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10 Problem Solving Strategies Posters

Updated:  26 Aug 2024

Boost problem solving skills and remind your students to use their strategies with our Problem Solving Strategy Posters.

Editable:  Google Slides

Non-Editable:  PDF

Pages:  1 Page

• Curriculum Curriculum:  CCSS, TEKS

Grades:  2 - 5

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CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.2.OA.A.1

Use addition and subtraction within 100 to solve one- and two-step word problems involving situations of adding to, taking from, putting together, taking apart, and comparing, with unknowns in all positions, e.g., by using drawings and equations with...

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.3.OA.D.8

Solve two-step word problems using the four operations. Represent these problems using equations with a letter standing for the unknown quantity. Assess the reasonableness of answers using mental computation and estimation strategies including roundi...

Math 2.1(B)

Use a problem-solving model that incorporates analyzing given information, formulating a plan or strategy, determining a solution, justifying the solution, and evaluating the problem-solving process and the reasonableness of the solution;

Number and operations. The student applies mathematical process standards to develop and use strategies and methods for whole number computations in order to solve addition and subtraction problems with efficiency and accuracy. The studen...

Math 3.1(B)

Use a problem-solving model that incorporates analyzing given information, formulating a plan or strategy, determining a solution, justifying the solution and evaluating the problem-solving process and the reasonableness of the solution;

Number and operations. The student applies mathematical process standards to develop and use strategies and methods for whole number computations in order to solve problems with efficiency and accuracy. The student is expected to: (1) so...

Spend Some Time Focusing On Problem-Solving Strategies in Math

Developing strong problem-solving skills is necessary for student success, especially in mathematics. Guiding students through difficult math problems requires more than just teaching them to count on their fingers—it involves equipping them with strategies that help them think critically and use their strategies to understand what is being asked of them in a word problem. By spending some time teaching problem-solving strategies, you can help your students build the skills they need to tackle any math problem that comes their way.

Printable Problem-Solving Strategies Poster Pack

This resource download includes a set of 10 individual problem-solving strategy posters and a single poster featuring all ten strategies at once. We have included both a full-color and black-and-white option to help meet your individual classroom needs.

The 10 problem-solving strategies included in this poster set are:

• Guess and check
• Make a table or chart
• Draw a picture or diagram
• Act out the problem
• Find a pattern or use a rule
• Check for relevant or irrelevant information
• Find smaller parts of a large problem
• Make an organized list
• Solve a simpler problem
• Work backwards

Download and Print!

This resource is available as a printable PDF file as well as an editable Google Slides resource. Click the dropdown arrow to select the full-color or black and white file you prefer.

This resource was created by Lindsey Phillips, a teacher in Michigan and Teach Starter collaborator.

Even More Tools For Improving Problem-Solving Skills

Don’t stop there! We’ve got plenty of resources to help you teach your students to tackle word problems. Make sure you check these out before you go!

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Stellar Teaching Co.

Engaging Resources for Teaching Literacy

Problem Solving Strategies Math Posters

Math problem solving can be so challenging for students. These math strategy posters will help you teach effective problem solving strategies, and they are a great reference tool for students to keep in their math notebooks. The 10 posters include helpful tips and reminders for students to keep in mind when approaching word problems. I include 6 problem solving strategies you can easily teach your students!

Filed Under: *All Non SLC Resources , *Non SLC Resources (Math) , 3rd , 4th , 5th , Anchor Charts and Posters , Homeschooler , Math , Math Centers , Printables , Summarizing , Under $5

More about this resource

*This resource also includes a digital version created using Google Slides which makes it really easy to share with your students during distance learning.

Anchor chart set includes:

• Black and White Mini Anchor Charts
• Color Accents Mini Anchor Charts
• Fill-in Mini Anchor Chart
• Black and White Full Page Anchor Chart
• Color Accents Full Page Anchor Chart
• Fill-in Full Page Anchor Chart
• Digital version created using Google Slides
• Full page is a vertical 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper.
• Mini page is one half of a horizontal 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper (two on each page).

Posters cover the following:

• Problem Solving Strategies
• Math Talk Stems
• Problem Types
• Math Key Words
• CUBES Strategy
• STAR Strategy
• CAR Strategy
• UPS-Check Strategy
• RICE Strategy
• WIK, WINK, & WIMP Strategy

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With over a decade of experience working as a classroom teacher and school administrator, I understand the joys and challenges of teaching. That’s why I’m on a mission to make an impact by serving stellar upper elementary teachers just like you. Get ready, because I’m pulling out all the stops to ensure that you have the tools and confidence you need to build a literacy block that you’re proud of. One that excites you and your students while also meeting the standards. Oh yes, it’s totally possible to have both!

• My Storyboards

Math Poster Templates

Customize math poster templates.

If you're assigning this to your students, copy the poster to your account and save. When creating an assignment, just select it as a template!

Why Educational Math Posters?

In the realm of education, visual aids play a crucial role in facilitating effective learning experiences. Having posters in class can make learning more visual for kids and serve as reminders for important symbols, equations, and vocabulary.

Imagine stepping into a classroom adorned with vibrant educational posters that showcase intricate designs and creative border designs. These posters not only add an aesthetically pleasing element to the environment but also serve as visual aids that help kids grasp complex mathematical concepts more easily. These resources are instrumental in presenting clear and concise explanations of formulas, equations, and diagrams that might otherwise be challenging to convey solely through words during a lesson or presentation.

Designing Effective Math Posters

Creating an effective poster involves careful consideration of elements such as color schemes, typography, and layout. An eye-catching template can be customized to match the theme of the lesson, making the learning experience more engaging and memorable. With the availability of free math templates, teachers can experiment with various designs and layouts to find the one that best resonates with their class.

Interactive Math Posters

Complementing posters with printable worksheets adds an interactive dimension to the learning process. These posters and free math PowerPoint templates serve as opportunities for kids to apply the concepts they've learned from the posters. Math worksheet creators and math quiz generators are readily available online, allowing teachers to tailor exercises to their class's needs. From problem-solving activities to critical thinking challenges, interactive worksheets offer a platform for students to strengthen their mathematical skills.

The integration of posters and worksheets extends beyond the traditional classroom setting. Homeschoolers, tutors, and online educators can harness the potential of these resources to create comprehensive lesson plans or an engaging presentation. By providing students with visually appealing (not boring!) ideas, images, and interactive exercises, you will foster a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts and encourage self-directed learning.

Benefits and Outcomes

The synergy between posters and worksheets yields a multitude of benefits. Learners experience improved comprehension and retention, increased engagement, and enhanced problem-solving capabilities. As they interact with fun math Google slides themes and designs, and solve problems on printable math worksheets, their confidence in tackling mathematical challenges grows.

Educators worldwide have embraced this innovative approach to teaching mathematics. In classrooms and online platforms, educators have shared their examples and success stories about how combining visual presentations with interactive exercises has transformed learning experiences.

Resources for Creating Math Posters and Worksheets

A variety of online tools and resources are available for educators to create designs, a single template, and worksheets. Free math templates and math worksheet makers streamline the process, allowing educators to focus on the content and educational value. Here are some tips for making a poster:

• Select a Relevant Math Concept: Choose a specific topic or concept that you want to teach or reinforce through your poster. Whether it's algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics, make sure the concept aligns with your educational goals.
• Gather Visual Resources: Collect relevant visual resources such as diagrams, equations, graphs, and illustrations that represent the chosen concept. These visuals will be the core of your poster component.
• Design the Poster Component: Utilize a template or create your own design that suits your teaching theme. Incorporate designs and creative math border designs to make the poster visually appealing. Arrange the visuals logically, ensuring they effectively convey the mathematical information.
• Integrate Interactive Exercises: Access a math worksheet maker or math quiz creator tool to design interactive exercises that complement the poster content. Craft relevant problems, puzzles, or questions that require children to apply the concepts presented on the poster.
• Use a Math Lesson Plan Template: Incorporate your poster and worksheet components into a comprehensive lesson plan template. This template will serve as the structure for your lesson.
• Ensure Clarity and Accessibility: Check that the visuals, equations, and text on both the poster and the worksheet are clear and easy to understand.
• Incorporate Math Illustrations: Enhance the visual appeal of your poster by incorporating engaging and relevant images alongside the content.
• Evaluate and Adjust: After the lesson, assess students' understanding by reviewing their performance on the interactive exercises. Use the insights gained to adjust your teaching approach and refine future work.

By following these steps, you'll create a comprehensive poster that combines visual appeal, interactive engagement, and effective educational content, fostering a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts.

More Storyboard That Resources and Free Printables

• Math Infographic
• Math Vocabulary Worksheet
• Test and Quiz
• Math Activities

How to Make a Math Template

Choose one of the premade templates.

We have lots of amazing templates to choose from. Take a look at our colorful example for inspiration!

Click on “Copy Template”

Once you do this, you will be directed to the storyboard creator.

Give Your Poster a Name!

Be sure to call it something related to the topic so that you can easily find it in the future.

Edit Your Poster

Our templates are fully customizable, so this is where you will include details, text, images, and make any aesthetic changes that you would like. The options are endless for math enthusiasts!

Click "Save and Exit"

When you are finished with your poster, click this button in the lower right hand corner to exit your storyboard.

From here you can print, download as a PDF, use as a math PowerPoint template, turn into a presentation on Google slides, attach it to an assignment and use it digitally, and more!

Happy Creating!

Frequently Asked Questions About Math Posters

How can a math poster benefit students.

Maths posters offers a comprehensive learning experience by providing visual explanations of concepts, and allowing students to apply those concepts through interactive exercises. This combination enhances understanding, engagement, and retention of the material.

What types of math concepts work well with posters?

They are useful in teaching various topics such as arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, and statistics. For example, when teaching geometry, a maths poster can visually display shapes and properties, supported by interactive exercises on a worksheet to calculate areas and angles. In algebra, a poster can illustrate solving equations step-by-step, while the accompanying worksheet offers practice problems to reinforce the process. The combination of visual aids, interactive tasks, and informative posters accommodates diverse learning needs, promoting comprehensive understanding and engagement across numerous disciplines.

What types of interactive exercises can I include in a math poster?

You can include a variety of interactive exercises such as multiple-choice questions, fill-in-the-blank problems, matching exercises, true/false questions, and even open-ended problem-solving challenges. The choice of exercises depends on the learning objectives and the concepts being taught.

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Problem Solving Strategies Posters and Bulletin Board

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Less than a week until school starts.  I still have so much to do.  I did complete one of my bulletin boards today. This is my new Problem Solving Strategies Posters and Bulletin Board.

I got to use my new toy: a Laminator !  The school has a giant laminator in the teacher’s lounge, but you have to get the person with the key to help you use it.  And, every time I’ve tried to get the person with the key to help me use it, they haven’t been at school. 

So, I ordered my own small laminator .  It’ll be perfect for when I have an epiphany at ten pm and decide that I need something laminated for my lesson the next day.   

MATH = LOVE RECOMMENDS…

A laminator is a MUST-HAVE for me as a math teacher! I spent my first six years as a teacher at a school with a broken laminator , so I had to find a way to laminate things myself.

I’ve had several laminators over the years. I currently use a Scotch laminator at home and a Swingline laminator at school.

• Scotch Laminator
• Swingline Laminator
• Nuova Laminating Pouches

I highly recommend splurging a bit on the actual laminator and buying the cheapest laminating pouches you can find!

I’m seriously addicted to laminating .  I pretty much want to laminate everything in my house right now.  I’d show you all the other cool stuff I laminated , but it’ll have to wait until I can actually put it up in my classroom. 

I laminated my door decorations , but I can’t put them up until they finish staining my door…

But, I did get to finish my Problem Solving Strategies Bulletin Board today.  And, yes, I hate the pipes and cable running in front of my bulletin board as much as you do.  This is what happens when you teach in a school that was built in 1919.  I have random pipes all over my room. 

I love the building, but it definitely comes with its challenges.  The original slate chalk boards are still on the wall.  They’ve just been covered up.  And, I’ve got a radiator along one wall.  Does it still work?  I have no clue.  I guess I’ll figure that out come winter time…  So much to learn!    

If you want to create your own, I uploaded the problem solving strategies posters I made as a PDF file.  I just printed them on Astrobrights paper (another new favorite!)  

I’ve also hung these posters on the wall below my Smart Board before.

You might also be interested in a page of problem solving strategies I created for students to glue in their interactive notebooks.

Free Download of Problem Solving Strategies Posters

Problem Solving Strategies Posters (PDF) (2404 downloads )

Want more posters to decorate your classroom? Check out my posters page !

More Free Printable Math Posters

Sarah Carter teaches high school math in her hometown of Coweta, Oklahoma. She currently teaches AP Precalculus, AP Calculus AB, and Statistics. She is passionate about sharing creative and hands-on teaching ideas with math teachers around the world through her blog, Math = Love.

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Thanks for including the PDF of the posters!! I'm going to use a couple in my room 🙂

Since reading your blog, I've gotten the laminator out of the closet and have gone wild laminating everything I can (even begging the baseball coach next door to me if I can laminate stuff for him).

I completely understand. 🙂 I just ordered 300 more laminating sheets. I think I'm addicted…

these are so awesome!! thank you!

You're welcome!

Just found these…Thanks for sharing!!

You're welcome! I posted an updated set a few weeks ago if you're interested!

Ms. Hagan You are amazing! Thank you so much for your posts and sharing your resources. As a new teacher I appreciate it!

Comments are closed.

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May 31, 2023

Classroom Poster: 4 Steps to Solve Any Math Problem

4 Steps to Solve Any Math Problem Poster, 18×24

Get instant access to a full-size 4 Steps to Solve Any Math Problem poster.

4 Steps to Solve Any Math Problem Poster, 8.5×11

Get instant access to a miniature 4 Steps to Solve Any Math Problem poster that you can print at home or school.

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Navy Simple Math Problem Solving Poster

Get creative! Design your own Math Problem Solving Poster now.

• Size Letter (8.5 x 11 in)
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Looking to promote your math solving sessions or exam tips? Look no further than our Navy Simple Math Problem Solving Poster Template. The balanced and clean layout is perfect for displaying your key messages - clear, crisp, and straight to the point. The navy color palette adds an air of sophistication and professionalism. You can tailor it as per your needs – change the colors, adjust sizes or choose the most suitable photos or icons from our free stock libraries. With Venngage, creating the perfect design is a breeze, you can personalize it effortlessly to meet your exact requirements. This template is your ideal solution to get the word out about your math problem-solving sessions.

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Using a Plan of Attack for Math Problem-Solving

Spending the majority of their time modeling problems and making sense of relationships in math can help students move beyond a surface-level grasp.

At every grade level, math teachers in the Success Academy Charter Schools Network in New York City ask students to spend the lion’s share of their time during math lessons deeply examining the question they are being asked to solve. Students start by asking themselves questions like, “What are the mathematical relationships in the problem?” “What is this problem asking me to do?” and “How can I model my thinking?” Every classroom even has a formula—a problem-solving plan for math, printed out and displayed on the wall—called the “Plan of Attack,” which includes three parts: using 80 percent of the allotted time to conceptualize the question by reading the problem multiple times, then modeling the relationships and actions in the problems; 10 percent to answer the question by determining a strategy they will use to solve it and then computing; and finally double-checking in the last 10 percent of their time—by rereading the problem, evaluating their own reasoning, and checking computations for accuracy.

First-grade teacher Evelyn Gonzales and eighth-grade teacher Fei Liu both reinforce this strategy during precious class time by working through the problem as a whole with their students first, emphasizing the importance of this step before rushing in to solve. As a result, their students develop a much stronger understanding of the mathematical concepts at hand. “In my classroom, I don’t really care for the answer,” says Liu. “They can double-check once they have the answer. What we really need to focus on is why we set the things up, so that when they see a problem, they have an idea of where to start to think.”

The network led the state for math test scores in the 2023–2024 school year, with with 49 percent of Black and 55 percent of Hispanic students earning fours, the highest possible mark.

See all of Edutopia’s coverage of Success Academy Charter Schools to learn more about the network.

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OpenAI Announces a New AI Model, Code-Named Strawberry, That Solves Difficult Problems Step by Step

OpenAI made the last big breakthrough in artificial intelligence by increasing the size of its models to dizzying proportions, when it introduced GPT-4 last year. The company today announced a new advance that signals a shift in approach—a model that can “reason” logically through many difficult problems and is significantly smarter than existing AI without a major scale-up.

The new model, dubbed OpenAI o1, can solve problems that stump existing AI models, including OpenAI’s most powerful existing model, GPT-4o . Rather than summon up an answer in one step, as a large language model normally does, it reasons through the problem, effectively thinking out loud as a person might, before arriving at the right result.

“This is what we consider the new paradigm in these models,” Mira Murati , OpenAI’s chief technology officer, tells WIRED. “It is much better at tackling very complex reasoning tasks.”

The new model was code-named Strawberry within OpenAI, and it is not a successor to GPT-4o but rather a complement to it, the company says.

Murati says that OpenAI is currently building its next master model, GPT-5, which will be considerably larger than its predecessor. But while the company still believes that scale will help wring new abilities out of AI, GPT-5 is likely to also include the reasoning technology introduced today. “There are two paradigms,” Murati says. “The scaling paradigm and this new paradigm. We expect that we will bring them together.”

LLMs typically conjure their answers from huge neural networks fed vast quantities of training data. They can exhibit remarkable linguistic and logical abilities, but traditionally struggle with surprisingly simple problems such as rudimentary math questions that involve reasoning.

Murati says OpenAI o1 uses reinforcement learning, which involves giving a model positive feedback when it gets answers right and negative feedback when it does not, in order to improve its reasoning process. “The model sharpens its thinking and fine tunes the strategies that it uses to get to the answer,” she says. Reinforcement learning has enabled computers to play games with superhuman skill and do useful tasks like designing computer chips . The technique is also a key ingredient for turning an LLM into a useful and well-behaved chatbot.

Mark Chen, vice president of research at OpenAI, demonstrated the new model to WIRED, using it to solve several problems that its prior model, GPT-4o, cannot. These included an advanced chemistry question and the following mind-bending mathematical puzzle: “A princess is as old as the prince will be when the princess is twice as old as the prince was when the princess’s age was half the sum of their present age. What is the age of the prince and princess?” (The correct answer is that the prince is 30, and the princess is 40).

“The [new] model is learning to think for itself, rather than kind of trying to imitate the way humans would think,” as a conventional LLM does, Chen says.

OpenAI says its new model performs markedly better on a number of problem sets, including ones focused on coding, math, physics, biology, and chemistry. On the American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME), a test for math students, GPT-4o solved on average 12 percent of the problems while o1 got 83 percent right, according to the company.

The new model is slower than GPT-4o, and OpenAI says it does not always perform better—in part because, unlike GPT-4o, it cannot search the web and it is not multimodal, meaning it cannot parse images or audio.

Improving the reasoning capabilities of LLMs has been a hot topic in research circles for some time. Indeed, rivals are pursuing similar research lines. In July, Google announced AlphaProof , a project that combines language models with reinforcement learning for solving difficult math problems.

AlphaProof was able to learn how to reason over math problems by looking at correct answers. A key challenge with broadening this kind of learning is that there are not correct answers for everything a model might encounter. Chen says OpenAI has succeeded in building a reasoning system that is much more general. “I do think we have made some breakthroughs there; I think it is part of our edge,” Chen says. “It’s actually fairly good at reasoning across all domains.”

Noah Goodman , a professor at Stanford who has published work on improving the reasoning abilities of LLMs, says the key to more generalized training may involve using a “carefully prompted language model and handcrafted data” for training. He adds that being able to consistently trade the speed of results for greater accuracy would be a “nice advance.”

Yoon Kim , an assistant professor at MIT, says how LLMs solve problems currently remains somewhat mysterious, and even if they perform step-by-step reasoning there may be key differences from human intelligence. This could be crucial as the technology becomes more widely used. “These are systems that would be potentially making decisions that affect many, many people,” he says. “The larger question is, do we need to be confident about how a computational model is arriving at the decisions?”

The technique introduced by OpenAI today also may help ensure that AI models behave well. Murati says the new model has shown itself to be better at avoiding producing unpleasant or potentially harmful output by reasoning about the outcome of its actions. “If you think about teaching children, they learn much better to align to certain norms, behaviors, and values once they can reason about why they’re doing a certain thing,” she says.

Oren Etzioni , a professor emeritus at the University of Washington and a prominent AI expert, says it’s “essential to enable LLMs to engage in multi-step problem solving, use tools, and solve complex problems.” He adds, “Pure scale up will not deliver this.” Etzioni says, however, that there are further challenges ahead. “Even if reasoning were solved, we would still have the challenge of hallucination and factuality.”

OpenAI’s Chen says that the new reasoning approach developed by the company shows that advancing AI need not cost ungodly amounts of compute power. “One of the exciting things about the paradigm is we believe that it’ll allow us to ship intelligence cheaper,” he says, “and I think that really is the core mission of our company.”

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