of number puzzles to solve along the way, all designed to challenge KS2 mathematicians to the limit. Will your accept your mission?
