Quick Draw!

Learning Objective: time management

Activity Category: Energizer

Time Available: 10 minutes

Space: large classroom, fits 45 students

Explanatory Notes: an energizer activity right after a short break. It is for approx. 45
students already divided up into six groups.

Activity Instructions:

1. Provide your students each with the attached "Quick Draw! page 1" face down.
[Download the Quick Draw! pages as a pdf file here]
2. On your signal, all students turn over their pages and attempt to circle the numbers is
numerical order, i.e., 1,2,3,4,5…. They will have 30 seconds to do so, and they must
do so in silence. Any questions? Ready, set, go!
3. At 30 seconds, tell the students to stop but keep their pages face up. Ask the students
to add up and tally their combined scores within their small groups. Poll each small
group as to how many numbers total each group was able to circle within the given
time frame. Now ask them to study their pages, and discuss within their teams how
they might improve their scores. After a minute or so, ask the teams to share their
strategies with the larger group. The key item that they need to realize here (or that
you should point out, if they fail to voice it) is that there is a pattern to the layout of
the numbers. 1What might that be? So how might you improve your performance in
these kinds of tasks?
4. Provide your students with the attached "Quick Draw! Page Two" also face down.
Instructions are the same as in the first round. Any questions? Ready, set, go!
5. After 30 seconds, have students stop, tally and total their scores in small groups, and
compare their first and second attempts. What you should see is that, even though the
layout of the numbers on "Page Two" was in a different pattern, students performance
should have improved because they invested the time, even when the clock was
ticking, to look for patterns and to come up with a plan2.
6. If the second round didn’t work as you expected, i.e., scores did NOT improve over the
first round, then don’t start the discussion here. Ask them to study their sheets silently
to discover the pattern. Conduct a third round using the same "Quick Draw, page Two"
sheet so that they are dealing with a known pattern, but this time ask them to mark
an "X" over each number. Performance will definitely improve, and you can then make
the case about investing time up front in looking for patterns and planning ahead.

If they don’t see the patterns, tip them that they might want to draw lines
[1]

between sequential numbers, as in “connect the dots.” The patterns should be

readily apparent.

[2]
For clarity sake, let me note that I am referring to each student coming up with
his own individual and internal plan, not group strategizing within the 30 second
time limit.
 Traffic Jam Activity

Teacher Lesson Plan

Go to Student Page || Handout

This activity is aligned to NCTM Standards - Grades 6-8: Algebra, Problem Solving, Reasoning and Proof, and
Communication and to California Mathematics Standards Grade 7: Algebra and Functions #1 and Mathematical
Reasoning #1.1, 1.2, 2.2, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 3.2

Glencoe's Interactive Mathematics text provides an activity (Units 7-12, p. 5) called Hop,
Skip, Jump. I first encountered this activity during the Math Forum's 1996 Summer Institute,
where it was called Traffic Jam.

Here's the problem:

There are seven stepping stones and six people. On the three lefthand stones, facing the center, stand three of the
people. The other three people stand on the three righthand stones, also facing the center. The center stone is not
occupied.

The challenge: exchanging places

Everyone must move so that the people originally standing on the righthand stepping stones are on the
lefthand stones, and those originally standing on the lefthand stepping stones are on the righthand stones,
with the center stone again unoccupied.

The rules:

1. After each move, each person must be standing on a stepping stone.

2. If you start on the left, you may only move to the right. If you start on the right, you may only move to the
left.
3. You may "jump" another person if there is an empty stone on the other side. You may not "jump" more than
one person.
4. Only one person can move at a time.

Introducing the activity

Large movement experience:

Each group of 6 students is given 7 sheets of paper to use as stepping stones. Areas of the room are assigned to each
group and the activity begins.

Allow enough time for groups to try to find the minimum number of moves necessary to
complete the task.
Using Manipulatives

Simulating the activity:

Once the activity has been experienced as large movement, students use what has been learned to try it on a smaller
scale.

Each group is given 6 small plastic figures or other objects with which to simulate the activity
while looking at page 5 of Glencoe's Interactive Mathematics text, where there is a diagram of
the bases. As groups try to find the fewest number of moves necessary to complete the
exchange of places, the teacher circulates among them to monitor the activity.

Using Technology

Interactive Web activity:

To simulate the Traffic Jam activity, Mike Morton wrote a Java applet for the Math Forum. Students can work
individually, in pairs, in groups, or with one classroom display to further investigate the problem.
Traffic Jam - Java applet

Be sure to manipulate the various options that Mike has made available, including:

1. background color
2. foreground color
3. level of difficulty
4. show history and redraw history

After the students have tried the easy, medium and hard levels, encourage them to look for a
pattern.

Revisiting the Activity

At this point, students have investigated the problem using large manipulatives (their bodies), small manipulatives
(plastic figures), and technology (the Java applet). Some students will discover the minimum number of moves for 6
people because they successfully complete the activity using the Java applet, and the computer tells them they are
correct! Other students will not master the activity, but may have a better understanding of the task.

Once more have the students assemble in their groups of six and repeat the activity using
their bodies and the paper stepping stones. As they repeat the activity, observe groups that
are successful and ask them to think of some "rules" to account for their success.

Extending the activity - looking for patterns

Have the students sit down and think in terms of a pattern:
 1. What if there are only 2 people and 3 spaces?
How many moves does it take for the two people to exchange positions?
2. What if there are 4 people and 5 spaces?
How many moves does it take for 4 people to exchange positions?
3. What about 6?
4. What about 8?
5. What about 10?
.....
6. Can you find a pattern for any number of people?

Writing the answer algebraically

Students can first make a data table using the information gathered so far. There might just be columns for the number
of pairs, the number of people, and the first 3 entries for the minimum number of moves.
number of people
number of pairs minimum number of moves
1 3
2
2 8
4
3 15
6
4 ...
8
5 ...
10
6 ...
12

Ask students: What patterns do you see? Are there any relationships among the numbers in
any of the three columns? Consider just the first and third column. What if we let n equal the
number of pairs? Can we generate any of the numbers in the minimum number of moves
column?

Does 1^2 + 2(1) = 3?

Does 2^2 + 2(2) = 8?
Does 3^2 + 2(3) = 15?

The completed table might look like this:

number of people min. number of moves

number of pairs another view
1 1^2 + 2(1) = 3
2 3
2 2^2 + 2(2) = 8
4 8
3 3^2 + 2(3) = 15
6 15
4 4^2 + 2(4) = 24
8 24
5 5^2 + 2(5) = 35
10 35
6 6^2 + 2(6) = 48
12 48
... ...
... ...
n n^2 + 2(n) = n(n + 2
2n n^2 + 2(n)