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Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day:
Lucky Math
This fun idea was adapted from a lesson on probability and statistics. The lesson is directed at 4th to 6th grade levels, but is still enjoyable for other levels when used in conjunction with researching "luck".
Materials Needed:
A coin
A tally sheet
A pencil
The math worksheet that follows.
Introduction
Introduce the lesson by showing the coin. Ask the following question.
1. "If I toss this coin is more likely to land on heads or tails?" Allow students to give their opinion.
2. Now toss the coin. Record the results in the form of a tally mark.
3. Have a different person take the coin., "What if 'this person' tosses the coin, will it land on heads or tails?"
4. Allow everyone to make predictions. Have "this person" toss the coin and record results. Repeat this three or four times with different people tossing the coins if possible. (results will vary)
5. Second question: "What if I just hold the coin between my hands and drop it?"
Repeat steps #2-4.
6. Third question: "What if I set the coin on the table and just slide it off?" (this is setting the students up for the concept of variables)
Repeat steps #2-4
Finally, pass out the worksheet and tell them that their assignment is to toss the coin 100 times, tally their results and be prepared to share their results the following day. Emphasize that they are to make their predictions before they conduct the experiment.
Worksheet:
FOLLOW THESE DIRECTIONS TO COMPLETE THIS MATH PROJECT:
A. Guess how many times a coin will land on heads if you toss it 100 times.
Write your guess here______.
B. Now try it! Toss your coin into the air 100 times. Keep a running tally sheet.
C. Estimate how many times it will land on heads if you repeat your experiment.
Write your estimate here______.
D. If there are 30 students in the class, estimate how many times the coins fell on heads for the entire class. Show your work. Write your guess here______.
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DAY 2
Compare their predictions with what actually happened. Now bring in the concepts of “luck” and “chance” and ask how they think that those concepts compare with the activity of tossing the coin.
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