LESSON PLAN - Granite School District

Writing Situations for One-Variable Equations and Equations for Situations
Team Challenge Game
Objective: Students write situations and equations
Materials needed: equation written on a 3 x 5 card for each team, overhead
transparency and marker for each team
Begin by writing 2x + 3 = 17 on overhead. Tell the students the class will be writing a
story situation to fit this equation. Ask them to choose a topic or object (pizza, CD’s,
dollars, boyfriends, hours watching TV, etc.) Letting the variable represent a number
of those chosen items, discuss words that could be used to indicate the operations.
Point out that the end result is 17. Then, ask the class to help write a story such as:
Marco had several CD’s. His friend, Jaime, owned three more than twice the
number of CD’s Marco had. Jaime owned seventeen CD’s. How many CD’s did
Marco have?
Have the class member solve the equation and answer the question.
Give each team an equation on a 3 x 5 card. Have them work together to write a
situation for their equation and find the solution. When the teams have finished
writing, have their scribe copy their equation and solution on the top of a transparency
page and write the situation on the bottom half. The equations are covered up, so the
class sees only the situation, not the equation. All equations should be recorded on an
assignment paper.
Procedure:
1) When the transparencies are completed, choose a team member to come to the
overhead and put the transparency with the equation covered on the overhead for
the class.
2) The other teams get a few minutes to work to write an equation for it.
3) The person at the overhead chooses any person in the class to come write the
equation on the board, and to explain why he/she thinks that equation works.
4) The person at the overhead then uncovers the original equation and the two
equations are compared for equivalency.
5) If the person being challenged was correct, that person’s team is given
points, treat etc. If not, the challenging team earns points.
This activity gives an excellent opportunity to write and discuss the language of
mathematics, to reason, represent mathematical ideas using correct notation, connect
mathematics to a real-world situation and to problem solve. Allowing teams to work
together, then requiring individual accountability through the selection of “a” person to
respond to the class reduces risk and engages all students. Discussion about
extraneous and important information will be a natural result as well as operations and
order of operations.
Cards: ½ x + 1 = 7 9 = x/3 + 5 x/4 – 3 = 2
6 + 4x = 26 3x + 3 = 18 20 = 2x – 10
x/10 + 5 = 7 3x + 5 = 95 2x + 1 = 13