APSMO Building Confidence in Maths Problem Solving
This APSMO resource book is a practical handbook for teachers and parents of Years 5 – 8 students.
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“Contemporary definitions of inquiry learning and explicit teaching frequently present them as mutually exclusive approaches. This beautiful and engaging book provides exactly the kind of modelling and scaffolding required by teachers and parents for them to explicitly teach creative problem solving in ways that encourage and develop inquiring young minds. The multiple problem solving strategies learned and practised across a range of contextualised problems will be useful for ongoing study in mathematics and in real-life”.
“High-quality problem solving resources are essential for developing students’ mathematical reasoning, strategic competence and adaptability. This volume brings together rich, well-crafted tasks with clear explanations and solution strategies that illuminate the structure of each problem. The tasks are engaging and thoughtfully constructed, offering pathways that illuminate how mathematical ideas connect and develop. The worked strategies make the reasoning visible, supporting students to move beyond procedural approaches toward deeper conceptual understanding.”
Building Confidence in Maths Problem Solving: A Practical Handbook for Teachers and Parents of Years 5 – 8 Students: Volume 2
By Dr Pauline Kohlhoff
Australian Edition. © 2025.
ISBN : 9780975731673
290 pages
$ 49.95 + postage
About The Book
APSMO originally developed the Maths Games program in 2015. The program’s
aim is to provide interesting and challenging problem-solving opportunities for a
wider range of students in a non-competitive environment.
Building Confidence in Maths Problem Solving Volume 2, contains more problems
and solutions drawn from our Maths Games program with an even wider range of
difficulty levels. The solution strategies included are designed to build on the skill
sets developed in Volume 1 and help to reinforce and consolidate student learning.
Once again, the book is sequenced by difficulty and gradually progresses to a more challenging level with beautifully presented and illustrated solutions that showcase the application of various problem solving strategies.
The problems are once again indexed and colour coded according to the problem
solving strategy used, allowing teachers and students to apply their previous learning of methods such as:
- Guess, check and refine
- Draw a diagram
- Find a pattern
- Build a table
- Work backwards
- Make an organised list
- Solve a simpler, related problem
- Eliminate all but one possibility
- Convert to a more convenient shape
- Divide a complex shape