Holidays are for fun, and schools are keen for some of that summer energy to go into keeping young brains fit and firing.

Whether on a road trip, planning a bushwalk to our beautiful National Parks in NSW, entertaining family and guests, or watching the kids play wherever they may be, there are lots of great activities to make up with the magic of maths.

That’s why the Department’s Everyday Maths Hub has a great range of suggestions for how to keep young people entertained and engaged while using and adding to their day-to-day maths skills.

The leader of Mathematics Professional Learning, Michelle Tregoning, says with maths at the heart of everyday life there’s always plenty of opportunity to keep maths skills up to speed in the school holidays.

“Whether it’s working out how you will spend your Christmas money, how to beat your brother, sister, or favourite aunty in the next game you play, or working out what time you need to leave home to get to the movies on time, we all use maths, all of the time, every day.” said Michelle.

“That’s why we’re sharing so many maths opportunities for families to have fun, playing with our online holiday maths ideas.

“It might be for the family road trip, exploring the outdoors or taking on a holiday project - there are plenty of fun ideas to appeal to a broad age range and get the adults involved as well.”

The suggestions include:

• The suitable suitcase - understanding about size and shape while packing a suitcase
• Car cricket – spot a car with a common colour and score a run, find a rare colour and hit a four or a six, see a B-double and you’re out? – house rules apply!
• I-Spy in three dimensions – pick different shapes in buildings or on the road to guess instead of using letters
• Swimming pool bingo – guess how many strokes it takes to go a certain distance – closest wins.

For those who are a little older, there are some more adventurous ideas:

• Geography geometry – get a grip on direction, distance and scale by navigating with a map
• Bushwalking by numbers – use a compass and a map to track your way through the bush
• Picture perspectives – explore angles and effects with some creative photography.

These and many other ideas for practising everyday maths are there to explore on the Everyday Maths Hub.