Illustrative Mathematics
How Many Buttons?
Bring the class into the probability by having everyone count buttons on their shirts. Organize the data into the chart provided and chose different possibilities such as "female with one button" or "all students with more than four...
EngageNY
Calculating Probabilities of Compound Events
Use tree diagrams with multiple branches to calculate the probabilities of compound events. Pupils use tree diagrams to find the sample space for probability problems and use them to determine the probability of compound events in the...
National Security Agency
It's Probably Probable
Learners make predictions and draw conclusions from given information as they learn the meaning of probability in this vocabulary-rich, integrated activity that presents a variety of teaching strategies to motivate and reach...
EngageNY
Counting Problems
Solving these percent problems is a matter of counting. Pupils find percents by counting the number of events that meet the criteria and the total number of possibilities. Participants create the ratio and convert it to a percent to...
Illustrative Mathematics
Heads or Tails
Heads! A great way to practice probability is to flip a coin in class. The provided data allows your mathematicians to predict the probability of heads in ten coin flips. Bring coins to class and allow your own trial of heads or tails....
Curated OER
Valentine Marbles
if you've ever had to guess how many items were in a jar, then this problem is for you! With a big jar full of red and white marbles, does picking a sample of 16 allow your learners to get a good estimate on the percentages of each...
Shodor Education Foundation
Marbles
Grab some marbles from a bag. The applet simulates drawing marbles from a bag. Pupils determine the number of four colors of marbles in a bag and how many marbles to draw. Using information on whether order matters in the draw and if...
Project Maths
Fair Trials with Two Dice
Life's not fair, but dice games should be. After playing a two-person game with a pair of dice, scholars investigate the fairness of the game. They consider the number of possible outcomes using the fundamental counting principle and...
Curated OER
Can You Count on Cans?
How can a canned food drive be connected to math? It's as simple as counting and organizing the cans! Children demonstrate their ability to sort non-perishable foods into categories that include soup cans, vegetable cans, boxed items,...
Illustrative Mathematics
How Many Cells Are in the Human Body?
Investigating the large numbers of science is the task in a simple but deep activity. Given a one-sentence problem set-up and some basic assumptions, the class sets off on an open-ended investigation that really gives some...
American Statistical Association
The Gumball Machine
Chew on an activity for probability. Given information on the number of gumballs in a gumball machine, scholars consider how likely it is to randomly draw a blue gumball and how many of each color they would draw in 10 trials if the...
101 Questions
Yellow Starbursts
Let the task burst your mind. Scholars estimate the frequency that both Starbursts in a pack are yellow out of 287 packs. They apply probability concepts to complete the sweet task.
American Statistical Association
How Tall and How Many?
Is there a relationship between height and the number of siblings? Classmates collect data on their heights and numbers of brothers and sisters. They apply statistical methods to determine if such a relationship exists.
American Statistical Association
Happy Birthday to . . . Two?
How many people do you need in a room before two likely share the same birthday? Scholars consider this puzzle by analyzing a set of data. They ponder how to divide the data and determine the proper size of a group for this event to...
Houston Area Calculus Teachers
Polynomial Graphing
Your AP Calculus learners probably have their ID numbers memorized, but have they tried graphing them? Pique your pupils' interest by asking each to create a unique polynomial function based on their ID numbers, and then analyze the...
Math Stars
Math Stars: a Problem-Solving Newsletter Grade 7
Put on your thinking caps because middle school math has never been more interesting in this huge resource full of thought provoking questions. Written as a newsletter, the resource has 10 two-page newsletters with a variety of...
Math Stars
Math Stars: a Problem-Solving Newsletter Grade 8
You've just hit the jackpot of integrating math problems and riddles with this jumbo-sized resource! Written as a newsletter, scroll through 35 pages of puzzles and quality problems to engage and encourage your learners to inquire...
Shodor Education Foundation
Racing Game with One Die
Pupils roll a die to figure out which car advances on a race track. They determine the rules for each car moving forward and, given the statistics of the winner, compare if it matches their predictions.
Visa
Earning Money
Where does money come from? Is it limitless and always available? Introduce your youngsters to the concept of earning through jobs and/or chores with a matching activity and provided worksheets.
Curated OER
The Old Man and the Sea: Problematic Situations
Bring the drama of Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea to class with a fun role-playing activity. Given a list of survival items, readers decide which items would be the most necessary for an adventure like...
101 Questions
Wedding Cake Ribbon
Customers often want ribbon around fancy cakes, but how does a baker know how much ribbon to buy? Scholars view a cake with multiple layers in different geometric shapes. They must figure the perimeter and circumference and add them...
Curated OER
Run, Gingerbread Men, Run!—Game
Run, gingerbread men! During the board game, four gingerbread men race to discover which one finishes first. Scholars take note of the game's results using a tally chart and bar graph for all to observe the frequency of the winning...
Curated OER
Carrying Capacity
Young biologists identify how plants and animals are affected by changes in their ecosystem and environment. The concepts of succession, maintenance of habitats, interrelationships, and adaptation are all discussed. This...
Curated OER
By the Pound
Agriculture surrounds us every day; incorporate measuring tools into a study of Oklahoma's agricultural industry! Small groups read an informational text (included) before visiting stations where they investigate prices of various...