A Puzzling Start to Pentominoes

Our new Pentominoes Weekly Challenge has got off to a fantastic start at Truro School Prep, with pupils taking problem-solving home and puzzles being solved around kitchen tables and on living room floors.

Designed to develop spatial reasoning, logical thinking, and perseverance, the Pentominoes weekly challenge was launched at the start of term and is already a firm hit not only with pupils, but with parents, siblings, and even grandparents.

Pentominoes are two-dimensional shapes made of five equal-sized squares. Each set of twelve pentominoes can be used in puzzles to fill a given area. With two challenges set so far this term, we have been thrilled by the enthusiastic response. A huge number of entries have been submitted, and it’s been clear from the feedback just how much everyone enjoyed getting stuck in together.

Parents described the activity as:

“A fun activity the whole family enjoyed.”
“We had a lot of fun as a family trying to complete this!”
“It was such a fun family puzzle night for all of us!”

Many families commented on how rewarding it was to work through the challenge together, and how proud their children were when they solved it:

“My child worked really hard to solve this and was very proud when they cracked it.”
“They had lots of fun working it out!”
“It was a lot of fun to problem-solve with them, and we look forward to the next one.”

Some families even turned it into a full group effort:

“It was really good fun and all of us had a go at home at reasoning with the duck!”
“We had great fun and we are looking forward to the next challenge!”

We’re so pleased to see how this home-based challenge has sparked mathematical thinking and family connection in equal measure. A big thank you to all families who participated. Your support makes all the difference.

The Pentominoes Weekly Challenge will continue throughout the term, with a new puzzle released each week. We can’t wait to see what you do with the next one!