The Power of Puzzles

Puzzling your way through mathematics

The solving of puzzles helps to develop the synapses of the human brain and improves its cognitive functions. Whether they are number-oriented, such as Sudoku and Kakuro, or language-based, such as crossword puzzles and cryptograms, puzzles provide only scattered pieces of the entire solution but force the player to supply the rest of the picture (to fill-in-the-blanks so-to-speak) within a set structure of rules.

• 10 Surprising Benefits of Doing Puzzles (published on April 13, 2020 by Cronicas Puzzleras)
• I'm a Puzzle: Steps to solve a jigsaw puzzle

Mathematics problems are a kind of cognitive jigsaw puzzle. The 'givens' in a problem are the scattered pieces of information which are sufficient to determine the 'finds' in the problem, namely, the remaining pieces of the puzzle. The pathways between the givens and the finds are the mathematical pieces of the puzzle. These include the definitions, the context, and the theoretical links which constitute the lattice-like relationships connecting them – all of which ultimately fill in the entire picture and provide the final big-picture solution.

20 Best Math Puzzles to Engage and Challenge Your Students (published on February 6, 2019 by Prodigy)

Math puzzle solving is good for everyone – not just students

A research study from the Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education found that puzzles

"serve as a powerful tool for the development of mathematical skills: ability to think logically, ability to abstract thinking, combinatorial abilities, aptitude for spatial representation and manipulation with spatial images, critical thinking abilities, mathematical memory as a specific ability of mathematical activity."