6.EE.2     6.EE.6

Act I

Click on the link below and let students take part in an interactive magic trick:

A Math-ic Prediction

Ask students:

• What did you notice?  Record responses.
• What do you wonder?  Record responses.

Suggested question(s):

• How does she keep winning?
• What strategy(ies) does she use to win?

Write a hypothesis:  How do you think she is winning?  What would be an unreasonable hypothesis?

Act II

Use what students noticed from Act I  and have students investigate the trick either with a calculator and a partner or online using this link (note: flash player is needed):

A Math-ic Prediction

Students may work with a partner or individually.  As students investigate, have them use materials to model unknown quantities and known quantities.  Students should write discoveries, representations of models and expressions/equations in their journals/notebooks.

Act III

• Students share their strategies and solutions.
• Teacher facilitates students’ developing understandings of generalizations of quantities with algebraic representations through discussion.
• Teacher may wish to encourage students to begin using Scratch to code their own math magic trick.