Probability Through Caine's Arcade

First day of our probability unit we watched this video.

Day 1: I chose this video, because most of my students are hispanic and I think the biggest thing in our school right now is empathy. We talked about having games of chance like in the video they just watched, what does chance mean? We did our first section of probability and told them they were going to create their own games, just like Caine did. 

We did a 5 question check for understanding and told the students they needed to finish the bottom half of the checklist today.

Here are other great resources including the checklist: http://cainesarcade.com/schools/activitykits/

Students designing their cardboard games.

Day 2: We talked about conditional probability. Did another check for understanding on Kahoot. Then I got lots of cardboard boxes from our recycling bin and had to make a quick pit-stop at Dollar General for more cardboard boxes.

Day 3: I had a substitute teacher this day, but students started creating their boxes.

Day 4: We went over theoretical vs experimental probability. I gave students 7 minutes to finish their cardboard arcade games. Then we went over theoretical probability again. We talked about geometrical probability from Day 1. Students were given rulers and yardsticks and had to find the theoretical probability of successfully completing their arcade game.

Day 5: We finished the material for our probability unit. I gave students 5 minutes to make sure their game is playable and to finish anything on the checklist. Then we went over that I would give them 5 minutes to go play other games to get other groups experimental probability, then the partners would switch and the other partner would go play games.

I thought this unit was much better than the 3D dice activity from last year, this project was more hands-on and did a better job of combining the curriculum and the project together.

Creating Mathematical Art (PBL Unit #1)

Schuyler Central High School has started a Project-based Learning Class for students who are struggling in general education classes.

Students had to find surface area and volume of all the shapes on their own, using computers and equations to find all of the measurements.

Students then once completed had to make a work of art based on the measurements they found. This is an example of one.

I took some pictures along the way here they are.








Since the beginning of the year I have been slowly gaining students, I am now up to 5 students. Since they have been slowly trickling in this has been an excellent project to get them started.

This project for most of the students has been a 2-3 week project.

Project Based Learning

I have been looking at implementing Project-based learning the past year.  I wanted to do a full chapter or section that implemented project based learning, but felt that Algebra 2 is difficult for students, but I think I found the solution.

The project that I have had the past few years is students create their own dice (2 years ago) and 3D print their own dice and find the theoretical and experimental probability (Last year).  I thought this was a good end of the chapter project.  

Now I want to make this my project based learning chapter.

Key Knowledge, Understanding, and Success Skills

I want students to work in groups of 4 and use collaboration skills for them to work on the project together.  The standards that they will cover (using the Nebraska Math Standards):

MA 11.4.1 Representations: Students create displays that represent data.

MA 11.4.2 Analysis and Applications: Students will analyze data to address the situation.

MA 11.4.3 Probability: Students will interpret and apply concepts of probability.

Challenging Problem or Question

The students challenging problem is to create a new dice for a nearby casino and find a dice where the "house" wins over 50% of the time, but not more than 60%. Students are to create a presentation with their dice and their data to a selection of students and teachers. Students will share with other students their presentation and questions.  Students will have a chance to critique and revise before doing their final presentation.

The problem I am having is making their learning public.  How can students take their learning global?

5 Math Projects for Project Based Learning

At Schuyler Central High School next year we will have a new course in every subject area under what we call "Project Succeed." This will be a credit recovery class where students will undertake 5 projects throughout the year to earn those 5 credits.  If students do 3 of the 5 projects they earn 3 of the 5 credits.  Since this is the first year of the course, I am going to do 5 projects that someone else has done before.  Next year I will try to incorporate different projects that are more authentic.

1. Conceptual Art Project
This project is putting students in the drivers seat of incorporating art and math together.  Students will have the opportunity to put one concept of mathematics into a work of art.  They can create a watercolor, painting, or sculpture.  Students will then write a one page paper on what math concept was described and how it came out in the artwork.

I was thinking of using the timeline of this other Calculus Artwork Project.

2. Making a Math Treasure Map
This project has students using Google Maps to create a mathematical treasure map where students are given clues that lead them to the buried treasure.  Students will use coordinate geometry, and equations and lines to make the map.

3. Paper Folding 
This project has an "art-y" feel exactly like the first one.  Students will use origami to make a 3 Dimensional shape.  You will explore the relationship between surface area and volume. Is one always bigger than the other? Can you make cubes with the same surface area but different volumes?  Students will work in pairs to create either a cube or tetrahedron and then derive the surface area and volume formulas. 

4. Nutritional Math
In the launch activity students use unit rates and proportional reasoning to calculate how long they'd have to exercise to burn off different McDonald's menu items.  They then discuss which they think is a better representation of nutritional information.  Students would then create their own infographic for number of minutes in each activity to burn off a particular McDonalds item. 

Students would then create a personalized menu tailored to their own bodies, diets, and exercise routines.  

5. Three Shots
This last one I want to be more of a data based project where they are collecting and analyzing datat, we will see what I eventually get to.  In Three Shots, students will compute the probabilities of a Memphis basketball team win, loss, or tie when fouled at the buzzer and explore this even further in two project tasks, To Foul or Not to Foul and That Is The Question.

Zombies and Math (AAH!!)

Zombies and mathematics looks like it would be two things that didn't quite go together.  Andrew Miller had a project-based learning project about Zombie-based Learning.

With math and zombies most of the material has to do with diseases that increase at an exponential rate.  Students could analyze different population centers and predict its spread using exponential functions.  They could determine when everyone is infected and map the spread using the math data they calculate, or even explore the rate of decay.  Students could also investigate what happens when a certain number of people are vaccinated to help prevent the spread.

These are some ideas that have been implemented as part of a PBL project or would be a good entry point for zombie-based learning across the curriculum.

Zombie-based Learning