Teacher Stories: Individual Games
Colonial Heights Middle School | Key West | Ontario, Canada | Washington, DC | Nebraska City Middle School | Holyoke High School
PLAYING MATH DICE MAKES MATH LEARNING FUN!
Christan Martin, Gifted Teacher
Colonial Heights Middle School, Colonial Heights, Virginia, USA
Enter Room 121. Students are seated at desks facing the chalkboard. The teacher stands at the front of the room working math problems. You hear only the teacher's voice, and you notice glassy eyes and expressionless faces on the students. That was before Math Dice...
One day, Mrs. Carter asked if I would like to teach a few lessons on mental math strategies. Having just received 100 new sets of Math Dice from ThinkFun, I knew I had just the activity for her class. I explained to her the rules of the game and the skills and concepts to be developed with the activities. Mrs. Carter was very skeptical. Games in math class? And not on a "reward day" or after a test? Hmmm...
Monday morning, I entered Room 121 and asked the students to use three given numbers and any operations to create expressions close to equal to a given target number, and oh yeah, without using a pencil and paper. Students were baffled. They had never been asked to solve a problem that had more than one right answer. They seldom were asked to solve a problem without showing their work. After a few minutes, I asked students to share their thinking, not their answers. Finally, after discussing the different strategies students used to solve the problem, students were asked to share their answers. The glassy eyes were beginning to disappear.
Next, I explained to the students that they would use the same strategies to solve problems during class, but instead of solving problems in a textbook, they would play a game. Students perked up! After explaining the game, discussing the materials to be used, and playing a couple of practice rounds as a class, students were ready to play! Partners were chosen and Math Dice packs were handed out. Students were on their way!
As I walked around the room, I saw students solving math problems in different ways. They began using numbers flexibly to create expressions. Most importantly, they were excited about math! No longer was the teacher the only one speaking. The room was filled with voices excitedly shouting out answers and explaining their strategies to one another.
By the end of the week, Mrs. Carter was just as excited as the students. She saw how playing Math Dice and completing the Math Dice activities was not only fun for the students, but it was also a learning opportunity for students. Students were using mental math strategies, just like she wanted. Mrs. Carter began to see that games and hands-on activities were not just for Fun Fridays or to fill the time after a test. Instead, they are a way to build enthusiasm and motivation about mathematics and to provide students with opportunities for discovery, critical thinking, as well as problem solving using multiple operations, exponents, and even fractions — mentally!
Now enter Room 121. Students are engaged. Students are sharing strategies with one another as they sit in pairs or groups all over the classroom. The teacher circulates around the room listening to students and asking questions to encourage critical thinking and flexible use of numbers. The glassy eyes and expressionless faces have been replaced with smiles and bright eyes as math class has become a place to not only solve problems but to also have fun! Let's thank Math Dice!
Problem Solvers Unite to Tackle the 36 Cube Challenge!
Eli Jannes, 4th & 5th Grade Teacher
Key West, Florida, USA
Right before the winter 2008 holidays, I stumbled upon an advertisement for Think Fun's new 36 Cube. This puzzle seemed like the ultimate challenge...complex, three-dimensional, intimidating. I had to order it.
Right after I received the puzzle, I got wind of a contest Think Fun was running for anyone who could solve and prove their solution by the end of December. With winter recess rapidly approaching, I knew there was only a small chance we could experience that kind of success. I brought the puzzle to my classroom as an early holiday gift and explained the challenge, not knowing where it might take us.
The students' reactions varied. There were those who started shaking with excitement during the morning meeting, edging their way closer to the puzzle so that they could get their hands on it first. Others started whispering strategies, planning what they might try. The remaining few backed away slowly, fully intimidated by the very structure of the puzzle.
We recognized early on that one puzzle for 30 students was going to be a challenge. The class worked quickly to develop a plan that would promote productivity and collaboration. They mapped out a schematic that represented the cube, cut pieces of colored paper to replicate the puzzle pieces and made enough copies so everyone could think through some possible solutions at the same time. The students also worked out a schedule so that groups of 3 could rotate through using the actual puzzle to try out their strategies. The scheduled times ran before school, during recess and after dismissal. They were hooked.
By the second day of continuous play, the children realized this was no ordinary challenge. They delegated a group of students to do some online research. They began reading about combinations, permutations, famous puzzles and even Pascal's triangle. I smiled when I heard, "It can't be random. Math is the study of patterns. There has to be some system."
You learn a lot about your students when you present them with a novel situation. I enjoyed watching the confident fast-starters throw their arms up in despair, realizing that random moves got them nowhere. I was intrigued by the methodical planning of a group of quiet girls. "We're not good at this stuff," is what they said on day 1 but by mid-afternoon of the second day, the entire class was convinced that their strategy was the key to success. I had to smirk when I found a group of timid children quietly approaching the puzzle when no one was looking. I even learned a lot about my colleagues. When I brought the puzzle to a staff meeting, some quickly pushed it away from them while others begged to take it home for a try.
I wish I could say we figured out the solution but we didn't. We came awfully close with just 4 pieces conflicting. The puzzle still captures the attention of students in the class even though the contest deadline is over. Remarkably, it doesn't seem to matter that we haven't achieved our goal. The process was worth the effort. We learned a lot about perseverance, teamwork, self-assurance and methodical thinking. We even learned a few things about math.
Sharpen Students' Thinking Skills with Brain Teaser Puzzles!
Mat Reive, High School Mathematics and Computer Science Teacher
Ontario, Canada
In my high school math classes, it is common that I start the class off with a brain teaser. This is usually a brain teaser puzzle from either ThinkFun's Visual Brain Storm set, an Ivan Moscovich or Martin Gardner book, or a brain teaser that I have gotten from the internet. The whole class participates and gets engaged in trying to solve these puzzles. If I ever forget the puzzle at the start of the class, they always remind me.
I have found brain teaser puzzles a great way to have fun, collaborate with each others, discuss problem solving techniques, and make connections to the curriculum. It is common that a student will think of a solution or strategy to a puzzle that I have never considered, and this always intrigues and excites me.
At the end of class, if students have some free time, I encourage them to try to solve some of the harder brain teaser puzzles, like a slider puzzle, Gordian's Knot, or a disentanglement puzzle. They get right into solving these puzzles. Two things always surprise me when students are working on these puzzles — the problem solving strategies that they come up with on their own and their perseverance and determination to solve the puzzle. It is common that they want to borrow a puzzle from me at the end of class because they really want to finish it.
As a puzzle enthusiast myself, I love bringing this world of logic and hands-on problem solving into my classroom to share with students!
A 5th GRADE MATH TEACHER USES GAMES TO MOTIVATE ALL LEARNERS!
Bryan D. Williams, 5th Grade Math Teacher
Washington, D.C., USA
Much has been written about playing games in the classroom. There have been numerous articles that speak to the powerful ways that games can motivate students to be more engaged in the teaching and learning process. Other articles have talked about how games can be used to reinforce skills and concepts already learned, review skills and concepts that are currently being covered, or be a preview of what is coming up. Problem solving games in particular provide students an opportunity to develop and strengthen problem solving strategies. In addition, as students work together and play various games in the classroom, they are learning from each other and developing multiple strategies to help them become increasingly more effective problem solvers and more accomplished mathematicians.
As a classroom teacher, I have seen how the use of games in the classroom can provide a fun and non-threatening environment to help students develop and strengthen problem solving strategies. Over the past five years, I have worked in schools that had a core mathematics curriculum that emphasized the use of games to help reinforce skills and concepts being taught throughout the year. The range of games, the challenge that they provided, and the ability to work with the fellow classmates was all the motivation they needed. While students worked together, it was amazing listening to the kinds of conversations that were sparked by collaborative and at times the competitive nature of the games being played. Having students engaged in these kinds of meaningful activities also allowed me an opportunity to pull small groups or individual students to help provide more individualized instruction. Many of the games being played would be out and available for students to use throughout the day. Our daily schedule included free choice time and, when other assignments were completed, choosing to play a game with a friend was almost always an option. The ability to make choices like these in the classroom became very empowering for my students, and they took the responsibility seriously requiring very little support. Many of the games being played were also differentiated and could be used as remediation, review, or extension. The games became an integral part of our classroom and my students benefited greatly from the experience.
ThinkFun Games Ignite Minds in a 7th Grade Math Class!
Lori Mullarkey, 7th Grade Math Teacher
Nebraska City Middle School, Nebraska City, Nebraska, USA
Because so many students feel defeated before even giving math a chance in 7th grade, my classroom philosophy is to encourage students to like math more at the end of the year than at the beginning. I have found that doing several hands-on activities and giving time for problem solving games does just this! ThinkFun games help students feel a sense of mastery in math which they have seldom had before. The beginner levels meet students where they are at and give them a sense of accomplishment as they pass each challenge. Students continue to be challenged as they move through the leveled cards. I have several students who are proud and excited to tell me that they just passed every card in the deck!
My first experience with Think Fun Games was at a High Ability Learner’s (HAL) conference. One of the sessions focused entirely on problem solving through single player games. They walked us through the general plot of each game and simply gave us time to play. It was only a few minutes before I realized I was addicted myself and had to have these games! I knew that all my students, not just my gifted learners, would love playing these games. I hoped that these games would help my at-risk students find some fun and motivation in school (even if it was from problem solving games), so I purchased a small handful just to test them out in my room. The result has been amazing and I soon had a wish list a mile long for my classroom!
As the year progressed, I noticed that students would ask to play the games as soon as they entered the room. As other students began watching, they too would start begging to play and “calling” particular games at the beginning of the period. Knowing I did not have enough games for each student, I told students once their assignment was completed, they could choose a game for the remainder of class. Once all the games were chosen, they could play quietly in partners. Sure enough, I had almost all of my students focused on finishing their homework in order to play the game of their choice! Our Math Counts club also loved them so much we began fundraising in order to purchase more games for the room.
Over the past 2 years, I have collected nearly 40 different single player games and created a small problem solving station in my room. In addition to the games, I also purchased a cube storage unit with 5 different drawers. Each drawer is a particular type of game. Drawer 1: Navigation Station: Rush Hours, Roadside Rescue, Stormy Seas, etc. Drawer 2: Shape It Up: Shape by Shape, Block By Block, Square By Square, Tangrams, etc. Drawer 3: More Think Fun Games: Games that were created by Think Fun but I didn’t have enough of the same type to designate a drawer. Drawer 4: Educational Insight Games (similar to those of Think Fun), Drawer 5: Other: for smaller brainteasers (think fun also has several of these). Since these are designed to be single-player games, students simply take them back to their desk to play once their assignment is finished. There is also an eight-foot table in the back of our room for when partners or small groups want to work on a game together.
At the beginning of this year, I took a class period to explain the problem solving behind each game to all of my classes. Students were told that once they completed their assignment they may ask and select a game to play for the remainder of the period. About once a quarter, or before holidays, we have a problem solving day instead of having class. I set a game on each desk, and students shift over one seat every 10 minutes trying the various games in their row. At the end of the period, we spend time discussing the problem solving used in various games and students discuss how they would rate particular games.
I also am the sponsor for our Math Counts club, and students frequently request problem solving game days! The eighth grade students involved in Math Counts said they joined just for the problem solving games and the sixth grade students also love the chance to play them. Since there are not as many students as a typical class, we can focus a day on geometry and do the shape puzzles, or have a rush hour morning instead of practicing math problems. They simply can’t get enough!
Classroom favorites include: any of the Rush Hours, Shape by Shape, Roadside Rescue, 36 Cube, Hot Spot, and Chocolate Fix. As said before, most students stick with a particular game until they have mastered all of the cards. These games not only challenge kids, but my husband and I master a card at each level before bringing them to school for the students to play.
ThinkFun’s GridWorks Game Enriches a High School Math Class Curriculum!
Lisa Kosanovic, Math Teacher
Holyoke High School, Holyoke, Massachusetts, USA
I teach high school math in the sixth poorest community in the nation, and for us, math class is too often about passing our state’s standardized tests. While many of my students lack basic skills, I often see a high level of reasoning and problem-solving skills that I want to develop and encourage.
Several years ago, I bought ThinkFun’s GridWorks game for my own children, who loved it. Soon thereafter, I was working through a state test problem with one of my Algebra I classes, and I realized that the problem drew on exactly the same skills that GridWorks did! After several attempts to recreate the game using overhead transparencies, I contacted ThinkFun and asked if they could send me sets of the GridWorks pieces. I knew that if I had a set for each student, I could simply put the challenges on the chalkboard using colored chalk, and my students could work the problems at their desks.
What a success! Even the most reluctant of my students enjoyed using this game, and several came up to me after class to talk about it. One of my Pre-calculus students said she was pleasantly surprised by how much she had to think on the most challenging puzzles (I put 10 challenges on the boards around my room, including the two most difficult), and by how much fun it was to think hard in that way. Another student with serious attention issues insisted on starting with the most difficult problem, and he worked diligently through an entire class period. When he did not finish the problem, he asked if he could come back during the next class to finish, and when he returned, he stayed with the problem until it was completed correctly!
My only regret is that there are not books and books of GridWorks challenges! With GridWorks, I saw many otherwise-unengaged students using math skills to solve problems, and enjoying themselves at the same time. I will use this with my students every year to teach them problem-solving skills and show them that math can be fun!