Welcome to the math mystery story challenge! Unlike a regular worksheet, this activity hides every number and clue you need inside a short story. Because the information is woven into the text, you must read carefully before you can calculate anything. Once you think you have cracked the case, post your answer and your work in the comments below.
Step 1: Read the Story Carefully
Read every word before you do any math. Numbers, times, and schedule details all matter, so pay close attention to everything each character says.
🕵️ “The Missing Trophy”
A math mystery story challenge for Mr. Alexander’s Class
The Riverside Middle School trophy case had been locked since Monday morning. By Friday afternoon, someone had opened it and the 1st Place Regional Science Championship trophy was gone.
Vice Principal Okafor called in three students who had been seen near the trophy case that week. Their names were Jordan, Priya, and Marcus, and each one had a different story.
Jordan said he walked past the trophy case twice a day. He came once before first period and once again after school. School started at 7:45 a.m. and Jordan arrived exactly 12 minutes early every single day. After school, he always stopped at the trophy case exactly 23 minutes after the final bell, which rang at 3:10 p.m. Jordan attended school Monday through Friday that week, all five days.
Priya said she only came near the trophy case on days she had Science Club. Science Club met every Tuesday and Thursday after school. She stayed for exactly one hour and fifteen minutes each session and always left the building the same way, right past the trophy case. Priya did not come to school on Monday because she had a doctor’s appointment.
Marcus said he visited the trophy case only once all week, on Wednesday morning. He arrived at school at 7:50 a.m., stood at the case for about five minutes, and then headed to class. He also told Vice Principal Okafor that the trophy was still there when he left.
The school security log showed the trophy case had been accessed for a total of 9 visits across the entire week. Vice Principal Okafor immediately crossed Marcus off her list because his single visit accounted for just one of those nine.
“The rest of the visits belong to two people who each came a specific number of times,” she said, tapping her notepad. “Furthermore, when I add up the total time those two spent at the trophy case using only the times they each described, I get exactly 3 hours and 6 minutes.”
She looked at Jordan. Then she looked at Priya.
“One of you has been lying about your schedule,” she said quietly, “because only one person’s visits and times add up correctly to match that log.”
Step 2: Pull Out the Clues From the Math Mystery Story
Before you calculate anything, go back through the story and list every number, time, and schedule detail you can find. As you do that, work through these guiding questions.
How many times did each person visit the trophy case? Look carefully at each character’s weekly schedule and count their total visits.
How many visits are left after removing Marcus? The log shows 9 total visits. Since Marcus accounts for one, figure out how the remaining 8 are split between Jordan and Priya.
How much total time did each person spend at the case? Multiply each person’s number of visits by the time per visit that the story describes. Then add the two totals together and convert your answer to hours and minutes.
Does your total match the log? Only one correct combination of visits and times produces exactly 3 hours and 6 minutes. Therefore, whichever person’s schedule does not fit is the one who is lying.
Step 3: Solve the Math Mystery Story Challenge
Work everything out on paper before you post your comment. Specifically, answer each of these five questions.
- How many times did Jordan visit the trophy case that week?
- How many times did Priya visit the trophy case that week?
- How many total minutes did each person spend at the trophy case?
- Whose total time matches the security log and whose does not?
- Who is lying: Jordan or Priya?
Step 4: Post Your Math Mystery Answer in the Comments
Once you have finished solving the math mystery story challenge, scroll down and post your comment. In order to earn full credit, your comment must include all three of the following.
✅ Your answer: who is lying, Jordan or Priya? ✅ Your math: show your calculations, including visit count multiplied by time per visit for each person ✅ Your reasoning: one or two sentences explaining which clues in the story helped you solve it
📌 Format your comment like this: Math Mystery Answer: [your answer and work here]
Checklist: Before You Submit Your Math Mystery Answer
Before you hit submit, make sure you can say yes to every item below.
Did you re-read the story and write down every number and schedule detail? Did you calculate visit counts for both Jordan and Priya separately? Did you convert your total minutes into hours and minutes before comparing to the log? Does your answer match both the 9 total visits and the 3 hours and 6 minutes from the security log? Most importantly, did you show all of your work and not just the final answer?
This is not your average math problem. There are no equations written on the board and no numbers handed to you on a worksheet. Everything you need to solve this mystery is hidden inside the story. Read carefully because the clues are there if you pay attention. Once you think you have cracked the case, post your answer and your work in the comments below.
Step 1: Read the Story
Read every word carefully. Numbers, times, distances, and details all matter, so do not skip anything.
🕵️ “The Missing Trophy”
A math mystery for Mr. Alexander’s Class
The Riverside Middle School trophy case had been locked since Monday morning. By Friday afternoon, however, someone had managed to open it and the 1st Place Regional Science Championship trophy was gone.
Vice Principal Okafor called in three students who had been seen near the trophy case that week. Their names were Jordan, Priya, and Marcus. Each one had a different story.
Jordan said he walked past the trophy case twice a day. He came once before first period and once again after school. School started at 7:45 a.m. and Jordan arrived exactly 12 minutes early every single day. After school, he always stopped at the trophy case exactly 23 minutes after the final bell, which rang at 3:10 p.m. Jordan was at school Monday through Friday that week, all five days.
Priya said she only came near the trophy case on days she had Science Club. Science Club met every Tuesday and Thursday after school. She stayed for exactly one hour and fifteen minutes each session. Furthermore, she left the building the same way every time, right past the trophy case. Priya did not come to school on Monday because she had a doctor’s appointment.
Marcus said he visited the trophy case only once all week, on Wednesday morning. He claimed he got to school at 7:50 a.m. and stood at the case for about five minutes before heading to class. He also said the trophy was still there when he left.
The school’s security log showed the trophy case had been accessed for a total of 9 visits across the entire week. Vice Principal Okafor crossed off Marcus immediately because his one visit accounted for just one of those nine.
“The rest of the visits,” she said, tapping her notepad, “belong to two people who each came a specific number of times. In addition, when I add up the total time those two spent standing at that trophy case using only the times they each described, I get exactly 3 hours and 6 minutes.”
She looked at Jordan. She looked at Priya.
“One of you,” she said quietly, “has been lying about your schedule. Because only one person’s visits and times add up correctly to complete that log.”
🔍 Step 2: Study the Clues
Do not jump straight to calculating. Instead, go back through the story and pull out every number, time, and schedule detail mentioned. As you do that, ask yourself the following questions.
Who visited the trophy case and how many times? Look at each person’s schedule. How many visits does each one account for per week?
What was the total number of visits in the log? Once Marcus’s visit is removed, how many visits are left and who do they belong to?
What is the total time spent at the trophy case? Use the visit counts and times described in the story to calculate total minutes for each remaining person. Then convert your answer to hours and minutes.
Does it add up? Only one combination of visits and times hits exactly 3 hours and 6 minutes. Consequently, you need to figure out which person’s story checks out and which one does not.
✏️ Step 3: Solve the Mystery
Work out the math on paper before you comment. Specifically, you need to figure out the answers to these five questions.
- How many times did Jordan visit the trophy case that week?
- How many times did Priya visit the trophy case that week?
- How many total minutes did each person spend at the trophy case?
- Whose total time matches the security log and whose does not?
- Who is lying: Jordan or Priya?
💬 Step 4: Post Your Answer in the Comments
Once you are ready, scroll down and post your comment. In order to get full credit, your comment must include all three of the following things.
✅ Your answer: who is lying, Jordan or Priya? ✅ Your math: show the calculations that prove it (visit count × time per visit for each person) ✅ Your reasoning: one or two sentences explaining how the story gave you the clues you needed
📌 Format your comment like this: Math Mystery Answer: [your answer and work here]
✅ Checklist Before You Post
Before you hit submit, make sure you can say yes to each of these questions.
Did you re-read the story to find every number and schedule detail? Did you calculate visit counts for both Jordan and Priya? Did you convert your total minutes into hours and minutes to check against the story? Does your answer match the 9 total visits and 3 hours and 6 minutes from the security log? Most importantly, did you show your work and not just the final answer?
When you’re finished, check out the rest of our blog for more tips, ideas, and activities to help you learn and grow. Be sure to follow our classroom Instagram page for behind-the-scenes moments, project highlights, and fun updates. Let’s work together to make learning fun, exciting, and something you look forward to every day!
One Response
Answer to Math Mystery:
Jordan is lying My calculations: Visits by Jordan = 2 visits per day for 5 days → 2 × 5 = 10 visits, Visits by Priya = 2 visits on Tuesday and Thursday → 2 visits. According to the log, there are 9 visits total, minus one made by Marcus → 9 – 1 = 8 visits remaining. Since there are only 8 visits left but Jordan visited 10 times, this is impossible. On time: Time spent by Priya = 1 hour 15 minutes per visit → 75 minutes × 2 visits = 150 minutes, 150 minutes = 2 hours 30 minutes. Total time should equal 3 hours and 6 minutes = 186 minutes 186 minutes – 150 minutes = 36 minutes remaining for the other person Since Jordan had 8 visits, then 36 ÷ 8 = 4.5 minutes per visit, which is far from being true. My reasoning: Jordan’s total number of visits and total time do not agree with what was recorded in the log, while Priya fits the clues well.