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math 2013
Shodor > SUCCEED > Workshops > Archive > math 2013

The students were introduced to the idea of probability through hands on activities, group discussions, and the use of Interactivate. The session began by playing the "name game" where all the kids stood in a circle and stated their name, along with an adjective that started with the same letter (Jubilant Jelani, etc.) and also the names and adjectives of all who were before them in the circle. This served to get them warmed up, coagulate their group mindset, and help them (and the leaders) become familiar with their names. Prior to the break, there was one main activity that was concentrated on. Each child was given a paper cup with twenty-five MandMs, each cup having the same amount of each color inside. The kids then had to blindly pull an MandM from the cup twenty-five times, record the color, and replace it. After the class had finished, the entirety of the results were collected and averaged. The kids then counted the actual number of each color they had. The data was then used to discuss probability and data collection. On Interactivate, the class played around with "Racing Game" with one Die, and "Racing Game" with two Dice, and "Experimental Probability". This gave them the ability to understand how certain parameters can influence probability and statistical outcomes. Finally, the children navigated to Shodor's Disease Epidemic Model. Through this model, the class was able to experiment with how probability relates to the real world, and how different variables with differing probabilities interact. After understanding how the model worked, the kids were tasked with changing the parameters in order to create the largest amount of fatalities as they could. The day ended with reflections.