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3 Act Math Task Collection- Graham Fletcher

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3 Act Math Task Collection- Graham Fletcher

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3 Act Math Tasks By Kyle Pearce, Dan Meyer and Others

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3 Act Math Tasks by Kyle Pearce, Dan Meyer and many others to spark curiosity and fuel sense making.

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Math class needs a makeover -  Dan Meyer

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2016 Aug 6. Here is video of this task structure implemented with elementary students. 2013 May 14. Here's a brief series on how to teach with three-act math tasks. It includes video. 2013 Ap...

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Dan Meyer- Original Creator of 3 Act Math

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Dan Meyer- Original Creator of 3 Act Math

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Want to learn more? Take the free workshop. All 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th Alg 1 Geom Alg 2 Stat Calc Water Leak Will service arrive in time?Car Ramp How far did the ca…

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Good overview for beginner's

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NOTICE AND WONDER

Once we have built anticipation through the withholding of information, we can now empower student voice by asking them what they notice and what they wonder about the image or video clip.

Some common ideas shared during the notice and wonder portion of the Gummy Worms task include:

There's a jar with gummy worms in it.

What does the tag say?

Nice countertops!

How many gummy worms are in the jar?

Why is the jar so empty?

How many gummy worms would it take to fill the jar?

... and many others.

Be sure to leave this questioning open as asking for them to pay attention to only things related to mathematics may shut down some students, especially those who may not feel confident enough in their thinking. Some mistakes I've made in the first handful of years trying to use 3 act math tasks was asking questions like: "what is the question?" or "what math-related things do you notice and wonder?"

Questions like these sure did limit the conversation in my classroom to only include the more confident students and shut out those who aren't so certain.

Once you've jotted down the noticings and wonderings of your students, it's time to think about what questions you might consider solving. Of course you have planned out ahead of time which question you'd like to ensure that you answer to address a specific learning goal, however often times, students will have asked that question during the notice and wonder stage. If they don't, that's OK! It doesn't always have to be the students who get to pick which questions we are going to solve and typically, the question I have in mind is a "gateway" question to give us enough information to answer other questions that have already been asked.

ESTIMATION

Did you know that the word "estimate" comes up in the Ontario curriculum 53 times while the word "calculate" only appears a total of 17 times?

Of course there are other words that imply "calculate" that we must consider, but my point is that estimation is an important part of building mathematics proficiency. Using the 3 act math structure to withhold information allows for a unique opportunity for students to engage in real, worthwhile estimations that we typically do not have when using traditional word problems from the textbook or a worksheet.

I can vividly remember myself as a student looking at questions like:

There are 7 rows of 6 cookies in the display case at the bakery.

a) Estimate how many cookies there are in total.
b) Calculate how many cookies there are in total.

After reading a question like this, I would routinely tackle part b) first to get an answer of 42 and then take 1 or 2 off to jot down my "estimate".

This isn't a great way to promote students wanting to take part estimation activities or develop their estimation skills.

With the 3 act math structure to approach problem solving, the anticipation we have built up through the withholding of information and engaging in the notice and wonder almost forces everyone to NEED to take part in making estimates.

This is where everyone puts some skin in the game and even a bit of friendly competition develops. Now everyone WANTS to know the answer to settle things.

A great strategy to get kids using their adaptive reasoning skills before just tossing out any old number for their estimate is to have students consider numbers that are "too low" and "too high". This is a great way to help kids sort of "box in" a nice range for them to play in for their estimate. It might also get them thinking more deeply about the actual situation, slowly unravelling all of the details that might be in plain sight, but unnoticed until thinking about what is realistic.

Once students "box in" their reasonable estimate range, they can then go ahead and pick their "best guess".

Allowing students to share their best guesses openly is a great way to set a range of estimates for the entire class. The beauty of this moment is that we can now look at the range of best guesses and come to a conclusion that we've got a pretty wide range of possibilities. This is where the mathematics begins to be a super helpful tool for us to narrow down that range to something much more precise.

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The 3 Act Math Beginner's Guide | Spark Curiosity to Fuel Sense Making

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Once we have built anticipation through the withholding of information, we can now empower student voice by asking them what they notice and what they wonder about the image or video clip. Some common ideas shared during the notice and wonder portion of the Gummy Worms task include: There's a jar with gummy worms in it.

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Dan Meyer introduced the idea of 3-Act Math Tasks with his TED Talk: Math Class Needs a Makeover.

Below is a table of the 3-Act Tasks that I've created. Those marked with a * are newly added to this website as of 8/21/2023.

5.NBT.7, 5.MD.5

Multiplying Decimals, Volume

How much money is that?

Card House
3.OA.3, 3.OA.7, 3.NBT.3, 5.NBT.7, 8.G.7

Multiply Whole Numbers
Multiply Decimals
Pythagorean Theorem

How tall will the card house be when finished? How many cards/decks were used to build the card house? How many card triangles were used to build the card house?

For more tasks to try, check out the work offered by these amazing mathematics educators:

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Dan Meyer introduced the idea of 3-Act Math Tasks with his TED Talk: Math Class Needs a Makeover. Below is a table of the 3-Act Tasks that I've created. Those marked with a * are newly added to this website as of 8/21/2023. Task Name with LinkStandard(s)Big Idea(s)Main Question/WonderSweet Tart Hearts4.NF.4, 3.NF.1Multiplying Fractions and Whole...

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Where's the Beef- Multiplication

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Act 1 – Where’s the Beef Download the Task Watch the Video: How many hot dogs and buns did Joey eat in ten minutes? Estimate Make an estimate you know is too high. Too l…

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Estimate the number of donuts in the box. Can tie in with area model.

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Download the Task
Show the pictures below:

How many donuts are in the box? Estimate

Make an estimate you know is too high. Too low

Email from Krispy Kreme in the UK - What you might need to know

Amount of rows and columns per layer (use only in necessary)

How many donuts? The Krispy Kreme email

Watch the news report
Click the link here to find more of My 3-Act Lessons

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Act 1 - Krispy Kreme Me Download the Task Show the pictures below: How many donuts are in the box? ...

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groups of ...

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Act 1

1. How many pretzels are in the box?
2. Write down a guess.

Act 2

3. What information would be useful to figure this out?
4. Write down some questions you have in your head right now.

Act 3

Sequel

5. What would happen if 21 pretzels were in each pack?
6. What would happen if the box contained 75 snack packs?
7. Can you think of a way to multiply 17 and 60 in an easier way?

Common Core Standards
4.NBT.B.5
Multiply a whole number of up to four digits by a one-digit whole number, and multiply two two-digit numbers, using strategies based on place value and the properties of operations. Illustrate and explain the calculation by using equations, rectangular arrays, and/or area models.

TEKS
4.4(D)
use strategies and algorithms, including the standard algorithm, to multiply up to a four-digit number by a one-digit number and to multiply a two-digit number by a two-digit number. Strategies may include mental math, partial products, and the commutative, associative, and distributive properties

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Act 1 1. How many pretzels are in the box? 2. Write down a guess. Act 2 3. What information would be useful to figure this out? 4. Write down some questions you have in your head right now. Act 3 S...

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Estimate how many will fit in the jar.

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Act 1 – Array-bow of Colors Download the Task Watch the Video: What do you notice? What do you wonder? How many Skittles fit in the jar? Estimate. Too high estimate? Too low e…

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How Big is the World's Largest Deliverable Pizza?

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How Big is the World's Largest Deliverable Pizza?

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*Used this lesson last year. Let students divide into groups to solve. Had to convince the class their solution, why they think that is the answer, and how they came to that conclusion. Nice extension- BUILDING the pizza out of construction paper to really see its size! Might have students use tools and chalk to measure out on the black top as well to see the scale of the pizza.

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Students compare the area of 4 smaller pizzas to one large pizza.

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Which Pizza Is A Better Deal? - Robert Kaplinsky

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Which Pizza Is A Better Deal?, This real-world problem-based lesson challenges students to compare the unit rates of square and circle pizzas.

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Great starter lesson (3rd grade)

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Act 1 - Knotty Rope Download the Task Watch the Video: How many knots will fit on the rope? Estimate Write an estimate you know is too high. Write an estimate you know...

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Good resource for sharing with other teachers, or breaking down the steps to help students make their own 3 act math.

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PRINT THIS.