P Y4 The Great Coin Toss Challenge new

Ākonga will explore the relationship between theoretical modelling and experimental outcomes within the context of a coin toss challenge. This two part lesson is for Year 4 ākonga.  

This activity explores the following key ideas:

• Engage in chance-based investigations with equally likely outcomes by:
  – posing an investigative question
  – anticipate and then identify possible outcomes for the investigative question
  – generating all possible ways to get each outcome (a theoretical approach), or undertaking a probability experiment and recording the occurrences of each outcome
  – creating data visualisations for possible outcomes
  – describe what these data visualisations show
  – finding probabilities as fractions
  – answering the investigative question
  – reflecting on anticipated outcomes 
• Agree or disagree with others’ conclusions about chance based investigations

Resources

• Y4 teaching notes
• Year 4 Probability Glossary
• Coins, enough for three coins for each group
• Large paper or whiteboard
• Whiteboard markers, pens
• Post it notes
• The Great Coin Toss Challenge  MM1 – for listing outcomes for various numbers of coins
• The Great Coin Toss Challenge MM2 – table to record outcomes from a probability experiment for tossing two coins
• The Great Coin Toss Challenge MM3 – bar graph blank to record results of the probability experiment
• Optional – Digital modelling tool with a bar graph generator such as Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel.