17 Fun and Printable Math Puzzles for Elementary and Middle School Students

A Post By: Anthony Persico

Winter vacation is over and teachers are taking on the challenge of engaging students and getting them refocused and thinking mathematically again.

Many teachers utilize engaging activities to kickstart the new year and get their kids excited about learning math.

So, in the spirit of getting students excited (and feeling challenged), I have created the following collection of free New Years Math Challenges for you to share with your kids!

Each printable math worksheet shares a challenge question (answers are included) appropriate for all elementary and middle school grade levels.

Parents can also share these fun challenge questions with your kids to keep them engaged and thinking mathematically outside of school.

Now let's get problem-solving!

1.) Day 1 of 17

(Hint: Start with the chicks!)

Koala Bear = 7

Camel = 3

Chick = 11

Gorilla = 4

2.) Day 2 of 17

(Hint: Start with the grapes!)

Pineapple = 4

Strawberry = 12

Grape = 12

Watermelon = 2

? = 26

3.) Day 3 of 17

(Hint: The racket and the arrow both represent the same value!)

Bowling = 50

Basketball = 25

Arrow = 5

Racket = 5

4.) Day 4 of 17

(Hint: Start with the blue cars!)

Blue Car = 9

Scooter = 7

Helicopter = 8

Jet = 4

5.) Day 5 of 17

(Hint: 8 minus what number is that same number?)

T.V. = 4

Camera = 8

iPhone = 4

Microscope = 6

? = 6

6.) Day 6 of 17

(Hint: You have to crawl before you can walk!)

Baby = 6

Hard Hat = 1

Old Man = 2

Police Officer = 6

The baby and the police officer both represent a value of 6. They are interchangeable. 

Are you looking for more daily math challenges and puzzles to share with your kids?

Our best-selling workbook 101 Math Challenges for Engaging Your Students in Grades 1-8 is now available as a PDF download!

7.) Day 7 of 17

(Hint: Equivalent emojis are interchangeable!)

Yellow Face = 10

Green Face = 10

Red Face = 17

? = 17

8.) Day 8 of 17

(Hint: Even if you can't find the snail and the alligator individually, you know what their sum is.)

Turtle = 5

Alligator = 7 and Snail = 0, or

Snail = 7 and Alligator = 0

? = 12

One of the pair (alligator and snail) is 7 and the other is 0, but it is not possible to tell which is which.

9.) Day 9 of 17

(Hint: Start with the best food--pizza!)

Cheeseburger = 2

Taco = 8

Pizza = 3

? = 24

If the value of the cheeseburger was zero, then the value of the pizza and the taco would also become zero.

10.) Day 10 of 17

(Hint: Any nonzero value divided by itself equals one!)

Saxophone = 4

Guitar = 4

Keyboard = 4

? = 12

The value of the guitar and the value of the saxophone must be equal (and not zero), since their quotient is one! 

11.) Day 11 of 17

(Hint: Handle that volcano right away!)

Volcano = 1

Statue of Liberty = 3

Rocket = 6

Race Car = 2

Ferris Wheel = 18

12.) Day 12 of 17

(Hint: Patterns, my friend...patterns!)

Pig = 2

Tiger = 3

Mouse = 4

 “I always look forward to getting my Mashup Math newsletter email every week. I love the free activities!” -Christina R., 5th Grade Math Teacher, Dallas, TX

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13.) Day 13 of 17

(Hint: Think about what happens when you multiply values by zero and by one)

Avocado = 1

Pancakes = 4

Banana = 6

Donut = 8

Coffee = 0

French Fries = 16

14.) Day 14 of 17

(Hint: The whole diagram represents 182 and the two given sections represent 112. How can you distribute the difference of 70 between the two unknown sections?)

Clown Fish = 4

Octopus = 10

Shark = 40

Crab = 30

Whale = 3

Area Model: 14 x 13

15.) Day 15 of 17

(Hint: This is like a hundreds chart...kinda)

Neon Green = 510

Neon Pink = 80

Neon Blue = 220

Neon Orange = 190

Each box equals 10.

16.) Day 16 of 17

(Hint: Look for patterns within the patterns!)

Case 1: Increases by 2, then 3, then 4...

? = 17

Case 2: Each value is twice the previous value

? = 48

Case 3: Each value is one more than thrice the previous value 

? = 283

17.) Day 17 of 17

(Hint: Just play around with this one until you get it!)

Cow = 3

Fox & Boar = 6 and 7

Monkey & Frog = 8 and 4

Brown Bear & Panda = 9 and 5

Are you looking for more daily math challenges and puzzles to share with your kids?

Our best-selling workbook 101 Math Challenges for Engaging Your Students in Grades 1-8 is now available as a PDF download!

Do you and your kids love our daily math challenges and puzzles? Have thoughts? Please share them in the comments below!

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By Anthony Persico

Anthony is the content crafter and head educator for YouTube's MashUp Math and an advisor to Amazon Education's 'With Math I Can' Campaign. You can often find me happily developing animated math lessons to share on my YouTube channel . Or spending way too much time at the gym or playing on my phone.