Download The Situation The Challenge(s) How do skytypers write messages? Question(s) To Ask These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: Would this message look different to you if you were viewing it from a plane above the message instead of on the ground? Consider This As the video explains,…
How big is the Bermuda Triangle? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is a guess that is too low? What is a guess that is too high? What is your best guess? What assumptions are we making? How can we determine whether the GPS…
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has created infographics to tell people that some children are not in the right car seats. What fraction of children are in the right car seat? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is a guess that is…
How much did the temperature drop? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is a guess that is too low? What is a guess that is too high? What is your best guess? Why are there two 20’s on each side of the thermometer? How…
Pipes can be stacked in a staggered pattern or non-staggered pattern. With that as a reference, watch this video: How much shorter are 20 layers of staggered pipe stacks? How much shorter are n layers of staggered pipe stacks? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving…
How can we correct the Scarecrow’s statement so it is mathematically precise? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: How can we determine if the Scarecrow is correct when he mentions “any two sides”? This problem is a great way to introduce CCSS 8.G.6 or…
A picture of a cheeseburger (to establish that it has one cheese slice and one burger patty): A picture of a Double-Double (to establish that it has two cheese slices and two burger patties): A picture of a 20×20 burger (to establish that it has 20 cheese slices and 20 burger patties): Below are…
The field below is covered with many green circular shapes. Each circle is caused by a sprinkler that was only able to water grass within its spraying radius. Some areas of the field were not close enough to a sprinkler, received little to no water, and now have dead grass.
How much money is that? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is a guess that is too low? What is a guess that is too high? What is your best guess? What options do you have for counting this money and what are the…
How much money should Dr. Evil demand? What would the inflation rate have to be for one million dollars in 1967 to be equivalent to one hundred billion dollars in 1997? When would demanding one hundred billion dollars be equivalent to demanding one million dollars in 1967? These questions may be useful…
What fraction is Mini-Me of Dr. Evil? How tall would Mini-Me have to be to be one eighth of Dr. Evil’s size? How tall would Dr. Evil have to be if Mini-Me really was one eighth his size? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What…
You want to make a video game similar to the one below and are beginning by animating Ms. Pac-Man. How can you describe Ms. Pac-Man’s movements? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What movement did Ms. Pac-Man make? What was the very first thing Ms.…
You are at a high school carnival’s ticket booth and see the ticket prices below: Which ticket option is the best deal? Which ticket option is the worst deal? Which ticket options are the same deal? How would you suggest they change their prices? These questions may be useful in helping students down…
You are in a car on the freeway and see this sign. How can you tell which exit is closest to you? How can you tell which exit is farthest from you? How would you show how far apart the freeway exits are on a map? Which exits are closest together? How far…
You are going to Knott’s Berry Farm and are not sure which rides you can go on. What rides are you the right height to go on by yourself? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What information do we need to know to answer this…
How do astronomers estimate how many stars exist? How many stars are there in the universe? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is a guess that is too low? What is a guess that is too high? What is your best guess? Can we…
You want to use the money you’ve collected in your coin bank to buy the game pictured above. How do you know if you have enough money in your coin bank to buy the game? If there is extra money, how much extra do you have? If there is not enough money, how…
Bed Bath & Beyond frequently sends out two different coupons to its customers. One coupon is “20% off one single item.” and the other coupon is “$5 off any purchase of $15 or more.” Which coupon will save you the most money? These questions may be useful in helping students down the…
