Given that we’ve read and reviewed lots of inspiring maths books this month (including That’s Mathematics! and Maths Words for Little People), we thought we’d devote this Get Creative feature to using numbers to spark creativity. Who said the magic of words and numbers can’t be combined?!

Make a treasure map to record the locations of your loot!
Imagine you’re in charge of guarding the secret location of some very valuable pirate treasure. So you don’t forget where it’s buried, follow these steps…
- Draw the outline of your treasure island
- Add detail to your island, maybe a boulder, palm trees, a pineapple plant, a cave, a nest of vipers – anything you like!
- Use secret symbols to mark the locations of your buried treasure
- Draw a square grid over your island, then divide the grid into 25 squares of equal size - Along the bottom of the grid, mark each square with a number from 1-5, starting on the left
- Down the left-hand side of the grid, mark each square with a letter from A-E, starting at the top
- Note down the grid references of where your treasure is buried. For example, if you buried a chest in the bottom left of your grid, the reference would be E1

Take your treasure map further
Write a short story about your island. Perhaps someone found your grid references so you need to get to the treasure before they do, maybe avoiding the vest of vipers and getting lost in the cave along the way!

Be a wildlife reporter
Research fascinating numerical facts about the following mammals: Cheetahs Sloths Snow leopards Pygmy shrews Blue whales

For example, find out things like their average weight and height, how much they eat a day, how fast they can run. Next, compare the numbers and work out who would win in a race, who’s the slowest, who’s the heaviest, and so on. Next, present your findings in a lively report, and include graphs to illustrate the data. You could do the same for birds and reptiles.

Lucky Numbers
Write a story called “Lucky Numbers”. While it could be about winning the lottery, (the most obvious kind of lucky numbers), use your imagination to think of other ways numbers could be lucky…

For more fun with maths, take a look at our feature Maths is for Everyone! 30+ books that celebrate the Joy of Mathematics

For more creative inspiration and activities, check out the rest of our Get Creative series.

Joanne Owen is a writer and publishing professional with over twenty years’ experience of the book industry, and the author of a how-to children’s guide to creative writing, You Can Write Awesome Stories. Alongside writing and reviewing books, she hosts writing workshops and is an Editorial Expert for LoveReading.