Stick Squares 1

Puzzle 1 Puzzle 2 Puzzle 3 Match 1 Match 2 Match 3 Match 4 Match 5 Fish More Puzzles

Move four sticks to new positions in the arrangement so that there are three squares instead of two.

Double click a matchstick to rotate it through 90o or, to rotate the last stick moved:

Unlike other Transum exercises this one is not self-marking. So unfortunately no trophies are available for getting the right answer - Just the satisfaction of solving the puzzle.

This type of puzzle has been around for many years. There were particularly popular around one hundred years ago when matches were widely available as many people smoked.

"The definitive modern match was born in mid-19th century by Swedish chemist Gustaf Erik Pasch. His ‘safety match’ design moved the phosphorus away from the match itself and onto safe striking surface, enabling creation of much safer, easier to use, and cheaper matches. His invention was greatly popularized by Swedish industrialist and inventor John Edvard Lundström who started first mass production of this type of matches." (Source: historyofmatches.com)

Today matches are not such common items but the puzzles remain. You can work on them using lolly sticks, toothpicks, headless matchsticks (available from craft shops), pencils, crayons, cotton buds and on a computer as you are doing now.

Solution

The solutions to this and other Transum puzzles, exercises and activities are available here when you are signed in to your Transum subscription account. If you do not yet have an account and you are a teacher, tutor or parent you can apply for one by completing the form on the Sign Up page.

A Transum subscription also gives you access to the 'Class Admin' student management system, downloadable worksheets, many more teaching resources and opens up ad-free access to the Transum website for you and your pupils.

Still looking for a challenge? Try one of these activities:

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Thrice

Thrice

A challenge to place all nine counters on the grid in such a way that they form exactly 10 straight lines, with each line containing three counters.

The short web address is:

Transum.org/go/?Num=357

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Puzzle Cube Net

Puzzle Cube Net

A jumbled moving-block puzzle cube is shown as a net. Can you solve it?

The short web address is:

Transum.org/go/?Num=637

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Without Lifting The Pencil

Without Lifting The Pencil

Can you draw these diagrams without lifting your pencil from the paper? This is an interactive version of the traditional puzzle.

The short web address is:

Transum.org/go/?Num=491

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Crossing Bridges

Crossing Bridges

Find your way around by crossing bridges. Each bridge needs to be crossed once and once only.

The short web address is:

Transum.org/go/?Num=1157

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Scouts in Boats

Scouts in Boats

Arrange a rota for the Scouts to travel in boats so that they are with different people each day.

The short web address is:

Transum.org/go/?Num=807

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Pick Up Sticks

Pick Up Sticks

If you were to pick up the sticks from this pile so that you were always removing the top stick what calculation would you create?

The short web address is:

Transum.org/go/?Num=741

There are many more puzzles on the Transum Puzzle page.

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