Students will:

1. Practice problem-solving skills from the grade 5-8 math curriculum
2. Explore topics from the grades 5-8 science and social studies curriculum
3. Learn basic Internet research skills
4. Develop an understanding of the construction of standardized test questions and multiple-choice answers

Directions

Investigate:

• Divide class into small groups of three or four students. To each group, assign a Math Hunt that's related to a topic you are studying this year.
• Walk through one Math Hunt question so the students understand how the process works. Explain that each group of students will complete a Math Hunt on its own and present to the class how they came to find their answers. They'll document the steps they took to try and solve the problem.
• Encourage students to break their problems into small steps and show their work.
• Each group should create a Math Hunt Grid (like the one below) to record their work.

MATH HUNT GRID

Name of Math Hunt ________________________

Student Team ______________________________

* Students can find math skills listed on the homepage of each Math Hunt, or go to the Skill Chart for a complete list of math skills in the Math Hunts.

• Students should record their work and answers before clicking the appropriate letter in the activity. If the answer they've reached is incorrect, the group should try it again until they come to the right conclusion and record their answer in the "CORRECTION" row.
• Be sure students fill in their group score on the chart.

Present Your Findings

• Let each group decide how they what to present their Math Hunt work: poster board diagram; flip chart; PowerPoint presentation; even creative methods such as a TV news program.
•  Provide time for students to collaborate on their presentation.
• In their introduction to the presentation, groups should include a brief summary about the social studies or science topic they explored. Ask groups to include at least five things about the topic they learned from the Web sites that they did not know before.
• Give a time limit (perhaps 5 minutes) for each presentation. Suggest that each group create a handout for the class that includes information about the Math Hunt.
• If while working to solve the problem the group makes any mistakes, they should present the incorrect path first and then show the correct solution. Do other groups recognize the mistake?

Supporting All Learners

4th Edition Standards & Benchmarks Life Skills

Thinking and Reasoning:

• Selects the most appropriate strategy or alternative for solving a problem         

Working with Others:

• Works cooperatively within a group to complete tasks, achieve goals, and solve problems

Language Arts:

Writing

• Uses electronic media to gather information
• Uses multiple representations of information to find information for research topics 

Reading

• Uses reading skills and strategies to understand a variety of informational texts
• Uses prior knowledge and experience to understand and respond to new information

Mathematics:

• Uses a variety of strategies to understand problem situations 
• Knows the difference between pertinent and irrelevant information when solving problems
• Uses explanations of the methods and reasoning behind the problem solution to determine
• reasonableness of and to verify results with respect to the original problem
• Formulates a problem, determines information required to solve the problem, chooses methods for
• obtaining this information, and sets limits for acceptable solutions
• Understands the concepts of ratio, proportion, and percent and the relationships among them
• Multiplies and divides whole numbers
• Adds, subtracts, multiplies, and divides decimals
• Adds and subtracts simple fractions
• Solves real-world problems involving number operations
• Adds, subtracts, multiplies, and divides integers, and rational numbers
• Understands the correct order of operations for performing arithmetic computations
• Uses proportional reasoning to solve mathematical and real-world problems
• Understands the basic measures perimeter, area, volume, capacity, mass, angle, and circumference
• Knows basic geometric language for describing and naming shapes

Lesson Extensions

Help students create a Math Hunt board game using the steps below.

1. Students create a 100-space game board in a path from start to finish. Each box along the path should be named for one of the math skills.
2. On index cards, students write Math Hunt questions from each of the science or social studies topics (one question per card) along with the three possible answers (correct one marked); on the opposite side, students write the math skill the question correlates to.
3. Place the cards in piles according to math skill to the side of the game board.
4. Set up a "Reference Library" nearby with printouts of the Web pages where players can search for the information they need to solve the questions.
5. Provide scrap paper that players can use to work out math problems and paper that be used to keep score.
6. Divide students in to two or more teams.
7. A player on Team A rolls a die and uses pawns to move around the board. When the pawn lands on a skill, the opposite team picks the top card in the pile and asks Team A the question.
8. Using the "Reference Library," the Team A players needs to find the information to solve the question and then work out the math solution.
9. For every correct answer, a team earns 10 points and can go again. For incorrect answers, a team loses 5 points and the next team goes.
10. The team to reach 100 points wins.