"Create Your Own Math Game" Project for Grade 9 Math

Making Intermediate Math More Fun

It's a hot summer day. Your friends are all relaxing and taking selfies at the beach while you...are spending the next month back in the classroom for Summer Session. Just because school is back in session, doesn't mean it can't be at least somewhat fun!

Okay, so it is actually the middle of winter right now...but Summer Session is what sparked my interest in math games in the first place. The first time I taught Grade 9 Math during the Summer Session, many students expressed frustration with missing out on "just hanging out with their friends and having fun". Ever since then I have tried to incorporate more fun ways of practicing basic math concepts, such as Solving Equations Jenga and Linear Relations Guess Who. I have also included a Summative Project where the students are given the opportunity to create and play their own math games to review concepts outlined in the learning goals for the course. What better way to get students engaged in learning than for them to make their own activities and games!

Students making math games for assessment is definitely not a new concept. I have seen this many times before in different classrooms, but I had only ever seen it in Junior grades, and is usually specifically board games. No reason it cannot be adapted for Intermediate grades and with a wider range of options! For the Grade 9 students, their games can be an original concept or a modified version of an already existing game. It can be in any format--card, dice, board game, trivia, DPA style game, etc.--but must be playable in a classroom setting.

Below is a link to the package I give the students, which includes the following:

• Description of the project expectations
• Getting Started list of possible math topics/concepts for students to choose from (based on MPM1D curriculum and course learning goals)
• Project Outline: graphic organizer for planning out their projects
• Rough Copy Checklist (self-assessment)
• Finished Game Checklist (self-assessment)
• Rubric (used for final evaluation)

Create Your Own Math Game: Summative Project for Grade 9 Math 

When the students play each others' games, I give them each a Peer Assessment form to fill out for every game that they try. I take their feedback into consideration when marking, as well as my own observations while they are playing.

By creating their own questions, they gain a deeper understanding of their chosen math topic. By playing each other's games, they get to practice a variety of concepts relevant to the curriculum in a more enjoyable and collaborative setting. If they really enjoy any in particular and happen to let me reuse them the following year, bonus!

Linear Relations Guess Who

Can You Guess Who?

My Grade 9 Math Summer Session students are often having difficulty making connections between the different representations of a linear relation, i.e. recognizing how the same linear relation can be represented by a table of values, a graph, and an equation.  While browsing through Pinterest for more math game inspiration, I stumbled upon Guess Who - Linear Functions from "i is a number".  This seemed like a great concept for encouraging students to practise analyzing and comparing different representations of linear relations more confidently and quickly!  I adapted the cards to create my own "Linear Relations" Guess Who? for Grade 9 Math.

Making the Game:

Luckily, I was able to find an old Guess Who? set from my local Value Village.  Only the game boards themselves are needed, so no worrying about missing cards when buying the game used.  Make sure to double check that the game boards are not broken, however.  One of the white plastic frames from the blue game board had broken off, so I had to MacGyver a new one using a white paperclip and a hot glue gun.  It works, but did not turn out the prettiest (which is why I only included a picture of the red game board).

For my purposes, I chose not to include the written representations and only include tables of values, graphs, and equations.  Here are the small cards for my "Linear Relations" Guess Who.  I would have shared the large cards (Mystery cards) as well but for some reason the formatting of the large cards did not translate well from Microsoft Office to Google Docs.  Fortunately, the large cards have the same images as the small ones, and their size does not need to be as specific.  Two copies of the small cards are required: one on pink/red card stock and one on blue.  For the large Mystery cards, I chose a neutral but easy to read colour.

Note: If you find the small cards are falling out during use, consider sticking a piece of tape across the back of the frame.  Some people glue the cards to the frame, but you may want to swap out the cards to differentiate for different levels or to practise other skills.

Playing the Game:

Goal:

Guess your opponent's Mystery card before your opponent guesses yours.

Rules:

Ask one yes or no question per turn to eliminate any game board pictures (small cards) that do not fit the Mystery card's description.  If you make a wrong guess, you lose the game; so do not guess until you are sure!

The following are just some examples of yes or no questions you could ask:

• Does your linear relation have a positive slope?
• Does the equation represent a partial variation?
• Does your graph have a negative y-intercept?
• Etc.

While your students are playing, keep an ear out for the kinds of questions students are asking each other.  "i is a number" brought up a good point: a question such as "is it a graph?" technically fits the description of a yes or no question, but does not involve any analysis.  For my cards, however, I feel it may be necessary to narrow the options down to one final card.  One of my learning goals for this activity is to determine other representations of a linear relation, given one representation; because of this, a table of values, graph, and equation could all be described using the same properties and characteristics, making it necessary to clarify the representation as well.

Solving Equations Jenga

Jenga! J- J- J- Jenga!

Worksheets are great for practising basic math skills but can be tedious...  Why not make them into a game?  I am always trying to find ways to make math practice more fun, especially during Summer Session!  I decided to make my own "Solving Equations" Jenga for Grade 9 Math after seeing a variety of Jenga games for the classroom on Pinterest.

Making the Game:

Well...technically I used a mini version of "Tumbling Tower" that I found at Dollarama.  It was only $2.50 and is more portable and easier to store than a full-sized Jenga set!  I cannot remember which website I used as the source for my questions, but either of these would be great resources for practice questions:

• http://www.mathworksheets4kids.com/equations/
• http://www.math-aids.com/Algebra/Algebra_1/Equations/

I colour coded the two different sides of the bricks to better accommodate a range of abilities:

• Green side (easier): Basic 1- and 2-Step Equations.
• Blue side (harder): Equations with Variables on Both Sides and/or Brackets.

At least for the "Tumbling Tower" set, I recommend using a fine felt-tipped marker rather than a permanent marker; I first tried permanent marker but found it bled into the wood and made the equations harder to read.  I labelled the ends of each brick with a different number so that students can quickly check their answers with the "Solving Equations" Jenga Answer Key.

Playing the Game:

I use a file folder to store the "Solving Equations" Jenga Rules and Answer Key.

Goal:

Be the last player to stack a block without knocking over the tower, having correctly solved the block's equation.

Rules:

First player removes a block from anywhere below the highest completed story, using only one hand.  That player must correctly solve one of the equations shown on the block before stacking it on top of the tower at right angles to the blocks just below it.  If the player does not correctly solve the equation after the first try then they must take another turn, risking knocking over the tower again!

  

Side note: One drawback to using the dollar store version: since the wood is not as good of quality as the name-brand version, the first couple of pieces to be removed tend to get stuck.  I changed the one-handed rule to allow students to use their other hand to hold the blocks on either side, just for the first couple of turns.  After the first few turns though, the blocks move smoothly and it is back to using only one hand!  (If you run into this problem, warn the students ahead of time so they do not get instantly discouraged!)

If you would like to make your own Jenga game, I recommend checking out this DIY Jenga tutorial by "The Tutor House".  Unfortunately for me, I did not find this until after I made my own...but I plan to use it to help me make a full-sized whiteboard Jenga set once I have my own classroom :)