Problem Teachers' Notes Hint Solution

This activity is one which will particularly appeal to those pupils who enjoy problem solving or have  good spatial awareness. It may, therefore, be a useful activity for a whole class - as it will enable you to see more clearly which pupils work well on spatial challenges.  It also offers opportunities for learners to share different ways of approaching the task.

Depending on the pupils' experiences, it may be appropriate to start with them altogether with a practical simplified example. Using a large cardboard/foam cube with simple shapes on each of the six faces, like this ...

 

... they could observe what happens as it rolls and try to predict what face will be at the bottom each time.

 

You could then present the challenge itself and give children time to work independently or in pairs.  A copy of the route can be found on this sheet. Try not to direct the way they work as you may be suprised by the methods they create. 

 

The plenary can then focus on their different approaches.  Allow time for all the different ways to be explained and then encourage pairs/small groups to discuss which method they might use if they were presented with a similar problem. Can they justify their choice?

When working with the simple cube above;

What's happening here?

What can you tell me about the one at the bottom when I roll it this way?

 

When working on the actual challenge;

How are you working this out?

Will you be able to check that it's ok?

When pupils have managed this activity in a confident way they may like to have a look at Inky Cube which is similar but much harder. You could also give the pupils opportunities to create their own cubes and set challenges for each other.

Many pupils may need to have support in rolling a cube over carefully. Be aware though that some pupils who need support in the more numerical aspect of mathematics may not need any support in this spatial work.