Early Years

Problem solving

Child problem solving

Finding and making patterns

Children enjoy working with patterns and reporting back on how they reached a solution.

Two children problem solving

What comes next? Finding a pattern

P2 pupils work on 'looking for a pattern' using Compare Bears.

Close-up of a child's hand sorting toy cars into groups

Sorting and classifying objects

Sorting objects can be fun and encourages children to articulate their thinking and justify their reasoning.

Close-up of a child's hand working with multilink cubes

Making a model from a picture

Working together to create a jungle scene with multilink mats, cubes and cards.

Two children enjoying a problem solving exercise

Working on an elimination task

A teacher uses symbols to develop P2 children's awareness of the strategies they adopt to solve problems.

Close-up of girl working on a problem solving exercise

Combining colours to make flags

Children use a 'listing' strategy to design flags using different combinations of three colours.

A teacher working with pupils on problem solving

Purple cats: a classification challenge

The teacher of a composite class sets challenges to develop thinking skills across the curriculum.

An image of a boy playing on the floor

Introducing problem solving through play

Two North Lanarkshire primary schools and their associated nurseries introduced problem solving activities through play.