The fifth graders completed a few fun math challenges this week. Our attention is turning to solving word problems as we finish up our unit on multiplying and dividing fractions.
On Monday, students were given cards that had a mix of word problems and numeric expressions. They had to match the word problem to the numeric expression that would give the answer. This was made more challenging as the students had to carefully reason out which number was the dividend and which was the divisor of a division problem.
Today, the students participated in a new type of activity called “Info Gap.” They worked in small groups. One person had all the information needed to solve a problem. Two other group members had a description of the problem they were tasked to solve. The students had to work together (without showing each other their cards) to work through which information they needed and how to apply it to solve the task. They had to use their reasoning skills as well as their multiplication and division of fractions skills to solve the puzzle! The kids said it reminded them of “go fish” but with math.
