Games
Nim
Nim is a mathematical game of strategy in which two players take turns removing objects from distinct heaps. On each turn, a player must remove at least one object, and may remove any number of objects provided they all come from the same heap (from wikipedia).
We will start with five piles of 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 objects (lines to cross out).
Hedge a bet
Students are divided into groups and they are ‘offered’ a sum of money: 100 Euros.
The teacher has a list of questions related to the topic he/she would like to revise.
Students have to bet a part of their money before knowing the question.
If they are right the money adds up to what they already have. If they are wrong the amount of money will decrease with the money they bet.
Bets are done without knowing how much money the other team will bet.
Guess the number
Piensa en un número del 1 al 60 y dime el color de los recuadros en los que está. Mi estupenda percepción visual dará con él en un santiamén.
Math Bingo
The rules are similar to "normal" bingo, but the speaker (usually the theacher) has to call an operation, instead of a number. The students will perform the operation and then check if they have the result in their cards.
To prepare the game the students have to draw their own card and distribute the ten numbers they choose, between 1 and 50, in a sorted table with two rows and five columns.
Integers.
Percentages.
Fractions, decimals, powers and square roots.
Palabras
Se divide a los alumnos en grupos. Se entrega al alumnado un conjunto de letras con unos números asociados. Luego se entregan palabras en clave cuyas letras tendrán que ser desveladas mediante la resolución de ciertos ejercicios.
Cada grupo recibe un punto si acierta la palabra correcta y dos puntos, si es el primero en responder. Además, recibirá un punto extra si ofrece las soluciones a la clave, además de las letras concretas.
Kahoot
Functions.
Trigonometry review and memes.
Quizziz
Play with the year
Try to get any number from 1 to 100 using all the digits of this year. For example: 11 = 2 + 0 + 1 + 8.
First say the number you got and then, the operations. Speak only in English.
If possible, you have to say the numbers in the order they appear in the year. For example: 9 = 2 + 0 - 1 + 8, instead of 9 = 8 - 1 + 2 + 0.
It is allowed to use the digits together (38 = 20 + 17) or separated (36 = 2 · 18 + 0).
The digits must be used just once each. It is not correct
The operations can be +, -, ·, /, !, (), powers and square roots, roundings and truncations...
It's forbidden to repeat the numbers already said, although the operations might be different.
Every number will be awarded with a positive except for some the teacher will announce. Those will be worth two positives.
2020
Chuck Norris Meme Contest
Los memes de Chuck Norris son muy populares en Internet. Hemos dedicado una página de este sitio a ellos.
Möbius band
Romantic Mathematical Shape
Amnesia or Who's who
Everyone has the name of a famous mathematician or a math topic stuck onto their back (or forehead) in a way that everyone can read all the names except theirs. By asking questions with yes/no answers, everyone has to work out who they are.
The first time to play only the teacher knows the hidden name.
One example: you have to guess the graph chosen between some of them.
Similar game: who's who.
Scavenger Hunts
Create questions, fill-in-the-blank exercises etc. Then hide the answers (or just information from each they can extract the answers) through the classroom.
Divide the students in small groups and ask them to search around the classroom for them. They can also find out the answers in the textbooks, encyclopedias, or online.
How not to Die Hard with Math
Short activities
Math games
Math games (basically equivalent fractions and convert fractions to decimals).
My age
How old are you in Jupiter? In which planet is going to be your next birthday?
The 6s
Fill the spaces with any mathematical symbol. It's forbidden to add any other number. No tricks, just mathematical operations.
0 0 0 = 6, 1 1 1 = 6, 2 2 2 = 6, 3 3 3 = 6, 4 4 4 = 6, 5 5 5 = 6
6 6 6 = 6, 7 7 7 = 6, 8 8 8 = 6, 9 9 9 = 6,
The 4s
Get integers, from 0 to 20 with four fours (source).
The coins
You have three coins. Is it possible to flip two adjacent coins so that all of them are heads?
The disappearing information
When you have written a text on the board and no longer need it, erase a small part of it, not more than one line or two lines. Ask a student to read out the text on the board to the rest of the class.
Then let's them try to include the missing word from their memory.
Erase one or two more words.
Continue in this way until the whole text has been erased and remembered.
Shapes
This game can be done in pairs. One student is facing the blackboard and is not allowed to see the picture. The other student gives directions to him/her but without actually telling the names of the shapes. They are not allowed to discuss with each other.
Another variant is to have a student give directions to the entire class and check what everybody has drawn.
Magic squares and other arithmetical arrangement
Set:
a. The numbers from 1 to 9 so that the numbers in each row, column and diagonal all add up to the same number.
b. The numbers from 1 to 7 so that no consecutive numbers must be together.
c. The numbers from 1 to 9 so that the addition of the numbers in each side is 20.
d. The numbers from 1 to 9 so that the addition of the numbers in each side is 17.
Mistery games
The students are presented the problem, as a whole class. In order to solve the mistery they can ask questions whose answer could be: "Yes," "No," or "Not Important."
John and Mary are lying dead on the floor of the apartment they live in. Surrounding them is broken glass and water. A breeze is blowing in the window. What happened?
Mr. Brown was spending the night in a hotel in a strange city. He had never been there before and didn't know a soul in the place (neither the hotel nor the city). He had great difficulty getting to sleep. Try as he would, sleep simply wouldn't come. He had a busy day ahead and wanted to be in good shape. He put in one telephone call - local, not long distance - and shortly thereafter he fell into peaceful slumber. How come?
For many years old Sam Hawks had been night watchman at the Phoenixville National Bank. He was well liked for the faithful performance of his duty and for his cheerful manner. On Tuesday evening Mr. Stuart, president of the bank, came to the bank at eight o'clock, greeted old Sam, and explained that he was going in to get some papers from his office, for he'd been called to the city and planned to take the ten o'clock plane. As Sam listened to his employer's words, his honest face became scared. "Don't take that plane, please, Mr. Stuart," he said earnestly.
"Why, Sam," exclaimed the banker, touched by the old fellow's sincerity, and obvious distress. "Why not? What do you mean?”
"Oh, Mr. Stuart," said Sam, "I had a dream about that plane last night. I saw it crash to earth and all the people aboard were killed. There was a terrible explosion and - Oh, it was awful!" The poor man was almost in tears.
The bank president patted his arm and, to quiet him, said, "Thank you, Sam. I'll see about it," and proceeded into the bank to get his papers.
Despite the old man's warning Mr. Stuart DID take the plane, and you'll be relieved to know, there was no accident. Returning to Phoenixville, the bank president's first action was to fire the night watchman, Sam. How come?
A passenger train leaves New York for Boston traveling at the speed of 80 km/hr. In half an hour a freight train leaves Boston for New York traveling at the speed of 60 km/hr.
Which train will be further from New York when they meet?
A man walks into a bar and asks the bartender for a glass of water. The bartender looks at him for a minute, then pulls out a gun and points it at the man. The man says "Thank You!" and leaves. Why?
A man who lives on the tenth floor takes the elevator down to the first floor every morning and goes to work. In the evening, when he comes back; on a rainy day, or if there are other people in the elevator, he goes to his floor directly. Otherwise, he goes to the seventh floor and walks up three flights of stairs to his apartment.
Can you explain why?
A family of five people drove in a car for 300 km at an average speed of 60 km/h. For the whole journey nobody noticed they had a flat tyre. Why?
An Arab sheikh tells his two sons to race their camels to a distant city to see who will inherit his fortune. The one whose camel is slower wins. After wandering aimlessly for days, the brothers ask a wise man for guidance. Upon receiving the advice, they jump on the camels and race to the city as fast as they can.
What did the wise man say to them?
Short Questions
Divide 30 by 1/2 and add ten. What do you get?
A farmer has 17 sheep, all but 9 die. How many are left?
A man builds a rectangular house. Each side has southern exposure. A big bear comes along. What colour is the bear?
A woman gives a beggar 50 cents; the woman is the beggar's sister, but the beggar is not the woman's brother. How come?
If a doctor gives you 3 pills and tells you to take one pill every half hour, how long would it be before all the pills had been taken?
Barbara's father has five daughters: Lala, Lele, Lolo, Lulu and ... What is the name of the fifth daughter?
What is the exact opposite of "not in"?
Can you continue the following sequence of letters: OTTFFSSEN... ?
If there were a rooster on a top of a roof and it laid an egg, which way would the egg roll?
A woman had two daughters who were born on the same hour of the same day on the same year. But they were not twins. How could this be so?
How can you throw a ball as hard as you can and have it come back to you, even if it doesn't hit anything, there is nothing attached to it, and no one else catches or throws it?
A girl who was just learning to drive went down a one-way street in the wrong direction, but didn't break the law. How come?
One day a man decides to buy a talking parrot. So he goes to a pet store. The owner tells the man he has one bird left, and that the bird will repeat any word it hears. So the man buys the bird and takes it home and starts talking to it. But the bird never repeats a word. What’s wrong?
Try to re-arrange the letters of “NEW DOOR” to make one word.
Johnny's mother had three children. The first child was named April. The second child was named May. What was the third child’s name?
Is it correct that seven and five IS thirteen or seven and five ARE thirteen?
Solve the mistery:
8809 = 6
7111 = 0
2172 = 0
6666 = 4
1111 = 0
3213 = 0
7662 = 2
9313 = 1
0000 = 4
2581 = ?
Add one straight line to make this expression a correct statement 5+5+5 = 550
"You may not belief that there are six errers in this short paragraph. Studi the paragraph carefuly. You can reed it as many times as necessary. Don't give up too easily. See if you can find all of them."
Dos trenes se cruzan. ¿Cuál está más cerca de Granada?
What is the 1000th term of the following sequence? 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4, 4, 4, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5... (source).
Paper Tearing
Ask the students pick up an A4 sheet of paper and hold it in front of them. They can keep they eyes close and listen carefully or simply listen with attention. They are not supposed to pay attention to the others. They have to follow the instructions but they cannot ask questions.
“Fold your paper in half.
Tear off the upper left hand corner.
Rotate it and fold it in half again.
Tear off the lower right hand corner....”
The instructions may continue as long as the teacher wants. In the end all the sutdents compare the shapes of their sheets of paper.
Find the person
Who has got the same birth month as you
Who has got the same passion with you
Who has visited the same places as you have
Who likes the same movie as you do
Who practices the same sports
Who has done something unusual
Which one doesn't belong?
Learn from mistakes
The teacher prepares a piece of information on specific topic which is full of mistakes.
Ask the students to identify the mistakes.
Two truths and one lie
http://mrorr-isageek.com/better-questions-two-truths-one-lie/
