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FREE Math Challenges for 2nd-3rd Grade

These FREE math challenge and brainteaser activities are perfect for advanced 2nd and 3rd grade elementary students. Use them as centers, fast finishers, homework, number talks, or whole class problem solving. They’re fun for kids and easy for teachers!

These math challenge and brain teaser activities for elementary students can be used for centers, weekly challenges, small groups, or whole class problem solving. Fun for kids and easy for teachers! Perfect for 2nd and 3rd grade. #freebies #education #math #secondgrade #thirdgrade #freeprintables #elementaryeducation #elementaryclassroom #teacherspayteachers

If you’re looking for a few math activities to use as fast finishers, homework, math centers, problem of the week, or enrichment, try out this Math Challenges & Brainteasers freebie.

These 3 free math challenges and brainteasers are meant to be challenges for advanced 2nd and 3rd graders, but have been used in a 5th grade class as reviews and morning work too.

These free math challenge and brain teaser activities for elementary students can be used for centers, weekly challenges, small groups, or whole class problem solving. Fun for kids and easy for teachers! Perfect for 2nd and 3rd grade.

Here are a few ideas for how you might use these math activities in your own classroom:

  • Use these as extension activities for math contracts. Make a pack of challenge problems for advanced students to use as a fast finisher or during certain in-class math lessons when they’ve already mastered the material. You can read more about this strategy and receive a free editable math contract at this blog post HERE.
  • Use a challenge or brainteaser as a homework option for students who need a challenge, or let them replace a simple homework assignment with the challenge to show parents how well you’re differentiating.
  • Use a math challenge or brainteaser as a “number talk” problem to start out your daily math class. Work through it as a class or let students work in partners or small groups to talk through it and solve it together.
  • Give a challenge or brainteaser to a small group of students as one of their independent math workshop rotations or use them with your advanced small math group rotation.
  • Use the problems as an independent practice activity during a unit on problem solving strategies (guess and check, work backwards, etc.) or attacking a multi-step problem.
  • Keep a stack of challenge problems in your classroom fast finisher area for any student who wants a challenge.
  • Choose one or two challenge problems for the month and reward any student who can solve both. You can put these on a bulletin board or have them available as additional incentives.
  • Use the seasonal challenges as a choice (academic!) activity during a holiday party or to keep your sanity during that holiday down time.
These free math challenge and brain teaser activities for elementary students can be used for centers, weekly challenges, small groups, or whole class problem solving. Fun for kids and easy for teachers! Perfect for 2nd and 3rd grade.


I’m using these as a challenge for my second graders in the form of math contracts. I have a few super amazing 2nd grade mathematicians who are way ahead of the rest of the class.

They have the option of completing math contract work at any time during our independent math time as a replacement for the assignments given to the rest of the class. 

If you want to read more about math contracts, head over to this blog post. There might just be an EDITABLE Math Contract Freebie waiting for you there!

If you haven’t already downloaded the freebie which includes 3 math challenges and brainteasers, hop on over to my store and check it out. I hope you enjoy!

Need more math challenges for your advanced math students?

There are now monthly math challenge sets available for every month of the school year!

ALL of these math challenges are included in the YEAR of Math Challenges SUPER BUNDLE!

If you want EVERY math challenge & brainteaser I have made (or will make in the future) you can get them in the year long bundle here

If purchased separately all 17 Math Challenge & Brainteaser packs included in the Super bundle would cost $119, but they are now on sale for over 25% off at the Super Teacher site store.

Have a fab day super teacher!

 

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