Happy new year everyone!

My new year started with a little break to Wales, with its rugged coastlines, rolling valleys and rich history. I loved the breathtaking views and the warm welcome of the Welsh people. I had a pub lunch at The Bishop pub by Saint David’s Cathedral! I did the coastal walk around Dinas Head, exploring the circular route along the high cliffs with stunning views of Pembrokeshire. Every so often I’d stop to take it all in , looking back and looking ahead. Where did we start and where would we end?

It seems perfect then to dedicate the first blog of the year to mazes, journeys on the 8×8 board where we problem solve, travelling from start to finish. Over Christmas I came across a little gem of a website called mazelog.com and I’m excited to share it with you.

The website is full of different types of maze puzzles. I’ll focus on the chess puzzles but there are maths puzzles too! Mazelog.com is a treasure trove of logic puzzles.

The chess mazes are split into 5 subgroups and labelled ‘easy’, ‘medium’ or ‘hard’. I might use the word ‘levels’ with my students’. I don’t want anyone feeling terrible when they’re staring at the easy puzzle trying to make progress and nothing happens! Ofcourse, I’m not talking about myself…

The are five types of chess puzzles for you to explore:

1. chess mazes
2. alternate colour chess mazes
3. alternate piece chess mazes
4. wildcard chess mazes
5. pattern chess mazes

Here are some top tips for using mazes in class:

Work through the mazes yourself

Whichever one you choose, make sure you work through the mazes. Experience the problem solving solving process. Think about questions, notice teachable moments and tricky points.

Ask questions to make learners wonder

Ask open ended questions, why do you think..? What do you notice? For example, when I first saw a maze log puzzle my instinct was to travel from start to finish by travelling through all of the chess pieces. I then noticed the second picture with a solution. The arrows didn’t travel through all of the pieces! In class you could show a mini maze and a solution. Children can suggest how each maze is solved rather than you giving the instructions. Maybe they notice each piece is an alternate colour. Maybe they suggest that the unusual counter means they could use any chess piece!

Create the buzz

My favourite days are where I’ve noticed all children engaged, where they share ideas with their talk partners, writing on whiteboards, children asking me questions and eager to show their work. Building a classroom of thinkers takes time. Give them time to think. Silent moments. Time to articulate ideas to a friend. Listen to discussions and tell them in advance that you’ll be choosing them to share their ideas. Invite them to share or ask partners to feedback. What we don’t want are the same voices or hands going up and only praise for the correct answers. Praise is for formulating ideas and reasoning.

Choose mazes with clear rules

Whichever maze you choose, make sure you select a maze with clear rules. Children need clear instructions and trust that you’ve created a learning experience where there isn’t missing information. There is a puzzle , for example, where you can use a chess piece twice. Think about whether your students need to know this or maybe they need a clue that there is a twist in this puzzle.

Plan practical experiences

One of the best things about chess lessons is that they follow the CPA approach. Maths teachers use this approach. We have the concrete stage (the practical side with carefully chosen resources), the pictorial stage (images) and the abstract stage (symbols). A great maths teacher will use all three stages through the week, allowing children to make connections and build conceptual understanding as well as procedural learning.

Most chess tutors have a gift in solving puzzles mentally. But in the classroom it’s really important that we allow children to move pieces or draw lines with the tools. LogiqBoard is the perfect platform for mazes. Drawing lines on LogiqBoard is so helpful. If I go wrong I can easily backtrack. I can also print off the puzzles as a worksheet so children can record the final solutions. You can create online maze worksheets with ease, save and share QR codes in class.

Start with an easy puzzle & plan for all learners.

When planning for all learners you might begin with a smaller board, 5×5 squares, for example. You might have less chess pieces, include some empty squares so there isn’t an overload of pieces. Fewer possibilities and fewer decisions. I have a little confession, I’m finally making progress with checkmate puzzles. My secret? Over Christmas I began to to study Christmas checkmate puzzles. I got better because many Christmas puzzles (like the Christmas tree and candlestick puzzle I shared on social media) have fewer pieces. Some have pieces ‘trapped in’ so I knew certain pieces could not move. I was also drawn to the symmetry and pretty shapes. This somehow made it easier for me as there was less to think about. I could identify possible moves more easily. I feel like I have finally been given my super powers in ‘seeing’ the board. Checkmate in 5, here I come! 😲

Model the problem solving process

Make sure you model the way the mazes are solved. How they begin, use trial and error, back track. If there’s something they need to notice make sure you plan those questions in advance for those that need it. Talk out loud and show them your thinking. You could have a nearly completed maze where they might need to find the final 2 moves.

Spot the mistake

Children love looking for errors. You could have a maze with an error, maybe the ‘alternate colours’ puzzle have two black pieces moved in a row. Maybe one the knights didn’t actually move like a knight. Develop observation skills and collaborative skills.

Use low floor, high ceiling tasks.

Whichever type of maze you choose, begin with a starter puzzle that all learners can access. This is the low floor part. Children might have adult support, targeted questions or hints. Maybe the first few moves are given. Some children will need this guidance. Some will go further and some will work through more challenging puzzles.

Don’t skip the solution time

So I’m guilty on this one. Do you know how hard it is to stop the class when children are engrossed in a puzzle and you know they just need a little more time? I confess to running out of time to look at solutions. But by doing this children don’t get to see the methodology. They don’t see the maths skills , the systematic approach, the trial and improvement or working backwards approach. Maybe there was a part of the board they needed to notice and dig deeper. They need time to visualise the solution, memorise the route, particularly the students who were unable to find the solution. Draw lines or paint solution squares on LogiqBoard. Children can record moves with co-ordinates or numbers.

Be creative on the board

My final lesson design point is to give children time to create their own. Reconstructing a similar puzzle shows they understood the problem. If you run out of time this could be a group discussion in class. They could create a puzzle at home on LogiqBoard. They can save their puzzle, copy the link and send it to you by email. You can also send home paper worksheets. This is a great memory task, can they remember the route? I love optional home learning!

I hope you’ve found these top tips useful. Whether you take your students on a problem solving maze journey or whether you just have fun, mazelog.com is an excellent site!

All puzzles were kindly shared with permission from http://mazelog.com

An inspiring website by David Johnson-Davies.

Have an A-maze-ing start to the year LogiqBoard friends.

Happy puzzling 😊

Hari x