Math Dodgeball

My memories as a high school math student involved going to class, sitting and taking notes.  Then doing 1-45 odds for homework every night.

I became a math teacher to help break that trend and do something different once I had my own room. Obviously we take notes, solve math problems, and do homework but I do it in a different way. Today, we were practicing the properties of exponents.

Yesterday,  we practiced expanding and recognizing the patterns for the properties:  product of powers and power to a power. Today, we worked on classifying. I placed a problem on the board and students classified it. However, we didn't just sit silently at our desks to do this.

 Student directions: 

• Take out a sheet of paper. 
• Label the front side - product of powers 
• Label the back - power to a power

Teacher Directions:

• Split the class in two equal groups. 
• Send each group went to a different side of the room

Students then they wadded up their paper (created during student directions) and a game of dodgeball ensued. We played for 30 seconds and the team with the most people remaining earned one point. At the end of the round, they classified the problem written on the board and simplified it. Then we played dodgeball again. By the end of the lesson, they had practiced exponent properties and had fun doing it!

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Get the Point Activity - Valentine's Edition

Teacher Directions:

• Create problems with specific point values. The more difficult the problem, the more points it should be worth.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Type out the problems with the point values next to them.
• Decide how many points you want students to collect during the activity. Note: To Differentiate - You could assign different point values to different students. You might eliminate the one point category for some of your students.
• Decide if you want students to complete each type of exponent problems (product of powers, power to a power, negative exponents)

Student Directions:

• Solve problems until you collect the appropriate amount of points.
• Make sure that you complete a problem from each type of exponent review.
  
  
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Disease Spreading

I launched the concept of exponential growth by coming to class dressed like:

I created a sheet titled, "Illness"  with different scenarios. 

• I spread the disease to one person then we each spread it to one person and it continued to spread from there. 
• I spread the disease to two other people and we each spread it to two other people. 

I definitely made an impression on my students. 

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Broken Heart Activity

Students are going to spend the day putting my hearts back together. This is one of our Valentine activities that I have planned.



I created the image above in Google Documents. I placed an exponential growth graph in one half and the corresponding equation in the other half. 



I also created these where students will match the equation with the asymptote and y-intercept.


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Amazing Math Race

Try this activity with your students!  They will love it!

Teacher Directions:

• Print out the problems on the next page and cut them apart. You will need a copy of each problem for each group in the amazing race.
• Place all of the problems of one kind in one of the big orange mailing envelopes. For example, all of the copies of solve by graphing would be placed into one envelope. You will have five total envelopes.

Solve by Graphing

y = -x + 5

y = -5x - 3

• Type clues to lead to each problem. My example clues are located on page three. Make about 6 copies of your clue sheet and cut them apart. Line them up vertically on your desk. Give each group a different clue (you might have to repeat). I lined them up like they are on the sheet prior to cutting. Once they return a clue, give them the next one down the column on your desk. For example, if a group begins with the superintendent clue, they would receive the harry potter group next.
• Tape each orange envelope at a location that matches one of your five clues.
• I had students race with an individual whiteboard which has a graph on the back. If you don’t have these, they could use paper and graph paper.

Student Directions

• Get a clue from your teacher. Decipher your clue and go to that location. Once at the location, take one problem out of the envelope for your group.
• Everyone in your groups needs to solve the problem.
• Return to your classroom to show your teacher your solution.
• Repeat the previous three directions until your group finishes the amazing race.

Musical Bumps - A student creation

I gave students the task of creating a game for us to play to review before final exams. They created some great games. One is listed below:

Musical Bumps

Rules: Everybody is standing in a big ol’ circle. Walk around a circle of chairs.

When the music stops, stay standing and solve the math problem on the board. When you are done solving, sit down in one chair around the circle. NO CHANGING YOUR ANSWER ONCE YOU SIT. If you get the problem wrong or you are the last person to sit in the circle, you’re out. Last person standing in the game wins.

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How well do you really know your teachers?

Teacher Directions:

• Find a fun fact about your coworkers - I found that mine had met famous movie stars, been in a commercial, eaten an MRE with Alex Trebek. 
• Type all of these clues in a document, print and cut them apart. (I made three copies as students will receiving and bringing them back at different rates). I had enough different clues for all the groups in my room (students are sitting in groups of 3-4). 
• Type a problem for each clue. 
• Hang a problem by each teacher's door. 
• Give each student group a different clue. 

Student Directions:

• Pick up a whiteboard, marker and eraser. You could have them use paper if you don't have these. 
• Get one clue from your teacher. 
• Decipher the clue and go to that teacher's door. Solve the problem, return to class and show the solution to your teacher. 
• Repeat steps 2 and 3 until you have solved all problems. 

Note, if students return with the wrong problem solved, I will give them credit for the problem when they reach it again but they will have to find the correct teacher to receive their next clue. 

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