Most of us know The 12 Days of Christmas. The words can be used as a starting point for primary maths activities across the age range.

The activities that follow are based on the 12th day.

The first set of activities are word problems that reinforce learning with an everyday application.

The second calls for drums, and provides opportunities for data handling, measuring and using mathematical language at various levels.

The final activities are based on all the presents in the song. There are opportunities for calculation and exploring number patterns.

Twelve drummers drumming

“Twelve drummers drumming” is not everyone’s idea of a present. The arrival of a dozen musicians, to say nothing of their drums, could be seen as a mixed blessing. Certainly it could lead to problems. Here are some of them:

On the 12th day of Christmas

My true love sent to me:

12 drummers drumming

11 pipers piping

10 lords a-leaping

Nine ladies dancing

Eight maids a-milking

Seven swans a-swimming

Six geese a laying

Five golden rings!

Four calling birds

Three French hens

Two turtle doves

And a partridge in a pear tree.

TWELVE DRUMMERS DRESSING

The drummers are cold. Some wear vests to keep warm, the rest wear coats.

* Suggest a number who are wearing vests.

* How many are wearing coats?

* Find other numbers of vests and coats.

* Try to find all the possible answers.Twelve drummers drilling TWELVE DRUMMERS DRILLING

* 12 drummers are arranged in rows with the same number in each row.

* Find a way of doing this.

* How many rows?

* How many drummers in each row?

* Find as many other answers as you can.

TWELVE DRUMMERS DRINKING

The drummers are offered punch and mince pies. Half (12) of the drummers like punch.

* How many drummers like punch?

* How many don’t like punch?

One-third (13) of them like mince pies.

* How many like mince pies?

* How many don’t like mince pies?

* Make up your own questions using different fractions.

TWELVE DRUMMERS DREAMING

Some of the drummers fall asleep.

Some of the sleepers are snoring.

One-quarter (14) of the sleepers are not snoring.

Two more are snoring than are awake.

* How many are awake?

* How many are asleep and snoring?

* How many are asleep and not snoring?

BRING ON THE DRUMS: For these activities you will need drums. They can be real, toy or improvised. If you can’t find 12, fewer will do.

MAKE A DRUM

Make a real drum using a tin container, or a toy drum from card.

Decorate your drum with a strip of paper round the edge; make sure the strip is the right length.

Decorate the strip with a repeating pattern.

COLLECTION OF DRUMS

Assemble 12 drums. What is the same about them all? What are the differences? Sort them according to the differences. Find a way of recording how many you have of each type.

BANG A DRUM

Choose two drummers. The first one beats the drum a certain number of times. The other children have to count the number of beats. The second drummer repeats what the first one did. Then change the rules, so the second drummer does one or two more beats, or twice as many altogether.

MEASURE A DRUM

Find the biggest drum you can.

Measure across the drumskin.

Measure around the drum.

Find the smallest drum you can and do the same measurements.

TWELFTH DAY PRESENTS: These activities are about all the presents received on the 12th day of Christmas. You will need a list of presents or a good memory.

FINDING TOTALS

* How many swans and doves altogether?

* Find two other sets of presents which add up to this total.

* Make up other addition questions using the list of presents.

* Which are the most and least common totals?

FINDING DIFFERENCES

* How many more maids than rings?

* How many more lords than doves?

* Make up some “how many more questions” for your friends.

* Try to find different questions with the same answers.

FLYING PRESENTS AND WALKING PRESENTS

Look at the list of presents given on the 12th day.

* How many birds?

* How many people?

* How many wings?

* How many legs? Grand total

* How many presents were received on the 12th day?

* How many were received on each of the other days?

* Make a chart or list to help you compare the number of presents given on each day.

* If Christmas had 20 days, how many presents would you expect on the 20th day?

TEACHER NOTES

Twelve drummers dressing

This may lead to a discussion of whether the number of vests can be zero.

Twelve drummers drilling

This may lead to discussion of whether 4 rows of 3 are the same as 3 rows of 4.

Children may also dispute whether you can have a row of one.

Twelve drummers drinking

6 drummers like punch, 6 do not.

4 drummers like mince pies, 8 do not.

Twelve drummers dreaming 4 drummers are awake.

6 are asleep and snoring.

2 are asleep and not snoring.

Finding totals

The total number of swans and doves is 9. Other ways of reaching number this are: 8 (maids) + 1 partridge; 6 (geese)+ 3 (hens); 5 (rings)+4 (birds).

The most common total is 13, which can be reached in six ways.

The least common totals are 3, 4, 22 and 23, which can each be reached in one way only.

Finding differences

There are 3 more maids than rings. There are 8 more lords than doves The most common difference is 1, which can be reached in 11 ways.

The least common is 11, which can be reached in only one way.

Children may wish to explore this connection further.

Flying presents and walking presents

The number of birds on the 12th day is 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 6 + 7 = 23.

The number of people is 8 + 9 + 10 + 11 + 12 = 50.

This totals 46 wings and 146 legs.

If the maids-a-milking each have one cow, this will give another 8 x 4 = 32 legs, making a total of 178.

If the maids are sitting on three-legged stools, this makes another 8 x 3 = 24 legs, leading to a total of 202.