Math Worksheets and Lesson Plans - Puzzles

Teaching Thinking Skills

"I gather puzzlers and problems from the Internet, math magazines, old textbooks and other publications. Each day, I put a challenging problem on the overhead and give my students time to work on it. When I call 'time,' I place a square of tag board on the desks of those who got the correct answer. The students write their names on the squares and place them in a can. I draw one name. That student has to explain the method he or she used to get the answer. The student receives a prize for a good explanation. Then, I ask for other students to share explanations. Students benefit from having to explain their thinking and from seeing multiple methods of solving problems. I am amazed at the variety of methods they use to solve problems."
Submitted by: From Susan Reid Susabella4@email-removed, a seventh and eighth grade Algebra teacher at Olive Branch Middle School in Olive Branch, Mississippi. This tip was published in the NEA's Weekly "Works4Me" Email list.

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