KenKen is the hottest puzzle craze since Sudoku. It combines the logic of a Sudoku puzzle with arithmetic. You have to add, subtract, multiply and divide to arrive at the numbers given in KenKen puzzle. 

In KenKen, like Sudoku, there is a grid of 4×4, 6×6, 8×8, or 9×9 cells. That means the grid has 16, 36, 64 or 81 cells. The puzzle can actually be even larger, but those are for really advanced solvers. In both kinds of puzzles, you must have all the digits in one row. In other words, if a row has 4 cells, like in a 16-grid puzzle, you must use the numbers 1-4 in each row, and in each column. No digit may be left out of row or column, nor may there be duplicates in a row or a column. 

So far, that’s totally easy to understand. If you look at a puzzle, you can see what I mean in a second. 

The diabolical cleverness of KenKen, which sets it apart from Sudoku, is that:

• some adjacent groups of cells have a thick border around them. Those groups are called “cages.” Each cage has a number printed in it, along with an operation sign. 

• The cells within that cage must be filled with the digits that will amount to the number given. Let’s say the cage has two cells surrounded by a thick border, the number in it is 6, and the operation sign is multiplication (x). That tells you that you must find two numbers that multiply to 6.

 You may be tempted to say, “That’s easy. The answer is 2 x 3!” But don’t jump to conclusions! The answer could just as well be 6 x 1. Furthermore, you don’t immediately know which of the two cells the 2, 3, 6 or 1 belong in. You have to find that out from looking at the other cages and narrowing down your possibilities. 

It takes about two minutes to learn how to do KenKen, but it can take years to master. There’s something for all levels of solvers. 

Good math teachers will look into this puzzle and learn some strategy, then introduce the puzzles to their students. There are very inexpensive books of KenKen, as well as online sites where you can download free puzzles. One of them is http://kenken.com

Once you understand how KenKen really works, you will start learning all about factoring, exponents, and mathematical logic. You won’t need a workbook, and there are no grades (if the teacher is smart). The only stress is the gentle strain on your brain, and you’ll be developing that brain with every KenKen puzzle you solve. 

It’s easy to get good at KenKen with some practice. The nice thing about the practice is that you won’t be able to stop. KenKen is the most addictive puzzle around!

Imagine a student being able to hone his or her basic math skills without worksheets, flash cards, charts, rote-memorization, or quizzes. Imagine that student loving math like never before!

KenKen was invented by Tetsuya Miyamoto, a Japanese math teacher who says, “I believe that if you give children good learning materials, they will think and learn and grow on their own.” If you teach yourself, your child or your students basic math with KenKen, they will develop a lifelong love of mathematics, and you will have done them a wonderful favor. 

For free KenKen video lessons, all the way to the very advanced level, check out http://mathmojo.com/kenken

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KenKen is the hottest puzzle craze since Sudoku. It combines the logic of a Sudoku puzzle with arithmetic. You have to add, subtract, multiply and divide to arrive at the numbers given in KenKen puzzle. 

In KenKen, like Sudoku, there is a grid of 4×4, 6×6, 8×8, or 9×9 cells. That means the grid has 16, 36, 64 or 81 cells. The puzzle can actually be even larger, but those are for really advanced solvers. In both kinds of puzzles, you must have all the digits in one row. In other words, if a row has 4 cells, like in a 16-grid puzzle, you must use the numbers 1-4 in each row, and in each column. No digit may be left out of row or column, nor may there be duplicates in a row or a column. 

So far, that’s totally easy to understand. If you look at a puzzle, you can see what I mean in a second. 

The diabolical cleverness of KenKen, which sets it apart from Sudoku, is that:

• some adjacent groups of cells have a thick border around them. Those groups are called “cages.” Each cage has a number printed in it, along with an operation sign. 

• The cells within that cage must be filled with the digits that will amount to the number given. Let’s say the cage has two cells surrounded by a thick border, the number in it is 6, and the operation sign is multiplication (x). That tells you that you must find two numbers that multiply to 6.

 You may be tempted to say, “That’s easy. The answer is 2 x 3!” But don’t jump to conclusions! The answer could just as well be 6 x 1. Furthermore, you don’t immediately know which of the two cells the 2, 3, 6 or 1 belong in. You have to find that out from looking at the other cages and narrowing down your possibilities. 

It takes about two minutes to learn how to do KenKen, but it can take years to master. There’s something for all levels of solvers. 

Good math teachers will look into this puzzle and learn some strategy, then introduce the puzzles to their students. There are very inexpensive books of KenKen, as well as online sites where you can download free puzzles. One of them is http://kenken.com

Once you understand how KenKen really works, you will start learning all about factoring, exponents, and mathematical logic. You won’t need a workbook, and there are no grades (if the teacher is smart). The only stress is the gentle strain on your brain, and you’ll be developing that brain with every KenKen puzzle you solve. 

It’s easy to get good at KenKen with some practice. The nice thing about the practice is that you won’t be able to stop. KenKen is the most addictive puzzle around!

Imagine a student being able to hone his or her basic math skills without worksheets, flash cards, charts, rote-memorization, or quizzes. Imagine that student loving math like never before!

KenKen was invented by Tetsuya Miyamoto, a Japanese math teacher who says, “I believe that if you give children good learning materials, they will think and learn and grow on their own.” If you teach yourself, your child or your students basic math with KenKen, they will develop a lifelong love of mathematics, and you will have done them a wonderful favor. 

For free KenKen video lessons, all the way to the very advanced level, check out http://mathmojo.com/kenken

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Sudoku puzzles are the newest puzzle craze currently sweeping across many parts of the United States. The game has only one basic rule, that is, every row and every column on a 3 by 3 box of Sudoku puzzles has to contain the numbers 1 through 9, but only once with no one digit repeating itself.

Sudoku puzzles, also referred to as Number Place in the United States, are said to be deceptively simple, since a player can start the game quite easily only to find himself later on getting stuck in the middle of the game with no clear puzzle solution in sight.

Good Sudoku puzzles ideally should ultimately have only one solution, using only one’s logic skills, meaning guesswork is not an effective method in solving the puzzle.

However, solving Sudoku puzzles on pure logic alone can prove to be a difficult task. For logic to be effective, a puzzle should be able to move progressively. This simply means that at every stage in the solution of the puzzle, there must be at least one square or block whose value can be determined easily. Determining that one value should then uncover at least one other fully determined value, and so on and so forth. Yet, this process can best be achieved by applying guesswork. By making a speculative or guessed entry in one block, a player can eventually determine if the other block has a logical entry or maybe none at all. This can be quite confusing, but the implication here is that while Sudoku claims that it can be solved by logic alone, it is not a good starting option. A player has to first make a guess or even guesses on his or her initial entry.

While Sudoku puzzles appear to continue boggling the minds of many puzzle addicts, it is interesting to note how the puzzle can be solved with relative ease by many computer programs. The question of logic and guesswork again comes into play in this particular aspect because most computer softwares are often programmed to make use of the trial-and-error concept, making quick corrections when an errant entry is made in a particular square or block.

Playing against a computer in a game involving Sudoku puzzles thus tends to be a futile endeavor. Your opponent can easily make the necessary corrections, using purely trial-and-error, and ultimately finding the right solution. You, on the other hand, are stuck in logical thinking, trying to justify the entry of a particular digit in a particular square or block.

Nevertheless, the beauty of Sudoku puzzles is that while the rules involved are quite simple, they do not necessarily solve the puzzle by themselves alone. The game also requires the application of a certain degree of analytical method that is not entirely written in black and white, but often can be discovered only by mere guesswork. A few of these in fact have been given interesting names such as “swordfish” and “x-wing”. In this regard, it is no great wonder that Sudoku puzzles have become a popular pastime in many parts of the world.

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