Number Picnic

This activity, from the Association of Teachers of Mathematics (ATM) publication ‘Little People Big Maths', is designed to reinforce ideas about the properties of number and the use of knowledge and reasoning to work out the rules. Students are each given a card on which is written a number. Students hold up their card if it fits the criteria called out by the teacher e.g. an even number. There are a number of suggested criteria in the resource testing students' understanding of different properties of number. The next stage of the game involves the teacher deciding the criteria but keeping it secret. The teacher invites students whose card matches the criteria to sit on the picnic rug. By comparing the numbers on the cards of those invited to the picnic students have to decide what the rule may be. The resource provides supplementary questions that may be asked and suggests variations to the game such as using 2D or 3D shapes.