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Menu Maths
Teachers' Notes
- Menu Maths is a concept - the concept of introducing more choice, more student participation and more student ownership of learning into the classroom.
- Menu Maths Packs are a resource designed to get you started - or extend what you already do.
Aaron Peeters was exploring Menu Maths long before Menu Maths Packs were created. The concept worked for him.
Tell us about your experiences with Menu Maths. Write a little about your use of either the concept or the resource and include examples of student work if you can.
Café Conundrum Menu Maths Packs support you to build more flexible Working Mathematically classrooms. You can:
- Take your first hands-on investigation adventure using easily controllable, easily packed up equipment and only need to be familiar with the small number of problems on the menu.
- Use menus with the whole class or with groups to invite students to work in pairs like a mathematician.
- Choose to focus on one investigation from the menu with the whole class or group to model how to work like a mathematician.
- Write an Investigation Guide to extend students beyond the 'tip of the iceberg (see below).
- Use them in conjunction with other tasks from Mathematics Task Centre and lessons from Maths300 to build richer, deeper unit plans in your choice of content area.
- ... or in your own way
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Café Conundrum menus have been trialed over several years.
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Consider building a café environment in the classroom - decorating appropriately, allowing students to bring water and health snacks. Perhaps even playing soft background music? Chat, chew (?) and be challenged!
- At least five investigations on every menu.
- Every investigation explored with Poly Plug.
- Each menu focuses on a particular content strand.
- Additional 'placemats' included when necessary as playing boards.
- Menus suit a range of ages and abilities.
- On line teachers' notes.
Poly Plug Puzzles A
- Ingredients:
- Year Levels: 3 - 8
- Computation, Pattern, Generalisation, Algebra
- Investigations:
- Make A Snake
- Lining Up
- 13 Away
- 4 Arm Shapes
- Crossing The River 1
- Jumping Kangaroos
Poly Plug Puzzles C
- Ingredients:
- 1 Poly Plug set,
- 1 placemat
- 4 dice
- Year Levels: 3 - 10
- Chance & Data, Computation
- Investigations:
- Counter Escape
- The Frog Pond
- Dice Differences
- Have A Hexagon
- 12 Counters
- Walk The Plank
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Poly Plug Puzzles B
- Ingredients:
- 1 Poly Plug set
- 1 placemat
- Year Levels: 3 - 8
- Logic & Reasoning
- Investigations:
- Big Toe Os & Xs
- Back To Back Building
- Crossing The Desert
- Nim
- Human Moves Monster
Poly Plug Puzzles D
- Ingredients:
- 1 Poly Plug set
- 1 placemat
- Year Levels: 3 - 8
- Number, Computation, Pattern
- Investigations:
- Row Points
- Cookie Count
- Eric The Sheep
- 4 & 20 Red Birds
- Bob's Buttons
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The links below will take you beyond the tip of the investigation revealed in the menu challenge and help you encourage your students to savour a problem more deeply ... rather than being satisfied with a light meal or a smorgasbord.
To support the teacher they include:
- ideas for using the class set of Poly Plug to explore any of the Menu investigations as a whole class,
- further information about each investigation which is stored in the companion Task Cameo,
- links to Math300 (where appropriate) through the Task Cameos.
Poly Plug Puzzles A
Poly Plug Puzzles B
Poly Plug Puzzles C
Poly Plug Puzzles D
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Note: Maths300 provides detailed whole class lesson plans and, in some cases, software to further and support and extend the investigation. Also, cameos assume students have a Mathematics Journal in which they keep progressive notes of their investigations, just like a mathematician would.
This is the place to share Investigation Guides written by you and your team to support Menu Maths problems. The guides listed have been shared by colleagues. Please send in your guides to be added to this list.
You are always welcome to submit additional information for these teaching notes - how you tweaked the problem, or student work, or an insight not yet recorded. Our contacts are in the banner at the top of this page.
Details
- A Menu Maths Pack is one menu card, placemat(s) if necessary and one Poly Plug set.
- Menu Maths Packs are designed for two students.
- Every Menu Maths Pack offers at least 5 investigations.
- Menu cards are double-sided full colour prints.
- Placemats are printed on coloured card and may be single or double-sided.
- All cards are laminated.
- Each Menu Maths Pack comes in its own sturdy, press-seal bag.
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Prices
| Menu Maths Packs |
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| (Poly Plug, menu, placemats if necessary) ... |
$19.00 each |
| Menu Cards Only |
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| (If you already have sufficient Poly Plug) ... |
$5.50 per set |
| Additional Poly Plug |
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| 1 - 24 sets ... |
$13.50 each |
| 25 - 99 sets ... |
$12.95 each |
| 100+ sets (or Calculating Changes members) ... |
$11 each |
Prices include GST. Delivery charges apply. Order with either your school purchase order or our Order Form.
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