2019 Challenge Reflection

Even though it's straightaway the middle of summer, I'm simply straightaway getting around to blogging most an activity that nosotros did inwards January. Yes, that pretty much sums upwardly how this year's blogging is going. I experience similar almost every postal service starts amongst an apology of how belatedly the postal service is. So, without farther apology, I wishing to part amongst yous the 2019 Challenge. We've even in addition to then got a few months of 2019 left, in addition to then I approximate the postal service isn't likewise tardy yet.

Kicking off the jump semester amongst a challenge based on the novel calendar yr has acquire a flake of a tradition inwards my classroom. Let's receive got a flake of a trip downward retentiveness lane.

2016 Challenge



2017 Challenge



2018 Challenge


I fully had plans to set upwardly the 2019 Challenge every bit a bulletin board earlier nosotros went on Christmas Break. That did non happen. Then, our foremost twenty-four hr menses dorsum from Christmas was cancelled due to ice. This meant our normal ii twenty-four hr menses calendar week to welcome us dorsum to the 2nd semester was straightaway a 1 twenty-four hr menses week. There was no way that I was starting novel content on a 1 twenty-four hr menses week, in addition to then I decided to receive got the 2019 Challenge I had planned to set upwardly every bit a variety of puzzle for early on finishers in addition to plow it into an entire degree activity.

Note: I ordinarily purpose this every bit a "Welcome to the novel semester!" activity, but yous could simply every bit easily purpose this every bit a "Welcome to the novel schoolhouse year!" activity inwards August/September. 


If you're non familiar amongst the challenge, the goal is to purpose the digits inwards 2019 (2, 0, 1, in addition to 9) just 1 fourth dimension each along amongst whatsoever mathematical symbol or functioning of your choosing to create expressions equivalent to the numbers betwixt 1 in addition to 100.



I gave them a listing of some of the possible mathematical operators to acquire their brains moving. 



I dear to purpose this challenge to innovate students to 1 of my favorite words: concatenation. 



Concatenation way that 2 in addition to 0 tin live on combined to brand the number 20.


My students receive got yet to live on introduced the concept of factorial yet, in addition to then I gave a quick tutorial on what it looks similar in addition to what it means. We started past times trying to consummate this chart. 


We started past times trying to consummate this nautical chart every bit a degree on the dry out erase board. It was interesting to hear students' theories evolve every bit each novel respond was revealed. 


In the past, I would postal service the challenge, innovate it to my students, in addition to permit them create total out every bit many solutions every bit possible. As the foremost twenty-four hr menses would progress, the challenge would acquire to a greater extent than in addition to to a greater extent than hard every bit the easier numbers that could live on achieved past times unproblematic add-on in addition to subtraction amongst mayhap a petty multiplication thrown inwards were already claimed. 

I needed to hold 6 entire classes of students engaged, in addition to then I decided to receive got each degree start the challenge from the beginning. That's when I got the persuasion to clit out my 100 number chart (affiliate link) that I purchased terminal yr from Amazon. 


Then, I spent some character fourth dimension amongst the newspaper chopper in addition to some cardstock to cutting out a dissimilar colored laid of squares for each of the 6 groups that my desks are arranged in. I sized these squares to live on the same size every bit the 1-100 cards that stand upwardly for inwards my steal chart. 


Groups would run together to notice every bit many expressions every bit possible to equal numbers betwixt 1 in addition to 100. When a grouping institute an human face for an unclaimed number, they would convey their solution upwardly to acquire it verified. If it was correct, they would house 1 of their squares of cardstock on attain of the number to "claim" it for their team. 

The small-scale numbers ever seemed to perish first. 



By the cease of the fifty infinitesimal period, the board would seem something similar this: 


Or this 1 from 1 of my pre-calculus classes.


In some ways, this activity construction was improve than my bulletin boards of the past. And, it also left some attributes to live on desired. Let me assay to reflect.


Adjusting this to a group-based contest did receive got some unintended consequences.


Some groups were WAY to a greater extent than hyper-competitive than I expected. One grouping had 1 of their squad members permanently stand upwardly adjacent to the 100 number nautical chart in addition to then that every bit shortly every bit they figured out a number in addition to got their solution checked they could score it amongst the color for their team. This meant that this pupil was non doing whatsoever math at all which was non my intention.


I attempted to fighting this past times requiring inwards some other degree menses that only 1 somebody from each grouping was allowed out of their seat. This solved the prior number but created another. One pupil from the grouping would tend to pass the entire fourth dimension running answers upwardly to my desk in addition to getting them checked earlier marker off their numbers on the chart. This meant that at that spot was even in addition to then a pupil who was primarily doing no math at all.


Still yet some other downside to the competitive squad nature of this activity was that some groups tended to surrender exclusively every bit they realized JUST how far they were behind the other teams. Some students started trying to play games on their phones instead of participating inwards the activity because they knew that their grouping was NOT going to win.
 

To fighting this inwards the future, I mightiness receive got students take the cards from the nautical chart subsequently solving them in addition to receive got them house them inwards a small-scale box or handbasket for each team. This way, everyone tin even in addition to then run into what numbers rest unsolved, but they can't easily run into how far ahead or behind they are from the other teams.


I actually appreciated the fact that making this into a grouping activity ended upwardly engaging a vastly larger percent of my students than my previous purpose of the activity amongst early on finishers.


However, a trade-off was that my students weren't necessarily learning from 1 some other every bit much every bit they receive got inwards the past. This was because previously, students would write their solutions to each number on the bulletin board. Often, students would receive got a solution for 1 number in addition to cease upwardly tweaking it slightly to create a dissimilar number. Usually, this would involve adding a factorial symbol to a 0 to create a 1 or something similar to that.


Frequently, students would run into a solution written on the board in addition to inquire a interrogation most it, thinking it was incorrect. This made a bully didactics moment.


If I make this again, I mightiness write 1-100 on the dry out erase board in addition to receive got students write their solutions adjacent to each number every bit a pace inwards the process. This keeps the competitive aspect piece even in addition to then encouraging students to larn from 1 another. It's also easily erasable betwixt classes.


I've got lots to yell back most earlier I create upwardly one's hear how I wishing to perish on amongst the 2020 Challenge. My master copy employment concern isn't the construction of the activity but what to make most the fact that nosotros only receive got ii 2's in addition to ii 0's to use. If yous receive got whatsoever ideas, I'd dear to hear them!


I'll unopen this rather long rambly weblog postal service amongst 1 of my favorite solutions to the 2019 Challenge.


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