Question

a) remove 3 sticks to leave 3 squares
b) remove 3 sticks to leave 5 squares
c) remove 5 sticks to leave 2 squares

Explanation:

Step1: Analyze part a

We need to remove 3 sticks to get 3 squares. Observe that if we remove 3 non - adjacent sticks that break the connections in a way to isolate 3 separate squares. For example, remove the three inner - horizontal sticks in the middle row.

Step2: Analyze part b

To leave 5 squares after removing 3 sticks, we can target sticks that break the large structure into 5 distinct square - like shapes. Remove one stick from the top - left corner, one from the top - right corner and one from the bottom - middle. This leaves 5 non - overlapping squares.

Step3: Analyze part c

For leaving 2 squares after removing 5 sticks, we can remove sticks that break the structure into two large non - overlapping squares. Remove the four corner sticks of the middle square and one of the outer vertical sticks.

Answer:

a) Remove 3 non - adjacent inner horizontal sticks in the middle row.
b) Remove one stick from top - left corner, one from top - right corner and one from bottom - middle.
c) Remove the four corner sticks of the middle square and one outer vertical stick.