Making Maths - Project 1: Tinker time

Making Maths

Number

Percentages

Can numbers help tell stories?

Tinker Time

Introduction

Exploration

Skill builder

Tinker time

Feedback

Pre-project activity

Tinker Time

Making a story

This part of the project gives pupils the opportunity to apply their new skills and knowledge to simulate a virus outbreak.

Tinker Time is an extended activity which works best when preceded recently by the exploration and skill builder elements.

Pedagogy of Tinker Time is underpinned by the Seven principles of Maker{School}

A whole day or two extended morning/ afternoon sessions works well. Pupils need time and space to struggle, tinker and refine their work.

TInker Time Aims

This tinker time gives a meaningful context with which pupils can demonstrate:

Knowledge of the r-number
Skills of animation
Understanding of how maths can be used to describe the world, show the consequences of events and make predictions about the future.

A virus outbreak!

Each group is asked to start with the same virus outbreak as part (B) of the exploration element for the first 5 days, then they should create their own story to create an outbreak similar to that shown in part (E) of the exploration element.

They must follow these rules:

There must be at least 3 days between each changing R value.

Why? - Its important to notice that when infections start rising again there is a few days before the R is lowered so that the amount of new infections goes down. This is analogous to real life when restrictions take some time to implement. Remind pupils of their learning in the exploration (E).

Each group should report results using a table first (to check their calculations)
Each group should tell their story using a stop motion video using a visual method

Maths Tinker Time stop motion animation

Slides to support the process of making

A virus outbreak pupil brief - Google Docs.pdf

Pupil Instructions

Don't forget to use the maker{Cycle}. Using this will encourage an emphasis of process over product and build a maker{mindset}.

Suggestion:

Pupils use a dice to determine their events. Every 3 days a dice is thrown and some numbers mean that an event happens (even, odd etc).

Events can be written by pupils or these cards can be used.

An extension version of the cards is provided here

VirusOutbreak_TT_helpcards.pdf

Cards

VirusOutbreak_TT_extensioncards.pdf

Extension cards

Inspiration: Data visualization as a communication tool

Hans Rosling tells the story of the world in 200 countries over 200 years using 120,000 numbers - in just four minutes.

Plotting life expectancy against income for every country since 1810, Hans shows how the world we live in is radically different from the world most of us imagine.

This video can help children to see how effective Data Visualization can be as a communication tool.

The concepts may be tricky but the idea that you can tell a story with numbers is clear. This graph has been created using a combination of augmented reality and stop motion techniques.

Hans Rosling's 200 Countries, 200 Years, 4 Minutes - The Joy of Stats - BBC Four.

Mini whiteboards and pens for calculations and drawings throughout
Laptop, tablet or iPad to create stop motion
Tripod (homemade or bought)
Cards (above) and Dice
Counter, sweets, paper, Lego or any small item to create a visualisation of infections