Heads & LegsTask 14 ... Years 2 - 8SummaryYou are told the number of heads and the number of legs which can be counted in a paddock of buffalo and hens. The problem is to work out how many of each animal are in the paddock.This cameo has a From The Classroom section which explains in detail how one primary school used this investigation as an assessment task across the school. |
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IcebergA task is the tip of a learning iceberg. There is always more to a task than is recorded on the card. |
Some of the iceberg of this task is already presented on the card. The initial 'Sarah & Sam' problem is closed (8 heads & 22 legs), but the card goes on to ask What happens if...? and suggest that it is possible to find a general way of solving the problem which would work for all appropriate numbers. However, there is more.
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Whole Class InvestigationTasks are an invitation for two students to work like a mathematician. Tasks can also be modified to become whole class investigations which model how a mathematician works. |
The whole class lesson for this task is detailed in Maths300 Lesson 41, Heads & Legs. This lesson also extends the investigation with software. You will need multiple copies of the animal cards, or many plastic farm animals, or objects such as bottle caps and sticks which students can use to make representative animals. Both the Maths300 lesson and the eTask Package provide print sheets of two types of animal. For more ideas and discussion about this investigation, open a new browser tab (or page) and visit Maths300 Lesson 41, Heads & Legs, which includes an Investigation Guide and companion software. |
Is it in Maths With Attitude?Maths With Attitude is a set of hands-on learning kits available from Years 3-10 which structure the use of tasks and whole class investigations into a week by week planner. |
The Heads & Legs task is an integral part of:
The Heads & Legs lesson is an integral part of:
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Bayswater Primary SchoolSue MugridgeTeaching & Learning Coach |
With Sue's guidance the school staff dared to use Heads & Legs as a focus task for a school wide professional learning experience based around developing common assessment tasks. Read about the way they used Heads & Legs from K to 6, see photos of student work and examine rubrics the teachers developed. |