© Rich Clarkson
Math
These math lessons use historical facts and fun trivia to help students
learn basic math skills. Playing cards, figuring scores, recognizing shapes,
completing patterns and learning how to measure all add up to a strong
base for future math skills.
36
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
LESSON
1
Skills and Drills
Students drill math skills as they play card games.
National Standards: NM.K-4.2, NM.K-4.6, NM.K-4-7
Skills: Games are adaptable to a variety of skills—matching a numeral to the
number of basketballs pictured; identifying number pairs that make 10;
comparing, adding or subtracting two numbers
Estimated Lesson Time: 15 minutes for one game
Teacher Preparation
• Decide if you, a volunteer or the students will make the decks of cards.
• Duplicate the playing cards on page 39 for each student. (Two copies of page 39 are
needed to make a complete deck; two students can combine their cards to form a
complete deck.) Duplicate two copies of page 39 for each student to take home.
• Collect the materials listed.
• Put students into groups as indicated in the game rules and by student ability.
• (Optional) Arrange for volunteers (e.g., parents, grandparents, college students,
older students, retired teachers) to come to your class to help students with the
card games. Review the game rules and your sporting behavior guidelines with
the volunteer.
Materials
• 1 copy of the playing cards on page 39 per student
• (Optional) Stickers for prizes
Background Information
The card games in this lesson are based on well-known childhood games. In fact, the
rules for most children’s card games can be adapted for use with these cards. In these
games, a match is any pair of cards with identical values such as the numeral 7 matched
with seven basketballs or a pair of sevens with two pictures of seven basketballs. The
winner is the player with the most cards at the end of the game.
To decide who goes first, use alphabetical order by first or last names, or use numerical order by birth dates, age or number of letters in the child’s first name. The
following are some possible games.
Game 1 Match Play
This game is for 2 to 4 players. Shuffle the cards and distribute them face down in a
single layer. The first player turns over two cards. If the cards match, he takes both
37
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
cards and takes another turn. If they do not match, he returns the cards to their original face down positions and the turn passes to the next player. The game ends when
all the cards have been used up or when time is up.
Game 2 Rebound
This game is for 2 players. Shuffle the cards and deal two piles face down. Shape each
pile into a deck. Players simultaneously reveal the top card of their deck. The player
who turned over the largest value gets both cards and puts them on the bottom of her
deck. If both cards are equal, the players say, “Rebound!” Both remove the top three
cards from their deck and lay them face down on top of the two cards already played.
Then each player lays down a fourth card face up. The player whose fourth card is
largest wins all the cards in the pile. Play continues as described and the game ends
when one player runs out of cards or when time is called.
Introduce the Lesson
Tell the students that during the basketball season the NCAA® allows 20 hours of
controlled activity (competition, practice and weight training) per week for studentathletes, and during the off season student-athletes still get together to play. Discuss
why there is so much practice. (Practice makes perfect and permanent.) Say that the
extra practice of playing math games will help them improve in math.
Follow These Steps
1. Go over the meaning of good sporting behavior. Talk about why good sporting
behavior is important. (More fun for everyone.) Ask students to tell you what
good sporting behavior looks like and what it sounds like. Emphasize the qualities you most want to see and hear.
2. Go over the rules of the games. Distribute materials and circulate.
3. If a volunteer comes on a regular basis, teach the volunteer the game. She can
circulate and help where needed, or she can work with two to four students in a
corner of the classroom.
Extend and Vary the Lesson
• Adjust the rules based on the math being practiced. For example, in Match Play,
change the definition of a match to be a pair of numbers that make a sum of ten.
• Play Total Score. Deal the cards as for Rebound. When the students turn over the
first card, both immediately add the two numbers. The first player to say the correct total wins both cards. Play ends as in Rebound. You can also use this game for
practicing subtraction.
• Prepare some rule sheets and extra worksheets and offer them to parents at open
house or parent conferences. Or, send the cards and rules home as fun homework
assignments. Make the games available in a study center as a reward for those
who finish daily work early.
38
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
39
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
LESSON
2
Score!
Students solve a scoring problem while writing sums of 10.
National Standards: NM.K-4.1, NM.K-4.6, NM.K-4.7, NM.K-4.8
Skills: Adding two or three digits to make 10
Estimated Lesson Time: 15 minutes
Teacher Preparation
• Duplicate the Score! worksheet on page 42 for each student.
• Collect the materials listed.
• Decide if students should work alone or in pairs.
Materials
• 1 copy of the Score! worksheet on page 42 for each student
• 1 pencil or crayon for each student
Background Information
The very first basketball game was played at the YMCA in Springfield, Massachusetts,
in 1891. The YMCA had been looking for a game young men could play indoors in
winter. Dr. James Naismith was assigned to invent such a game, and his players used a
soccer ball and peach baskets the first time they played. It must have been very challenging to get that soccer ball into the basket, because the score of that first game is
said to have been 1 to 0. Today the game has changed and scores are much higher. In
1991 Loyola Marymount University scored a record-high 186 points in an NCAA® Division I men’s basketball game!
Introduce the Lesson
Tell students that today’s lesson is about math and basketball.
Follow These Steps
1. Ask students how many of them play basketball. Inquire about the scores of
games. What kind of score makes for an exciting game? What does it mean when
scores are far apart? What was the highest score they ever heard about in a
basketball game?
2. Pass out the Score! worksheets.
40
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
3. Go over the words on the worksheet. Make sure everyone knows that the word
“digit” refers to one of the numbers 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9. Point out that the
digits are listed at the bottom of the worksheet.
4. Start work on the problem. Ask students to suggest an answer. Try to have at
least one answer with a 1 in the hundreds place and another with a 0 in the
hundreds place.
5. Let students work.
6. Go over the answers.
Extend and Vary the Lesson
• Ask the students if they think a tie is possible under the conditions listed on the
worksheet. (No, because the visitor’s score does not add to 10.)
• Read The Grapes of Math to your students. This neat collection of mind-stretching
math riddles emphasizes looking for matches that make 10 and other math patterns.
• Remove the tens and all face cards from a deck of inexpensive playing cards. Have
students play a special version of “Concentration.” Place the cards face down in a
single layer on the table. Players take turns turning over any two cards on the
table. Each time the player turns over a pair of cards with a sum of 10, the player
takes both cards and his turn continues. If the player turns over a pair of cards
whose sum is not 10, the cards are turned face down, and the player’s turn ends.
Play continues until time runs out or until all cards are removed from the table.
The winner is the player who collects the most cards.
References
Cook, M. 1989. “IDEAS Create a House Number.” Arithmetic Teacher 36 (January): 19–
24.
Stewart, M. 1988. Basketball: A History of Hoops. New York: Franklin Watts.
Tang, G. 2001. The Grapes of Math. New York: Scholastic Press.
41
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Score!
Name_______________________________ Date_______________
Find the Score
Use the following clues to find
the home team’s score:
The sum of the digits is 10.
The score is smaller than 200.
Any digit can be used more than once. There are many correct
answers. Find them all.
Here are some example answers:
118 because 1 + 1 + 8 = 10
64 because 6 + 4 = 10
These are not good answers:
342 because it is more than 200
77 because 7 + 7 = 14
The Digits:
0 1 2 3 4 5
6 7 8 9
42
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
LESSON
3
Courtly Shapes
Students search the basketball court for rectangles, circles and semicircles.
National Standards: NM.K-4.9, NM.K-4.1
Skills: Identifying rectangles, circles and semicircles; recognizing and counting
overlapping rectangles
Estimated Lesson Time: 30 minutes
Teacher Preparation
• Duplicate the Courtly Shapes worksheet on page 46 for each student.
• Collect the materials listed.
Materials
• 1 copy of the Courtly Shapes worksheet on page 46 for each student
• 1 transparency of the Courtly Shapes worksheet or a diagram of a basketball court
drawn on the chalkboard
• 1 pencil or crayon for each student
Background Information
Basketball is a constantly evolving game. Ever since the game was invented in 1891 by
Dr. James Naismith, the organizations governing the game have changed the rules, the
court and even the ball. Courts for different levels of play have different markings and
dimensions. The markings on the court shown on this worksheet are the ones used
for NCAA® basketball games. For more information, see the basketball rulebook at
www.ncaa.org. Just select site index, then basketball, then rules.
In this lesson the students study the court to find different shapes hidden there. We
will look for the circle, the semicircle and the rectangle. Definitions should be very
informal, although formal definitions are given here for your convenience.
circle—The set of all points exactly the same distance from a given center point.
In mathematical terms, the inside of the circle is not usually considered part of
the circle. But in everyday language, we sometimes mean the inside, too, when
we say “circle.”
rectangle—A four-sided shape with four right angles.
semicircle—One-half of a circle. Again, the inside is not considered part of the
semicircle, but frequently in everyday conversation it is included.
Introduce the Lesson
Tell students that geometric shapes are everywhere, and today they are going to hunt
for geometric shapes hidden in the classroom and on the basketball court.
43
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
Follow These Steps
1. Start two lists on the chalkboard or on an overhead transparency. Title the
two lists “rectangles” and “not rectangles.” Under “rectangles” draw several
types of rectangles. Under “not rectangles” draw several shapes that are not
rectangles (for example, a parallelogram, a triangle, a four-sided shape where
one side is curved). Say, “Now guess. Are the next shapes rectangles?” Then
draw several shapes such as a rectangle, a trapezoid with two right angles, a
diamond that is not a square and a square that looks like a diamond. (Students should say yes to the rectangle and the square.) Discuss the students’
answers.
2. Look around the room for more rectangles. (Ceiling, walls, floor tiles, tabletops if
edges are not rounded.) Emphasize that rectangles have exactly four straight
sides, no curves, pointed corners and four equal angles.
3. Draw this shape on the board. Ask, “How many rectangles are in this shape?”
(11.)
1
4
2
5
7
6
3
9
10
8
11
4. Review circles. Remind students that the inside of a circle is not generally considered a part of the circle, but sometimes in everyday conversation we include
the inside when we speak about circles.
5. Draw a circle with a compass. Carefully divide it in half and erase one of the
halves. Tell students that what they now see is a semicircle. Look for circles and
semicircles in the classroom.
6. Distribute worksheets. When students finish, go over their answers.
44
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
Extend and Vary the Lesson
• Highlights prints collections of hidden pictures, black-and-white drawings in which
various-shaped objects such as baseballs, cupcakes, spoons and so on are hidden
(to order, write or call Highlights at PO Box 182167, Columbus OH 43218, 1-800-2559517). Laminate the pages and post them on a bulletin board or in a study center.
• Look in the school library for other puzzle books that include problems requiring
students to find all the hidden triangles, squares or rectangles. Use the problems
for weekly challenge tasks.
• Buy packets of colored circle and rectangle stickers at an office-supply store. Cut
some of the circles in half. Have students make pictures of beetles, flowers and
other designs using colored pencils and the semicircles, circles and rectangles.
Suggested Readings
Stewart, M. 1988. Basketball: A History of Hoops. New York: Franklin Watts.
45
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Courtly Shapes
Name_______________________________ Date_______________
Hidden in this basketball court are rectangles
circles
Count the
and semicircles
.
shapes:___________.
Count the
shapes:___________.
Count the
shapes:___________.
46
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
,
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
LESSON
4
Sports Patterns
Students predict the next object that should appear in a pattern.
National Standard: NM.K-4.13
Skills: Identifying a pattern and choosing which of two items comes next
Estimated Lesson Time: 25 minutes
Teacher Preparation
• Duplicate the What Comes Next? worksheet on page 50 for each student.
• Make a “guessing machine” by cutting a 21/2-inch slit in a colorful piece of cardboard as pictured. Cut several 2- by 16-inch strips of paper. Stick stickers on the
strips to create patterns—for example, bat, ball, bat, ball and so on; basketball,
basketball, basketball and so on; soccer ball, football, football, soccer ball, football, football and so on. Make sure each strip has a different pattern. Thread the
tip of a strip through the slit in the cardboard, entering from behind and emerging
in front as pictured. Let only the first sticker show.
Materials
•
•
•
•
The “guessing machine”
1 copy of the What Comes Next? worksheet on page 50 for each student
1 pencil for each student
Four 2- by 16-inch strips of plain white paper for use with the guessing machine
(more if using the extensions)
• A collection of sports stickers purchased from toy stores, card shops, grocery
stores or teacher stores
Background Information
Walking through a museum, trekking around downtown or visiting a wallpaper or fabric shop brings us in contact with interesting examples of repeating patterns. Patterns
47
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
abound in Celtic, Egyptian, Islamic and Navajo art. This is not surprising, because
patterns are found in nature itself. The Fibonacci sequence (1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13 . . .), in
which each succeeding term is the sum of the two terms immediately preceding it, is
one of many number patterns with natural applications (for examples, see unit 5 of
Metamorphosis by Lorraine Mottershead). Patterns help us understand our world. Every
–
fraction can be expressed in decimal form as a pattern of numbers (e.g., 1/2 = .50000,
–
—
1/3 = .3333, 1/11 = .090909). Discovering a pattern can unlock secrets that reveal the
progress of a disease or the solution to a crime.
In this lesson students tell what object comes next in a pattern. The purpose is for
students to start thinking about and looking for patterns. Footballs, basketballs and
soccer balls are used. Students might enjoy knowing that when basketball was invented, the players used soccer balls and sometimes even footballs! The first basketball was not manufactured until 1894, three years after the invention of basketball.
Introduce the Lesson
Show students the guessing machine. Tell them they will use it to play the game What
Comes Next?
Follow These Steps
1. Hold up the guessing machine and pull out just enough of the strip to show the
first sticker. (Keep the remaining length coiled up out of sight.) Ask students to
guess what will show up next. Pull out the next sticker. Ask what will be next.
Before showing the third object, ask students to explain why they think they are
correct. Continue until everyone can predict what will be next or until the strip
runs out.
2. Repeat the exercise with the second strip, and then with the third. Emphasize
that no two strips have the same pattern.
3. Distribute the worksheets and explain the instructions. Do the first problem
with the students.
4. Circulate. Be sure to check on those students who had the most difficulty with
the oral activity.
Extend and Vary the Lesson
• Purchase two or three different kinds of stickers. Have students think of a repeating pattern of three (for example, basketball, basketball, hoop) and stick nine stickers in a row on the 2- by 16-inch strips, showing three repeats of their pattern
(basketball, basketball, hoop, basketball, basketball, hoop, basketball, basketball,
hoop). Or take students to the computer lab and have them make repeating patterns using some of the more unusual fonts, or using the clip art that comes with
a word-processing program.
• Look at the patterns in Ed Emberley’s Picture Pie, a Circle Drawing Board (Little,
Brown). Make similar pattern pictures as a project in art class.
48
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
• Look for repeating patterns on the basketball court in your gymnasium, on sidewalks, walls and floors of the buildings in your area. Take a walking field trip to
visit these buildings.
• Introduce the students to simple number patterns (such as adding the same number to each number in a series, subtracting a number or doubling each number to
get the next one) as well as more complex patterns such as the Fibonacci sequence.
Suggested Readings
Emberly, E. 1984. Picture Pie, a Circle Drawing Board. Boston: Little, Brown.
Mottershead, L. 1977. Metamorphosis: A Source Book of Mathematical Discovery. Sidney,
Australia: John Wiley & Sons.
Stewart, M. 1988. Basketball: A History of Hoops. New York: Franklin Watts.
49
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
What Comes Next?
Name_______________________________ Date_______________
Look at the patterns. What comes next? Circle the picture that
comes next.
or
1
or
2
or
or
3
4
or
or
or
5
or
6
7
How many
or
?
How many
?
How many
?
50
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
or
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
LESSON
5
Measure Up!
Students use nonstandard units to see how a variety of players measure up.
National Standard: NM.K-4.10
Skills: Measuring with nontraditional units, estimating a portion of the unit,
comparing measures
Estimated Lesson Time: 30 minutes
Teacher Preparation
• Duplicate the Measure Up! worksheet on page 53 for each student.
• Collect the materials listed.
• With masking tape mark off the following seven lengths in different parts of the
room: 3 feet, 1 inch (Basketball Player 1, a kindergarten player on a school team); 5
feet (Basketball Player 2, a sixth-grade player on a park district team); 5 feet, 5
inches (Basketball Player 3 on a women’s college team); 5 feet, 7 inches (Basketball
Player 4, a player on a college men’s team); 5 feet, 11 inches (Basketball Player 5, a
player on a college men’s team); 6 feet, 6 inches (Basketball Player 6, a player on a
women’s college team); 7 feet, 2 inches (Basketball Player 7, a player on a college
men’s team). To prevent easy comparisons, avoid making the tapes parallel.
• Label the lengths of masking tape A, B, C, D, E, F and G for discussion purposes.
Materials
• 1 copy of the Measure Up! worksheet on page 53 for each student
• 12 never-sharpened pencils for each group (borrow from office; they can be returned later)
• 1 sharpened pencil for each student
Background Information
Basketball is a versatile game for players of many different ages and sizes, with leagues
for kindergartners, adults and everyone in between. Many recreation centers offer
mixed-gender teams.
These exercises emphasize that the measuring unit should possess the characteristic being measured: Height is measured with something long and thin.
Introduce the Lesson
Point to the tapes on the floor and tell the students that each tape represents the
height of a basketball player. Tell them one player is on a kindergarten team, one is on
51
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
a sixth-grade team, three are male college players and two are female college players.
Tell them to guess which is which, and also to guess which lines are the longest by
just looking. Record their answers on the chalkboard and discuss their answers.
Follow These Steps
1. Distribute the Measure Up! worksheets.
2. Tell the students that one way we could measure the tapes is to walk along them
in heel-to-toe fashion. What would be a problem with doing this? (Different people
have different-size feet, so the only way to get meaningful measurements is for the
same person to walk on every tape. That would take a long time, and one person
would have to do all the work.)
3. Suggest that we all use the same object to measure. Say that when we measure
height, the measuring instrument should have height, too. Inform the students
that they will use pencils because they are not too long (like baseball bats) or
too short (like Lego pieces). Demonstrate the correct way to measure by measuring one of the tapes. Make a long line of pencils and explain how to estimate
to the nearest half pencil.
4. Divide students into six groups, and assign tasks (measuring, counting, recording). Assign each group two of the remaining six players to measure. Tell groups
to compare answers. If there are disagreements, work with students to check
the measurements.
5. The groups report back, and each group reads its measures. Compare how well
the different groups guessed. Read the names or descriptions of the players.
Sum up the lesson.
Extend and Vary the Lesson
• Using masking tape, make two large rectangles (34 by 55 inches, and 68 by 27.5
inches) on the floor. Ask students to tell you which is the bigger rectangle. Remind
them that one is clearly longer, but bigger means “covers more surface.” Cover
the rectangles with 8.5- by 11-inch sheets of notebook paper. Have available some
of the sheets cut in half (8.5 by 5.5 inches) to cover the longer rectangle. Record
the areas of the rectangles. (They are equal.)
• Choose or make boxes whose dimensions are whole numbers. Have students guess
which box will hold the most. Fill with 1-inch blocks.
• Choose several different containers such as drinking glasses and fill them with
water or sand to determine which ones hold the most. Have students guess which
will hold the most. Use quarter-cup measures or just pour from one container to
another.
52
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
53
Male
college
player
Male
college
player
Female
college
player
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten 6th grade
Female
college
player
The lines of tape on the floor are these basketball players’ heights.
Measure each line of tape and figure out how many units
tall each player is.
Name_______________________________ Date_______________
Measure Up!
Male
college
player
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
LESSON
6
A Basketball Is a Sphere!
Students roll through the definitions of sphere and cylinder and learn the differences
and similarities between the two.
National Standards: NM.K-4.13, NM.K-4.9
Skills: Recognizing a sphere, recognizing a cylinder, comparing spheres and
cylinders
Estimated Lesson Time: 20 minutes
Teacher Preparation
• Duplicate the A Basketball Is a Sphere! worksheet on pages 57-58 for each student.
• Collect the materials listed.
Materials
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
1 copy of the A Basketball Is a Sphere! worksheet on pages 57-58 for each student
1 pencil or crayon for each student
1 basketball
1 football
1 soccer ball
1 solid rubber ball
1 can of soup
1 wooden cylinder
1 wooden cone (from a set of toy wooden blocks, or get a Styrofoam model from a
craft or sewing shop)
• 1 rounded (not hexagonal) pencil
Background Information
According to Barron’s Mathematics Study Dictionary by Frank Tapson, the word sphere
has two definitions in mathematics. A sphere can be the set of all points in space the
exact same distance from a prechosen point called the center. This is the formal definition, and a basketball makes a good model because it is hollow. In the second definition, a sphere includes all the points on the surface as well as those inside. An ordinary solid rubber ball is a good model for this definition. No matter which definition
you favor, the sphere looks like a ball. It is round from every viewing point.
When we talk about cylinders, we usually mean right circular cylinders. These are
formed from two identical parallel circles that join corresponding points with straight
lines that make right angles with corresponding diameters. Rather than explaining, it
54
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
is probably better just to show young children examples of cylinders. Use soup cans,
wooden cylindrical blocks or unsharpened rounded pencils. As with the sphere, there
are two definitions of the cylinder—hollow and solid.
Introduce the Lesson
Bounce the basketball a few times to get everyone’s attention. Say that today’s lesson
is about some mathematical words, and the basketball is an excellent example of one
of the words.
Follow These Steps
1. Display the four balls. Say, “Three of these objects are alike and one is different.
Which one is different?” (The students should say the football. If they do not, acknowledge other correct answers and steer the conversation toward the football.)
Hold up the basketball and say that the basketball is an example of a sphere.
2. Write the word sphere on the chalkboard. Have the students say the word and
write it.
3. Tell the students that the basketball and the soccer ball are both good models of
a sphere because they are hollow. Mathematicians usually mean a smooth, hollow, perfectly round surface when they use the word sphere. But sometimes we
also mean all the points inside. The solid rubber ball is a good model for this
idea. Look around the room and find other spheres. Ask students whether an
apple is a good model for a sphere. (No, there are dents at each end.) The globe is
a very good model.
4. Next, investigate cylinders. Use a basketball, a can of soup and a cylindrical
wooden block. Talk about what makes a shape a cylinder and how cylinders are
different from spheres. Show how a sphere looks the same no matter how you
turn it, but a cylinder looks like a rectangle if you hold it one way and a circle if
you hold it another way.
5. Pass out the A Basketball Is a Sphere! worksheets. Go over the directions. Help
those who need it.
Extend and Vary the Lesson
• Turn off the lights. Shine a flashlight directly at the center of a sphere so it casts a
shadow on the wall. Be careful; a slanted light will produce a distortion. Hold the
light parallel to the floor. Show that no matter how you turn the sphere, its shadow
is round. Repeat with the cylinder. Turn the cylinder so the shadow is round, and
then turn it so the shadow is a rectangle.
• Investigate the rolling properties of spheres, cylinders and cones. Discuss how we
put each to work. Wheels tend to be cylinders (they roll in only one direction),
and ball bearings are spheres (they roll in any direction.) Talk about how cones
are used on highways to warn drivers when work is in progress because cones are
stable and do not roll far when hit.
• Review the definition of a sphere, and make one using a ball of clay and toothpicks. Put the toothpicks in the ball of clay so one end hits the center. The tips of
the toothpicks will start to make the sphere.
55
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
Suggested Readings
Tapson, F. 1996. Barron’s Mathematics Study Dictionary. Hauppauge, NY: Barron’s Educational Series.
56
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
A Basketball Is a Sphere!
Name_______________________________ Date_______________
Draw a
circle around each sphere.
Draw a
square around each cylinder.
57
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Copy the words sphere and cylinder in the spaces provided.
58
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
LESSON
7
Score! 2
Students receive an assist in figuring the home team’s score when they use clues about
the digits in the score.
National Standards: NM.K-4.7, NM.K-4.8
Skills: Recognize and use odd and even numbers, add whole numbers
Estimated Lesson Time: 30 minutes
Teacher Preparation
• Duplicate the Score! 2 worksheet on page 66 for each student.
• Collect the materials listed.
• (Optional) In the newspaper, find some recent NCAA® college basketball scores
for local home and visiting teams.
Materials
• 1 copy of the Score! 2 worksheet on page 66 for each student
• 1 pencil for each student
Background Information
In this lesson students will examine the scores of NCAA college basketball games and
decide if the scores are odd or even. According to Barron’s Mathematical Study Dictionary, even numbers are whole numbers which, when divided by two, have no remainder. Whole numbers are the set of numbers (0, 1, 2, 3 and so on). Some examples of
even numbers include 0, 8 and 356. Even numbers end in 0, 2, 4, 6 or 8. Odd numbers
are numbers that when divided by two, have a remainder of one. Some examples are
1, 25 and 107. Odd numbers end in 1, 3, 5, 7 or 9.
The students will solve problems involving basketball scores using clues such as
whether the digits are odd or even. Students who are ardent fans may be able to recite
scores for their favorite teams. Here are a few notable historic basketball scores that
might interest some of them:
Score
Game
1–0
Said to be the score of the first basketball game played in 1891. (Why the low
score? Remember, the players used a soccer ball and peach baskets, and no
one had ever played before.)
46–33
Score of the first NCAA men’s basketball championship game, in which the
University of Oregon defeated Ohio State University (1939).
(continued)
59
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
Score
Game
76–62
Score of the first NCAA women’s champioship basketball game, in which Louisiana Tech
University defeated Cheyney University of Pennsylvania (1982).
135
Number of points scored by high school student Danny Heater in one game—the most
points ever scored in a high school basketball game (1960).
101
Number of points scored by Lisa Leslie in the first half of a game for Morningside High
School—the most points ever scored in one half of a high school basketball game (1990).
186
Points scored by Loyola Marymount University in a record-breaking college game—the
most points ever scored in a game by a college team (1991).
Introduce the Lesson
Briefly talk to the students about basketball. Find out who has ever been to a game,
who plays, who watches on TV and who has a brother or sister who plays on a team.
Steer the conversation to scores and find out if the students can remember the scores
from games. Write the scores on the chalkboard and tell the students that today’s
lesson is about basketball scores.
Follow These Steps
1. After you list several scores on the chalkboard, separate the scores into two
groups—two-digit scores and three-digit scores. Identify the place values. Tell
students that the answers to today’s problems will all be two-digit scores.
2. Discuss how to tell if a number is odd or even. Look at the list again and identify
the scores as odd or even. List the digits 0 to 9 and identify those that are odd
and those that are even.
3. Solve these two problems with the students: “The score is between 50 and 60. It
is even, and the sum of the digits is 9.” (54.) “The score is between 80 and 90. It
is odd, and the sum of the digits is less than 12.” (81, 83.)
4. Distribute the worksheets. Circulate and answer questions.
Extend and Vary the Lesson
• Tell students to write down two even numbers, add them, and then tell whether
the answer is an odd or even number. Repeat with three even numbers. Repeat
with four even numbers. Make up a rule about adding even numbers. (The sum of
even numbers is always even.) Repeat the process using odd numbers. Make a
rule. (The sum of an odd number of odd numbers is odd. The sum of an even number
of odd numbers is even.)
• Every day, as part of the calendar ritual, identify the date as an odd or even number. Identify each digit in the date as odd or even.
• Use small plastic counters or blocks to lay the groundwork for future study of the
definitions of odd and even numbers. Put a number of counters in a plastic bag
and ask the students to decide if there is an odd or even number of objects by
60
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Kindergarten–Second Grade Math
dividing the counters into two equal groups. The number is even if it can be divided into exactly two groups with no counters left over. It is odd if one counter is
left over.
Suggested Readings
National Collegiate Athletic Association. 2000. Middle School Madness. Indianapolis,
IN: NCAA.
Stewart, M. 1988. Basketball: A History of Hoops. New York: Franklin Watts.
Tapson, F. 1996. Barron’s Mathematics Study Dictionary. Hauppauge, NY: Barron’s Educational Series.
61
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Score! 2
Name_______________________________ Date_______________
The visitors have 57 points. Find the home team’s two-digit score if:
1. The home team’s score is 10 points higher than the visitor’s score.
2. The home team’s score is 5 points lower than the visitor’s score.
3. The score is less than 60. It is an even number. The home team
won.
4. The score is between 60 and 70. It is an odd number. The sum
of the digits is 13.
5. Both digits are the same. The sum is 10.
6. The sum of the home team’s and the visitor’s scores is 101.
7. Both digits are even numbers. The tens digit is larger than the
ones digit. The home team is winning. Find seven possible
answers.
8. The tens digit is an odd number. The ones digit is
even. The sum of the digits is 11. Find all possible
answers.
62
From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.