What I liked about it was the floor-ceiling stretch the investigation of finding the numbers with the most common factors between 1-100 created. I also liked the fact that students were looking for pattern and rules to apply to any group of numbers in order to find numbers with greatest numbers of common factors. One team found an amazing set of rules that could be applied to numbers 1-200 and likely beyond.
What I found challenging were the following points:
- Students need greater practice with regard to the dispositions needed to work on an investigation with classmates.
- I need more practice with clearly communicating the challenge to all students and supporting that challenge.
I'll continue to work on this in the days ahead. It's clear that to engage in investigations is a better way to solidify knowledge, skill, and concept, and finding good investigations to match the standards is the next step. I'll use Boaler's book and website as a resource for this.
