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Ordering & Line-ups

Thinking Skills · Y4 OC
Year 4 OC
Lesson Guide
Explanation
Line-up puzzles put people or objects in a row and feed you clues about who is left or right of whom. Two habits win them all. First: DRAW — a row of boxes on paper, clues marked in, never juggled in your head. Second: translate the words precisely. 'Milo is to the right of Nora' means Nora comes first, Milo somewhere after — with gaps allowed. 'Immediately right of' means touching. And watch the direction: 'A is right of B' and 'B is right of A' are opposite worlds. One drawn arrow beats a minute of mental juggling.
Your Turn
Draw: 'Cat is left of Dog. Dog is left of Emu.' What is the order? Check: Cat, Dog, Emu — chains of 'left of' just line up.
Watch Out
'Left of' from YOUR view stays your view unless the puzzle says 'their left'. OC questions use the reader's view.
Explanation
Example: Eli is right of Dev; Fay is right of Dev — which statement MUST be true? Both clues push people right of Dev, but they don't order Eli and Fay between themselves. Two arrangements survive: Dev-Eli-Fay and Dev-Fay-Eli. So 'Eli is in the middle' is only a might — it dies in the second arrangement. What's true in BOTH? Dev is furthest to the left. When clues leave several arrangements open, list them all — the must-be-true answer is the fact they share.
Your Turn
Clues: 'Pia is left of Quinn. Rob is left of Quinn.' List the arrangements. Check: P R Q and R P Q — Quinn is always furthest right; that's the must.
Watch Out
Finding ONE arrangement that fits is not enough for 'must be true' — you need the fact that holds in EVERY fitting arrangement.
Explanation
Big elimination puzzles (five lockers, one prize) give five positions and five clues. The winning order of attack: (1) strongest clues first — 'grey is at the FAR LEFT and 2 places from white' locks two positions instantly (grey 1, white 3); (2) distance clues next — 'white is 2 places from the prize' narrows the prize to positions 1 or 5; (3) 'not next to' clues last, as eliminators. Write the grid, cross out what each clue forbids, and the answer corners itself. Never start with the vaguest clue — hunt the clue that mentions a fixed spot (far right, middle, end).
Your Turn
Four lockers in a row. Clues: 'Ana's locker is at the far left. Ben's is next to Ana's. Cy's is not next to Ben's.' Where is Cy? Check: Ana 1, Ben 2, Cy must be 4 (not 3, which touches Ben).
Watch Out
'2 places away' runs BOTH directions until an edge kills one side. Far-left locker 2 from white → white can only be at 3.
Explanation
Taller/faster/older puzzles are line-ups standing vertically. Build a TOWER: 'Dev is taller than Eli' stacks Dev above Eli; 'Fay is shorter than Eli' slots Fay below; 'Gus is taller than Dev' crowns the top. Tower: Gus > Dev > Eli > Fay — now every question (tallest? shortest? who's second?) reads straight off. When a clue doesn't connect to your tower yet, park it and place it later. And if the clues never separate two people, questions about them are 'can't tell' — the tower shows the gap honestly.
Your Turn
Clues: 'Mo runs faster than Nia. Nia runs faster than Oli. Pat runs faster than Mo.' Who is slowest? Check: tower P > M > N > O — Oli is slowest.
Watch Out
'Taller than' chains only connect what they connect: from A>B and C>B you CANNOT order A and C. That pair stays unknown.
Explanation
The line-up toolkit: always draw the positions; attack the strongest clue first (anything naming a fixed spot); when clues leave choices open, list every surviving arrangement and answer with what they share; and for taller/faster/older, build a tower — remembering chains only order what they actually connect. In the test the sketch takes fifteen seconds and saves forty-five, because every clue lands somewhere visible instead of evaporating. Quiz and exercises!
Your Turn
Speed run: 'Tia is right of Sam. Sam is right of Raj.' Who is furthest left? Check: Raj — the chain reads Raj, Sam, Tia.
Watch Out
Re-read each clue ONCE after solving — the most common line-up error is a clue silently flipped (left for right) at the start.
📌 Key Points — this lesson in a nutshell
  • Draw the row as boxes and mark every clue — never solve line-ups in your head.
  • 'Right of' allows gaps; 'immediately right of' means touching; direction flips are the classic error.
  • Attack the strongest clue first: fixed positions (far right, middle, ends) lock the grid.
  • If several arrangements survive, the must-be-true answer is the fact they ALL share.
  • Rankings are vertical line-ups: build a tower, and remember chains only order what they connect.
  • '2 places away' runs both directions until an edge eliminates one.
Step 1: Introduction
Step 1 of 5
Left and right on paper 123 LEFT RIGHT "Milo is to the right of Nora" = Nora … Milo (somewhere rightwards) It does NOT say they are next to each other — "right of" allows gaps; "immediately right of" means touching. Rule 1 of every line-up: draw the positions as boxes, then translate each clue into marks on the drawing. Never solve in your head.
Dev, Eli, Fay Clue 1: Eli is to the right of Dev. Clue 2: Fay is to the right of Dev. Possible: D E F Dev, Eli, Fay ✓ both clues Eli middle Also possible: D F E Dev, Fay, Eli ✓ both clues Fay middle TWO arrangements fit! So "Eli is in the middle" only MIGHT be true. But look what is true in BOTH: Dev is furthest left. "Which MUST be true?" → the fact every arrangement shares. List all arrangements the clues allow; the answer survives them all.
The 5-locker puzzle 12345 Work from the STRONGEST clue first: "The grey locker is at the far left, 2 places from the white locker" → Grey = 1 AND White = 3. Two positions locked at once! "White is 2 places from the prize" → prize is at 1 or 5… Then the weaker clues eliminate: "yellow right of white", "red not next to the prize", "purple not next to grey or white"… Each clue crosses out possibilities until ONE locker remains. Order of attack: locked positions → distances → "not next to" eliminations.
Order without a row Clues: Dev is taller than Eli. Fay is shorter than Eli. Gus is taller than Dev. Gus Dev Eli Fay tallest shortest Build a TOWER: each clue stacks one name above or below another G > D > E > F
Line-up mastery 📏 Always draw boxes for positions, arrows for clues Strongest clue first fixed spots (far right, middle) lock the grid List ALL arrangements must-be-true = shared by every survivor Towers for rankings chains connect only what they touch In the test, the drawing takes 15 seconds and saves 45. Quiz and exercises — pencils ready!
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