Color TV (inductive reasoning, counting)

Color TV (inductive reasoning, counting)

Colour TV (MathPickle, 2023) What a beautiful pattern! I love that it starts out with high symmetry for the 1s, but becomes asymmetric. Can you figure out the laws for the mini mathematical universe? Teaching is an experimental science. Don’t expect to be a...
Line Up (patterns, logic)

Line Up (patterns, logic)

Line Up (MathPickle, 2022) Lining Up is a puzzle that playfully explores partitions and proximity. If you want to see it played with kids go here.  The key to teaching the puzzle well is to look for symmetry and patterns. After you play it in a line – try it...
Categorizing Bad Rulers (subtraction, combinations)

Categorizing Bad Rulers (subtraction, combinations)

Categorizing Bad Rulers (MathPickle, 2021) Our factory is a bit lazy. When making a ruler we only make some of the notches. Such a ruler is either BAD or TERRIBLE. Is the ruler with notches at 0-2-5-7 BAD or TERRIBLE? With BAD rulers, choosing any two marks gives a...
Multiplicative Bingo (probability, factoring)

Multiplicative Bingo (probability, factoring)

Multiplicative Bingo (MathPickle, 2012) This is a great game to teach factoring and probability. Students should already be comfortable with the multiplication of two numbers 1-6. Teaching is an experimental science. Don’t expect to be a great teacher your first...