Fall SAVY 2018, Day 2 – Games Galore! (1st/2nd)
Today was another fantastic day in Games Galore! We are showing leaps of growth in our knowledge of how to evaluate the fairness of a game, and today, we added another layer of game-playing awareness with depth of understanding of theoretical probability and experimental outcomes! We reminded ourselves of the last activity we did at the end of last Saturday, by analyzing the possible outcomes of the 2-sided red and yellow discs, and why the game rules were not fair. We then shared how to make the game fair, and how to talk to others who might want us to play a game that for which we have evidence that proves the rules are not fair. Our discussion was rich. We then read an engaging mathematical book called Counting on Frank, which opened the door for us to talk about the differences in theoretical probability and experimental outcomes.
We began identifying both theoretical probability and experimental outcomes with every activity that we did, and that is where the fun and learning really soared. We learned to write theoretical probabilities in fractional terms, such as ½, chance or 1/6, 2/6, and 3/6 chances. All of a sudden, we were able compare and evaluate theoretical predictions in game playing with experimental game playing outcomes. We became much more confident in deciding if a game was fair or not, by analyzing theoretical probability and experimental outcomes. We read a book called No Fair! This book introduced, yet another, component of fairness, in the concept of does it matter who goes first, and if it is so, what are some fair ways to decide who should go first in a game. Our last game activity of the day, There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly, allowed us to apply our new understanding by giving us practice in playing a game three different ways. One way was with a spinner that seemed to be unfair, another way was blindly choosing a number from a number board of 15 numbers that had strategic placement of numbers and numbers with repeats, and finally, an option to design your own spinner that you would say is fair. Partners enjoyed playing this game three different ways, and then we discussed pros and cons of each.
We then began planning our own board games! Using learning from playing games that afforded theoretical and experimental experiences, we intentionally created our own board game ideas that would be fair, yet challenging to any player of our games. We are looking forward to challenging you to play our finished product board games at the Open House next Saturday. You will be receiving more information about the Open House in an email from the SAVY admin team this week. We look forward to playing Games Galore with you all!
If you have time this week, may I suggest that you and your student pull out board games you have at home and first discuss the theoretical probabilities of winning the game, and then the experimental outcomes through playing the games. Then have your student explain, with evidence, why they think each game is fair or unfair, and how they would suggest modifying the games that they deem to be unfair.
I am looking forward to our Parent Open House. Siblings and other relatives are also welcome to attend. See you all next week!
Ms. Tyson