Escape room: The Math Olympics
A math escape room for grades 3–5: times tables, a doubling pattern, word problems and a mystery number win the Math Olympics gold.
The story
Welcome to the Math Olympics! The medal cabinet is locked, and the code is hidden in the Olympic events. Get through every event and win gold.
The head judge lost the code, but left a clue in every event.
5 story stations · online you can pick a level that adds more locks.
Run it at home or in class
What to prepare
- Station sheets
- A 2-digit lock or an envelope
- Paper or chocolate medals
- A stopwatch for a real competition feel
Tips for the facilitator
- Turn the stations into events: each team carries an “athlete card” and gets a stamp at every event.
- For younger pupils, print a times table as a helper for station 4.
- Run a stopwatch and announce every team’s time at the end.
Difficulty level for “The Math Olympics”
The story clues stay the same on every level; harder levels add more locks in between. You can ask for a hint at every stage.
🏅 The Math Olympics
Welcome to the Math Olympics! The medal cabinet is locked, and the code is hidden in the Olympic events. Get through every event and win gold.
0 of 6 stages solved
Stage 1: The medal event
1/6The storeroom has 7 boxes with 8 medals in each box. At the opening ceremony 6 medals were handed out.
Facilitator guide: 🏅 The Math Olympics
What the room practises
Times tables, doubling, word problems and common multiples.
The 5 stations (without the answers)
- The medal event: How many medals are left in the storeroom?
- The long-jump event: What is the next number?
- The minibus event: How many minibuses are needed to carry all the runners?
- The mystery number: Who am I?
- The medal cabinet: What is the medal cabinet code?
Preparing and printing
On the easy level the printed kit has 7 pages: a facilitator sheet with the opening story, the setup list and every answer, plus an A4 card for each of the 6 stages. Besides printing, get ready: a 2-digit lock or an envelope and a stopwatch for a real competition feel.
Most important: Turn the stations into events: each team carries an “athlete card” and gets a stamp at every event.
Age and group size
Best with teams of 3–5 children. In a class or a big party, print a kit per team and run the room in parallel.
Giving hints in this room
Online the hints open one at a time; in the printed kit they sit in the facilitator table next to each answer. Give the first hint after a couple of minutes of silence, not at the first wrong guess.
Frequently asked questions
What age is “The Math Olympics” for, and how long does it take?
It was written for grades 3–5, at easy–medium difficulty, and usually takes 20–25 minutes. It has 5 story stations, and online you can choose between three difficulty levels that add more locks.
What do I need to run “The Math Olympics”?
A printer and these props: Station sheets; A 2-digit lock or an envelope; Paper or chocolate medals; A stopwatch for a real competition feel. The printable kit includes a facilitator sheet with every answer and a card for each stage.
What if the players get stuck?
Every stage has graded hints. Online they open one at a time; in the printed kit they sit next to each answer on the facilitator sheet. The first hint never gives the answer away.
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