No Waffling on the Numbers

Introduction:

If you love waffles as much as we at Bedtime Math do, then you’ll love discovering how much math a waffle has to offer. In this video we show three games that you can play on your waffles. They’ll help you build speed with your math facts as well as your spatial skills. All you need is an appetite for waffles and for numbers.

Time Required: 20-30 minutes

Subject Areas: Mathematics

Activity Type: Math Facts; Geometry

Standards: CCSS Math: Operations and Algebraic Thinking, Geometry, Measurement and Data 
 

Materials:

• 3-4 warm waffles, either square or round; non-Belgian are best so you have more, smaller squares
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• Blank paper
• Scissors
• Pen, pencil, or thin-tipped marker
• Fork
• Knife sharp enough to cut a waffle (plus help from a grown-up if appropriate)

Game Rules:

In the first game, “Turbo Chocolate Chips,” turn the waffle into an addition or times table and try to answer as many math-fact questions as you can in 60 seconds. For every addition or multiplication fact you get correct, place a chocolate chip into the matching waffle square. Just as we want to know vocabulary words so we can appreciate a good book, we want to be quick with our math facts so we can enjoy our encounters with more challenging math problems in the future!

In the second game, “Outfence the Farmer,” take an even number of chocolate chips and use them to enclose the biggest rectangular area possible, as if you were a farmer building a fence for his ranch with a limited number of fence sections. As you try different chip totals, what do you notice about the best layout for each?

And finally, in “Bites of Five,” move the chocolate chips out of the way (or simply eat them), and shift gears to pure geometry. How many different shapes can you cut from the waffle that include exactly five little squares? Watch the video for a couple of hints!

No Waffling on the Numbers – From Bedtime Math

Related Links:

• For more math fun with food, check out Bedtime Math’s Food Printable at http://bedtimemath.org/food-fun-math-printable/
   
• Want to learn more about the importance (and fun!) of learning math? Listen to these SciFri interviews: 

Standards:

Operations and Algebraic Thinking – Grades 1-3
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.1.OA.A.1, CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.2.OA.A.1, CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.3.OA.A.1, CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.1.OA.C.6

Measurement and Data – Grades 1-3
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.1.MD.A.1, CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.2.MD.A.4, CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.3.MD.C.6, CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.3.MD.C.7

Geometry – Grades 4, 8
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.4.G.A.3, CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.8.G.A.1