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Presented  by:  Dean  Ballard  

Director  of  Mathematics,  CORE

Guided  Investigations  

Where  Discovery  is  Productive

dballard@corelearn.com

Supplemental Challenge Activities

Which One Doesn’t Belong (wodb.ca)

Direct Instruction and Discovery

The Five Proficiency Strands Math Practice Standards1. Make  sense  of  problems  and  

persevere  in  solving  them

2. Reason  abstractly  and  

quantitatively

3. Construct  viable  arguments  

and  critique  other’s  reasoning  

4. Model  with  mathematics

5. Use  appropriate  tools  

strategically

6. Attend  to  precision

7. Look  for  and  make  use  of  

structure

8. Look  for  and  express  regularity  

in  reasoning

Purposes of Activities

• Apply knowledge

• Learn about problem solving

• Gain and/or extend knowledge

Supplemental Challenge Activities

Which One Doesn’t Belong (www.wodb.ca)

Supplemental Challenge Activities

KenKen Puzzles (www.kenkenpuzzle.com )

• Use  only  numbers  1  – width  of  

grid  (1,  2,  3,  and  4  on  this  

example  since  it  is  a  4  by  4  grid)

• All  numbers  must  be  in  each  

row  and  column  (in  this  example  

1,  2,  3,  and  4  must  be  in  each  

row  and  each  column)

• No  number  can  be  repeated  in  

any  row  or  column)

Supplemental Challenge Activities

KenKen Puzzles (www.kenkenpuzzle.com )

2

2

13

13

3

3

3 1

1

1

2

4

4

4

4

2

1

3

Which  one  is  the  tallest?  How  do  you  know?

(Estimation180.com  is  cool)

Flipping Out

• Objectives:

– Use data to make predictions about the

probability of an event.

– Describe different types of probability.

• Materials: Paper cups, coins, handout

Flipping Out - Directions

a. Work with a partner.

b. Answer questions #1-2 on the handout.

c. Toss a cup 20 times.

Record data - number of times landing on an end.

d. Toss a coin 20 times.

Record data - number of times landing on heads.

e. Answer the questions on the handout.

f. Key question for discussion:

i. What is the difference between determining the probability of a

coin landing on heads and a cup landing on its end?

Untying Knots in a Rope

• Objectives:

– Collect and analyze data

– Connect representations.

– Create and use algebraic and visual

representations to make predictions.

• Materials: – Bag of four ropes, measuring tape, handout

Untying Knots - Directions

a. Work within a group of three or four

b. Collect and record data on your rope

c. Graph the data for your rope and the ropes

of all others in your group

d. Analyze the data for your rope

e. Answer all questions on the activity sheet

Super BearDan  Meyer

See  presenter  notes  for  goals,  notes,  and  teaching  moves

Objective:  Collect  and  analyze  data,  and  make  predictions  

about  relationships  between  objects.  

https://www.mathedleadership.org/resources/threeacts/index.html

Triangle Sides

• Objective: Describe the relationship

between the sides within a triangle.

• Materials: Set of straws, measuring

tape, handout

Triangle Sides - Directions

a. Work with a partner.

b. Determine which sets of three straws will create

a triangle.

c. Determine which sets of three straws will not

create a triangle.

d. Enter the information on the data chart.

e. Write a conjecture about the relationship

between the sides in a triangle.

f. Explain why you believe your conjecture is true.

Keys for Guided Investigations

• Know the destination

• Initiate with enough information to get started so

students have a clue about which direction to go

• Manage the process

o Manage the time

o Be prepared with guideposts – helpful questions and

information

o Don’t say too much, but do say something when needed

• Connect and Conclude

Thank you!

Dean Ballarddballard@corelearn.com