Practice Set · Part 1
Math is Playful
Pick up where we left off
Where we left off
Our goal: With my small group, I can use patterns and relationships to make sense of the Tower of Hanoi puzzle and think logically about its solutions — one step at a time, with support.
The big idea: We play with math by using our imagination and by looking for patterns or relationships that help us think logically — a pattern can tell us the answer to a puzzle we have not even played yet.
Model to copy — Watch me imagine the solution first
- Before moving anything, I describe what the solved puzzle will look like: the discs in the same order — smallest on top to largest on bottom — but on a different rod.
- Then I play the small cases: a one-disc tower takes 1 move, and a two-disc tower takes 3 moves.
- A three-disc tower takes at least 7 moves. Small cases are how mathematicians play.
Start here
You did these with your group. Now do them on your own — the model above is yours to copy.
- 1
Same stepsFinish what the group started. Use the model above, step for step.
Let's organize the moves in a table: Discs: 1, 2, 3 — Steps: 1, 3, 7. What is happening from each row to the next? Double the number of steps and add 1: 1 doubled plus 1 is 3, and 3 doubled plus 1 is 7. So 4 discs take 7 × 2 + 1 = 15 steps, and 5 discs take 15 × 2 + 1 = 31 steps. The pattern just solved a puzzle we never touched.My first step is ___ , because the problem asks for ___ .
Show your work - 2
Warm restartHow many lines of symmetry does a square have?
- A4
- B2
- C1
- D8
- 3
Warm restartA shape has bilateral symmetry. This means…
- Aone line splits it into two mirror halves
- Bit has four equal sides
- Cit can be turned in a circle
- Dit has no straight edges
- 4
Warm restartWhich capital letter has a vertical line of symmetry?
- AA
- BR
- CP
- DF
Practice Set · Part 2
Math is Playful
Keep going
You answered these out loud. Now write them.
Answer, then say how you know — the reason is the part that counts.
- 5
Think it throughThe table shows: 1 disc = 1 step, 2 discs = 3 steps, 3 discs = 7 steps. What is the pattern rule from one row to the next?
- AAdd 2 to the previous number of steps
- BDouble the previous number of steps and add 1
- CMultiply the previous number of steps by 3
- DAdd the disc number to the previous steps
Why is that the answer?
I chose ___ because ___ .
- 6
Think it throughUsing the rule "double the steps and add 1," how many steps does a 4-disc tower take, starting from the 3-disc value of 7 steps?
- A8
- B14
- C15
- D21
How do you know?
I chose ___ because ___ .
- 7
Think it throughContinuing the pattern from 15 steps for a 4-disc tower, how many steps does a 5-disc tower take?
- A16
- B30
- C31
- D45
Explain your thinking.
I chose ___ because ___ .
- 8
Back to the modelA one-disc Tower of Hanoi takes 1 move, a two-disc tower takes 3 moves, and a three-disc tower takes 7 moves. What pattern rule takes you from one row to the next?
The pattern rule is to ___ the number of moves and then ___.
Sort it again — on paper this time
Write the letter of the group each one belongs in.
- Move the top disc of a stack to an empty rod
- Place a small disc on top of a larger disc
- Move one disc at a time
- Move the smallest disc back to the rod it came from earlier
- Place a larger disc on top of a smaller disc
- Move two discs together in one move
- Pull out a disc from the middle of a stack
- Add a fourth rod to make the puzzle easier
Practice Set · Part 3
Math is Playful
Words and reasoning
Word bank · Banco de palabras
Use the words
Fill each blank with a word from the bank.
- A problem designed to be played with — rules, a goal, room to imagine — is a ___.
- Objects or shapes repeated in a regular order form a ___.
- The rule for getting the next value from the one before is the ___ ___.
- To say what will happen before it happens, using a pattern, is to ___.
Explain the thinking
- 9
Find the mistakeAnother student made this exact mistake in this lesson. Explain why it is wrong, then write what they should have done.
The mistake: Doubling the previous number of steps but forgetting to add 1 — answering 14 instead of 15 for four discs, or 30 instead of 31 for five. - 10
Say moreWhen you sorted moves into 'legal move' and 'breaks a rule,' what made 'placing a smaller disc on top of a larger disc' legal but the reverse illegal?
Smaller on larger is legal because ___.
- 11
Change one numberGo back to Part 1 and pick one problem you already solved. Change one number in it, then solve your new version. Show every step.
If ___ changed to ___ , then ___ .
Show your work
Practice Set · Part 4
Math is Playful
Show what you know
Last check
These two come from Lesson 10.2. If they are shaky, that is the lesson to revisit — not this one.
- 12
Show what you knowQuick check — you've got this: Which statement best shows what this lesson means by 'math is playful'?
- AWe play with math by imagining possible solutions and looking for patterns that help us think logically about puzzles
- BMath is playful only when there are no rules to follow
- CPuzzles like the Tower of Hanoi can only be solved by trial and error
- DPlaying with math means guessing until something works
Explain your choice.
I know it is ___ because ___ .
- 13
From Lesson 10.2Quick check — you've got this: Which statement best shows what this lesson means by 'math is beauty'?
- AMath creates beautiful designs like bilateral symmetry, found in nature and used in human art, music, and architecture
- BOnly things made by mathematicians can be beautiful
- CButterflies are the only living things with symmetry
- DBeauty and math are opposites — one is feeling and one is numbers
- 14
From Lesson 10.2Your friend says only one of two flowers has bilateral symmetry. You test both by drawing a line through each flower's center and find both sides match on both flowers. What is most likely true?
- AThe friend is right — only one flower truly has symmetry
- BBoth flowers have bilateral symmetry, but the second flower's line of symmetry likely runs in a direction the friend didn't try
- CSymmetry cannot be tested in flowers
- DThe two flowers must be identical in shape to both be symmetric
Be honest — this tells your teacher what to do next
| I can… | Not yet | Getting there | Got it |
|---|---|---|---|
| I can use patterns and relationships to make sense of the Tower of Hanoi puzzle and think logically about its solutions — one step at a time, with support. | |||
| I can explain why it works: We play with math by using our imagination and by looking for patterns or relationships that help us think… | |||
| I can talk through each step out loud using a sentence frame and the lesson's key words. |
One question I want to ask my group next time