Project Abstract
This project teaches students about the dangers of gambling by showing them the statistical advantage that casinos have over the people that frequent their establishments.
What did you teach and how did you teach it?
The main concepts that are taught during this project are probability along with complex counting principles. We go over combinations and permutations in great detail using various casino games as the context for learning these topics. We also tie in Pascal's triangle with our study of combinations and use it in learning about binary expansions.
What concepts and skills did the students gain in this class through this project?
Students learned how to calculate the probabilities of obtaining various five card poker hands and how those values are used in different table games. We looked at the difference between independent and dependent events and how they affect the calculation of probabilities.
Students also learned basic carpentry skills in building miniature poker tables for their original games. They had to use marketing techniques to showcase their games and make the more appealing to potential players.
How is the curriculum for this project academically rich and grade-level challenging?
The content is extremely challenging because of the various ways that poker hands can be interpreted. Students must have a strong understanding of complex counting principles and combinations in order to accurately calculate probabilities for the different games that they produced.
To what extent was there integration across disciplines in your class through this project?
The integration of this project will come during our exhibition night. In Humanities they will be reading The Great Gatsby and in Biology the students will be learning about the physiological effects of addictions. We will be setting up a 1920's style casino in our classrooms that will showcase all of the things that the students will be learning in all of our subject areas.
Which Habits of Heart and Mind (HoHM) and Design Principles were utilized in this project?
The Habits of Heart and Mind that are most used during this project are:
Collaboration - students work in teams of 3 or 4 to create original casino games that incorporate the content that is covered.
Refinement - students go through a proposal process and refine their designs multiple times before building their actual games.
How did you incorporate refinement through this project?
Students had to propose their original games to the class and then had their ideas critiqued by their peers and myself. Their was also refinement in the design process. Students had to go through multiple drafts of their table before they started building.