Jill Whieldon

Here's a chance for students to turn detective and apply their mathematical knowledge to solve some murder mysteries. Each of the 16 activities is intended to be a consolidation exercise covering topics such as arithmetic, algebra, shapes and simple graphs and charts. For teachersApart from the obvious use as homework activities, the activities can play a great role in generating mathematical discussion too. Students often work well in pairs on this sort of activity as they are able to discuss their methods and combine forces when coordinating several features of a problem. Some of the tasks require a reasonable level of logical thinking and students need to understand mathematical terms such as product, factor, prime etc. The benefits to the students will be greatly improved if their knowledge of such mathematical language has been reinforced before attempting these murder mysteries. Success through this type of activity can increase student's confidence and make them eager to progress. Some of the tasks included here reflect wider topics met in the primary school curriculum and there is an element of general knowledge evident. Further investigative work could be generated from these, for example, in "Water" - can you find a river whose length would fit between the Severn and the Thames ? In Romans - can you find an emperor who reigned for less than 10 years ? For parentsThese murder mysteries use mathematical skills learnt at school but will both reinforce knowledge and stretch students who crave a challenge. It is important to check that students have covered and understand the topic before using them. The exercises are intended to be entertaining, as children love using their mathematical skills to find out "whodunnit." Contents1.Mixed Arithmetic 12.Mixed Arithmetic 23.Number and Algebra 14.Number and Algebra 25.Number and Angle Mix6.Money7.Coordinates8.Shape9.Charts10.Family11.Sports 12.Music13.Europe14.The Romans15.Water16.Missing Pieces

We all like to think we can solve a murder given the right clues. Here's another chance to use mathematics skills to identify "whodunnit" - following the great success of the first book in the series Mini Mathematical Murder Mysteries. The students are given the data or a diagram to solve a "problem" - which is always which of four characters is a murderer. To find out, the student must solve all or most of the questions on the sheet to identify wrong answers as well as correct ones. Problems are staged, so there is an element of suspense for the individual...and racing between students to solve the mystery. The topics covered in this book are all included in the year 8 & 9 schemes of work in mathematics - 12-14 years. The tasks have been used successfully with older pupils too as a reminder of topics covered previously. They would also be suitable for younger pupils who have met the appropriate language and content. They are likely to take about 40 minutes but this will depend on the ability of the class to coordinate the different aspects of each task. This book is for both teachers and parents.

We all like to think we can solve a murder given the right clues. Here's a chance to use mathematics skills to identify "whodunit" for ages 12-14. The students are given the data or a diagram to solve a "problem" - which of four characters is a murderer. To find out, the student must solve all or most of the questions on the sheet to identify wrong answers as well as correct ones. Problems are staged, so there is an element of suspense for the individual...and racing between students to solve the mystery. The topics covered in this book are all included in the year 7 & 8 schemes of work in mathematics. The tasks have been used successfully with older pupils too as a reminder of topics covered previously. They would also be suitable for younger pupils who have met the appropriate language and content. They are likely to take about 40 minutes but this will depend on the ability of the class to coordinate the different aspects of each task. For ages 13-15 see the sister titles More Mini Mathematical Murder Mysteries. The book is for both teachers and parents. TEACHERSThis is a set of consolidation resources rather than a teaching tool. They have worked well with a variety of classes, often putting the students in pairs to enable them to talk about the methods they're using while they solve the "murder." The author has found that their cooperative skills have improved as has their ability to plan and delegate in a bid to "win." PARENTSMuch more fun than having endless mathematics exercises to trawl through! Children will engage with the mathematics here presented in an entertaining way. Ideal for use in review or other consolidation exercises. They are also great fun for after school clubs such as mathematics clubs, seeking to run short activities. Mathematics days or mathematics weeks will be greatly enhanced by their inclusion.