• 7-11

Subject: Mathematics

Age of pupils: 6-7 years

Items to be sorted: Pictures of red cubes

Groups envisaged:

• Order – caos
• One row – two rowes (5 and ...) – pairs – two groups - caos
• Seven – eight – ten
• Oddnumbers – even numbers

Conclusions to be arrived at:

• It is better to count an compare quantity if things are organised rather than in caos.
• The same number can be made in many ways.
• Pictures can show if a number is odd or even.
• You can find five in the numbers: 7, 8 and 10
• You can count by two´s up to 8 and 10 and almost up to 7
• You can split the quantity of 7 up in two groups and it can also be done with 8 and 10.

Pedagogical functions defined:

• Pupils learn that you can make the same number in many ways.

My experience of this sorting task.

I have tried this sorting task with three different pairs of pupils, two groups of 7 years old and one group of 9 years old. They all have difficulties in mathematics and the pairs acted differently towards the task. One group (9 years) focused on how the cubes were organised and began to sort by that and when I had asked questions they sorted in two other ways. One group began to sort in three groups by numbers of cubes. After I had asked some questions they tried to sort by other features but it always let to the number groups. The last group had difficulties in understanding the concept „sorting“ and didn´t know what to do. I tried to explain and they sorted in order and caos after some discussion. I tried to get them to sort in other ways but they didn´t manage to do so in the time given.(Picture of the red cubes. must follow)

Is this a thinking task?

It may be a thinking task for some pupils and not for others. It depends on what the pupils do know before they work on this task.