I have decided to move this page to my blog to make it easier to manage. Just click here to return to the Teachers section.
As the great 20th century philosophers Janet Jackson and Luther Vandross said, “the best things in life are free”. There is some great free stuff out there that can both enhance your teaching and save you lots of time. Here is a collection of things I have found very useful. Please, please, please let me know here if you have found any good freebies out there!
And check out my newly updated Links to the Best Maths Websites in the World page as well.
Index
Essential ICT based Classroom Tools
Worksheets, Homeworks and Notes
Other Paper based classroom resources
Free Maths Resource Libraries (back to Index)
Free Maths Resource Library 1 – Mike Pye
Owen134866 (aka Mike Pye) has kindly shared an entire body of high quality lessons, worksheets activities and puzzles, all beautifully arranged into folders, ready to download in one go via DropBox. Amazing stuff!
Free Maths Resource Library 2 – Mark Greenaway
And not to be outdone by Mike, Mark Greenaway from Suffolk Maths has also shared a wealth of lessons, worksheets, and much more covering every maths topic imaginable. Thank you!
Essential ICT based Classroom Tools (back to Index)
Wolfram Alpha
The essential maths search engine for checking answers to questions, drawing graphs, and much more. Check out the Examples page for a glimpse of what it can do!
Wolfram Widgets
Ready-made widgets that you can use to check answers or investigate further in the classroom, or your students can use to revise or check answers to homework.
Online Autograph Activities
These cover major aspects of graphing, geometry and statistics. You do not need Autograph installed to use the activities. They can be used by you in the classroom to demonstrate key concepts, or your students to use at home to investigate things further.
Desmos
Desmos keeps getting better and better. It is a fantastic online graphing package, needing no installation and completely free. It even does statistics too!
GeoGebra
An incredibly powerful bit of free dynamic geometry software. Check out GeoGebra Tube for loads of free accompanying resources designed by teachers.
Plotly
A fascinating tool to encourage data analysis and visualization across disciplines. For years I have made do with Excel for all my statistical diagram needs, but the potential for something as slick, intuitive and visually impressive as this is huge. Definitely worth a proper look.
Tarsia Jigsaw
If you have looked through the teaching resources on this site, you will see that I can’t get enough of this software. It makes creating jigsaws and follow-me cards so easy, provides you with the solution, and jumbles up the cards so the pupils can do all the time consuming cutting out! brilliant. help yourself (or add) to my ever growing bundle here!
Gapminder World
I have never seen my students more engaged in statistics in my life. I have done a series of videos on making use of Gapminder in the classroom here. There are also classroom activities available here.
Furbles
This is a brilliant piece of software. it can be used to convey many of the basic principles of handling data, and with a little imagination can be used to teach a level concepts such as conditional provability. from the link on the left you can get a demo of the brand new version, or download the free 2003 version.
Primitives
This is a truly fascinating piece of software from the maker of the excellent Furbles. the software aims to introduce students to the concepts of prime numbers and prime factors, not by simply saying “this is what a prime number is”, but by allowing them to investigate and derive it for themselves, which is the way maths teaching should be. I would also recommend viewing the accompany ATM article on the website for lesson ideas. this software has huge potential!
Structured Variation Grids
Lots of different styles of grids for your interactive whiteboard, complete with pedagogical notes. Really interesting stuff!
10 quick questions
The ultimate starter and revision tool. this has been regularly updated over the last couple of years and now contains virtually every topic from key stages 3 and 4. brilliant. NOTE: the free version is still available at the bottom of the page.
Yenka
This amazing website has close to 500 interactive classroom resources, including tools for measuring angles, manipulating equations, judging bearings, etc. NOTE:make sure you use the search facility at the bottom of the page or they’ll take you to the paid content!
wisweb applets
An amazing set of java based applets that could be used as part of a demonstration, or an interactive computer lesson. topics include solving equations, plans and elevations, impossible objects, and so much more! click on “applets” in the top corner to get going!
Mediators for Maths
An amazing set of interactive resources from sunny Liverpool! they can be downloaded, work without the need for any specific software and can add spice to lots of lessons. fantastic!
Cleave Calculators
a whole host of fascinating calculators for working out everything from volume, currency conversion and power consumption.
Teacher led iwb resources
More excellent resources for your IWB. some really nice stuff on algebraic substitution and probability tools, and each resource comes with clearly written instructions. NOTE: once again, you need to be on-line!
Puzzles and Rich Tasks (back to Index)
Mr Barton’s Standards Units Page
It keeps me awake at night how little the amazing standards units (Improving Learning in Mathematics) are used in schools. you can apply for a free hard copy via the NCETM website, but I am trying to do my bit by offering all the pdf files. i hope they come in useful.
Mr Barton’s Special Resources
My favourite rich maths activities, all organised, and all for free!
Rich Starting Points
It is often thought (and rightly so), that it is harder to approach a level maths teaching in a rich, interesting way. well, check out this resource. 40 activities, complete with teacher notes, to engage a level students and deepen their understanding. visit the website, and then download the amazing free e-book.
GCSE extension materials
Some excellent resources from the wonderful Further Maths Network. they provide extension work for gifted year 11 pupils and may help bridge the gulf between GCSE and A Level
UKMT maths challenge generators
Daniel Rodriguez-Clark from Interactive Maths produced the following UKMT Question Generators, with kind permission from UKMT. They make excellent starter activities for all ages and abilities.
Junior Maths Challenge Generator
Intermediate Maths Challenge Generator
Senior Maths Challenge Generator
Link to UKMT Past Papers
And Dan has produced a lovely online version of his generators here
Berkeley maths circle
Some excellent puzzles (with solutions), which would be good for an extremely able GCSE class, a keen a level group, or anyone preparing for STEP exams.
St. Mark’s maths puzzles
A really nice set of monthly maths puzzles available to download from this american school’s newsletter. the puzzles often rely on algebra and would probably be suitable for higher gcse/a level students, or G&T classes. full solutions are also provided!
Nrich packages
Some brilliant packages to download from this wonderful site. help yourself to materials about fractions, enigma codes, and football statistics.
6 Rich Tasks
6 ideas for rich tasks/investigations, together with lesson plans and teacher support. very nice.
GCSE Exam Board Resources (back to Index)
The following resources were made freely available by AQA and OCR following a change in specification to the GCSE back in 2010. Their emphasis on problem solving and non standard questions is more relevant than ever.
AQA GCSE Rich Tasks
AQA GCSE Rich Tasks (teacher guide)
OCR AO3 Problem Solving Guide
OCR Problem Solving Support
SMP Functional Skills: Level 1 Activities
SMP Functional Skills: Level 2 Activities
Whether or not your students are taking the Functional Skills qualification, this set of excellent resources will still be very useful for coming up with the kind of real-life opening ended questions that form the basis of all new GCSEs
Worksheets, Homeworks, and Notes (back to Index)
A level notes
An excellent set of a level notes by Mike Cook which would be good for anyone either teaching or learning a level maths
Maths pret homeworks
Interesting, engaging, challenging homeworks, testing a full range of skills, all for free. See my video on this wonderful website here.
Bland GCSE Papers
Topic specific bundles of GCSE questions, written in the style of Edexcel GCSE Papers
Free maths worksheets
An excellent set of maths worksheets in pdf format. many come with answers, and many have questions more interesting than those often found in textbooks.
More free worksheets!
More free maths worksheets in pdf form, mostly covering key stage 3 and early key stage 4. all worksheets come with answers and would make good homework or revision activities.
Algebra Worksheets
An excellent set of pdf algebra worksheets, covering all the major key stage 3-4 topics, complete with answers! ideal for homeworks or little tests.
OCR GCSE Module Resources
Modular GCSE may have gone, but these questions and notes are still extremely useful to use with today’s GCSE students.
Autograph Lesson Plans and Files
Alan Catley’s wonderful collection of free Autograph resources. Fantastic.
Other paper based classroom resources (back to Index)
Free graph paper
What a nice website! you just tell it the exact type of graph paper that you want, and it gives it to you (for free) in a handy pdf form!
Classic mistake posters
A really good website offering a whole bundle of posters and podcasts of classic maths mistakes. ideal to stick up on the wall, or use as a starter, to provoke discussion.
Maths Charts
a bright, colourful and informative set of over 250 maths posters ready to print and stick up around your classroom
Topical Application Activities
with the eternal push towards “rich” activities, this updated 2008 bundle from CIMT might come in handy. pupil and teacher resources for each one. excellent!
GCSE Higher Starters
100 amazing sets of higher GCSE starters. i like to have these projected onto the IWB as the students arrive, and give them 5 minutes to solve them. keeps them sharp!
10 – 4 – 10 (download from links below)
these are brilliant. they are packs produced by the DFES for children to take home during the holidays before either their SATs or their GCSEs. the idea is that the pupils send 10 minutes a day for 10 days covering each topic they will need for their exams. what i really like about them is that they provide an opportunity for parents to get involved in their children’s revision. the support letter explains all.
Key Stage 3
Level 4 Questions Answers
Level 5 Questions Answers
Level 6 Questions Answers
Level 7 Questions Answers
Level 8 Questions Answers
GCSE
Formulae
Intermediate Questions Answers
Higher Questions and Answers
Free Maths ebooks (back to Index)
Mr Barton’s GCSE ebook of Notes and Examples
I have put all my notes and examples from this website together in a 300+ page ebook that students can download and have on their phones/tablets. hopefully it will make a useful revision guide
GCSE revision textbook
A brilliant (free!) gcse textbook, covering all levels and all topics, compete with worked solutions. brilliant for homeworks or revision. the pdf version is completely free to download!
Mathematical Magic
A fantastic ebook full of really impressive mathematical magic tricks to impress your students (and colleagues) from Matt Parker and Peter McOwan
Martin Gardner ebook
An outstanding ebook which is a tribute to the greatest maths puzzler of all time, Martin Gardner. The book features interesting articles and loads of excellent puzzles.
Professional Development (back to Index)
NCETM Departmental Workshops
These workshops from the NCETM are simply brilliant for adding structure, interest and focus to departmental meetings/inset training. the idea is that as a department you tackle 3 modules a year. All the big issues are covered, from specific topics such as fractions and converting units, to wider issues such as questioning.
NCETM magazine
A free weekly magazine in packed full of really good teaching ideas, really good professional development resources, and links to websites
Non-Maths, but still useful! (back to Index)
Teachers Report Assistant
If report writing is one of your least enjoyable times of year, then this piece of software might be just for you! lots of well written comments (subject specific, and form tutor) which can be pieced together to make a flowing, relevant report, all for free!
flickr
This is a photo sharing website, but which has huge potential to enhance the teaching of many maths topics. try searching for “geometry” or “constructions”, and look at some of the wonderful things that come up. ready made starters and discussion materials!
Jing
A brilliant piece of software for taking snap shots of what’s on your computer screen to use in worksheets or presentations. better still you can use it to capture videos, which could be used to record tutorials, possibly explaining a homework, or even for your students to build up a bank of revision videos. the potential is quite amazing.
doc2pdf
If you ever want to convert a Word worksheet into a pdf file, then this really nice (and completely free) program will do it for you!
Fun and Games (back to Index)
Countdown
Another gem from the creators of ten quick questions. Ideal for practising students’ mental and written arithmetic skills. This latest version has a facility for pupils to check their answers.
The Letters Game
This is based on the Letters Game from the UK TV show Countdown, and challenges students to create the longest word from 9 letters. to add a maths spin, you could challenge them to create the longest “maths word”, and there is the option of adding your own word lists to make sure all the classics are in there!
Sudoku Creator
Yet another good one from csf. create and print your own sudoku puzzles, of varying difficulty, very easily indeed to keep that brain fresh and active!
Word Search Generator
Another from csf! generate your own word search very quickly indeed. Free version at the bottom of the page.
Eclipse Crossword
We’ve all been there: it’s getting towards the end of term, there seems little point in starting that new topic, but it would be nice if the kids could still be doing something a little mathematical. why not make them a maths crossword using this impressive (and free) software?
Puzzles
Loads and loads of brilliant puzzle packs to download for free. the shape stuff is amazing, and I am prone to using the logic puzzles as starters to develop thinking skills. they are as good as mysteries, but without the hassle!
Google Sketch Up
An excellent user-friendly free sketching tool that has amazing potential to convey concepts such as plans and elevations, constructions, volume, and even trigonometry. really good tutorials and lesson ideas can be found here.
what2learn games
Here’s an interesting idea. you can design (for free) any type of maths game you like. better still, why not let your pupils have a go at designing their own games?
Scratch
A really interesting piece of software which lets you (or your pupils!) create your own interactive stories, animations, games, art, etc. have a look at this Maths Collection to see what some imaginative people have already come up with!
k-sketch
You or your students can make fun animations with this
Topology and Geometry Software
A really nice set of downloadable (so you can play them offline) geometry software. there are tiles to make pretty patterns, a unit of lessons on multi-connected universe, and the excellent Torus Games package which explores finite and infinite spaces. excellent