Math 171 Project options Winter, 2008

 

There are two required projects this quarter. The first is a game strategy project, and the second a topic teaching project.

 

1)    Games: Today in class (2/15) we will introduce you to four geometry-based games: Blokus, Rumis, Cathedral and Laser. The first two are four-person games, and the last two are two-person games. You will be working together in teams of five or four, for which there will be sign-up sheets in class. One restriction:  if possible, we would like not to have two members of the same class group on the same game team. Also if you are familiar with a game, please sign up for a different one.

 

Part one: Play your game at least three times. You can either play with your team or trade the game around and each play with your friends or relations. Whichever you do, take note of tactics and strategies that you used or that were used against you and whether they were successful or not. On Friday, 2/22, each person must turn in an analysis of three geometry-based strategies that did or didnÕt work. Put some thought into the strategies – why they seemed like a good idea, why (if they didnÕt work) they werenÕt, how they could be sharpened. I wonÕt set an actual page minimum, but I canÕt quite imagine a sufficient analysis fitting on les than a page.

Part two: You should then confer with the rest of your team, in person if possible, or by e-mail if not. On Wednesday, 2/27 each team should turn in a team document describing strategies that you have decided as a team are the best to use. Practice them if you have a chance because É

Part three: on Friday, 2/29 there will be a grand in-class tournament in which part of each team will play your team game against members of other teams who have not been studying it. After that, you should again write up an individual report on your strategies – the good, the bad and the indeterminate. Turn it in on Wednesday, 3/5

 

2) Teaching a topic:   For this one you will work with a partner and as a pair you will have two choices to make: which of the multitude of geometric topics we have not covered you will be teaching, and to whom you will teach it. One group you might teach will be your classmates, doing a 20 minute session on one of the days of class in the last week. The other is a bunch of kids that we have the good fortune to have access to. Stephanie runs an after school math program at TOPS on Capitol Hill on Thursdays after school. She has one group of fifth and sixth graders and two of third and fourth graders. You could teach them either March 6 or March 13. That would be more like a 30 or 40 minute lesson, to allow for different approaches appropriate to the ages. IÕll list some possible topics on the back, but if you have another you would like to pursue, by all means check it out with me.

Deadlines: 1) By Wednesday, 2/22, you must tell us whom you are working with, and what you plan to teach to whom.

2) By Monday, 3/3, e-mail us both a plan of how you will do your teaching. Note that whether you are teaching children or your peers you must have an activity (which could be an interesting problem) with which to engage them for part or all of the allotted time.

3)    In the course of that week (3/3 – 3/7) you and your partner must talk over your plan with one or both of us, either in our office hours or after class. If neither of those will work, e-mail us and we will find another time.

4)    By Monday, 3/17, you must each submit a report consisting of your plan in its final form (the way it was just before you taught it) and your analysis of what worked and what didnÕt.

 

Some of the many topics you might do: Ruler-and-compass constructions, the Pythagorean Theorem, surveying, transformational geometry (all in our book), why your reflection in a spoon is upside down (I have the notes for that) or one of the topics on the NCTM Illuminations page. Go to http://illuminations.nctm.org/Lessons.aspx, click on geometry (all levels) and check out not just the highlighted lessons at the top, but the rest on down the page. Several look to me like a lot of fun and a lot of learning. I have some hinged mirrors if you choose one that involves them. Remember, though, that whereas it is fine to use any of those for inspiration, you need to do your own designing, thinking about making a coherent lesson for the amount of time you have.