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Name: Brooke Matilda Parsons

Student ID 1 0 0 0 6 0 9 6 4

Email: parbm004

Course code and title: EDUC 3051 Mathematics Curriculum for Early years and Primary Years 2

School: Education Program Code: MBED

Course Coordinator: Anna Rogers Tutor:

Day, Time, Location of Tutorial/Practical: Workshop: Tues 11am, Maureen Hegarty. Seminar: Wednesday 4pm, Julie Grant

Assignment number: 1 Due date: 14/4/09

Assignment topic as stated in Course Information Booklet: Planning for two weeks of teaching maths

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Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years -1–
100060964 Assignment 1
This unit of work has been designed to teach to a year five and six class. The students in the
class have a variety of Maths abilities and differing levels of knowledge about chance and data.
The year six students completed a chance and data unit when they were in year five, however it
was not as extensive as this unit because they were in a year four and five class. Children at this
school live in a middle to upper class area and therefore most of them fall into that socio-
economic status. Only three students in the class have a non-English speaking background.
One of these students receives extra School Services Officer (SSO) time because they still have
some difficulties with the English language, to date their Maths skills have not been greatly
affected by this and therefore no differing tasks have been required for this student during
Maths.

Please note that for the purposes of this assignment and to represent where the tasks fit into the
Maths/Science learning cycle (Rogers, 2002) some tasks appear to be broken up, however in
the classroom I would expect to complete the lesson/s through the learning cycle before moving
onto a new concept. For example, I would expect to complete the Heads or Tails game, tabling,
graphing and discussing results and subsequently, I would not move onto playing and collecting
data for the dice rolling game before graphing and discussing the results of the Heads or Tails
game.

It is necessary to acknowledge that the lessons detailed in this unit plan have been adapted
from a variety of resources including texts, books and websites.

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years -2–
100060964 Assignment 1
 Unit Plan…Chance, Data & Probability
Learning Area: Year Level:
Maths 5/6 (Primary & Middle Years)
Strands: Proposed Duration:
Exploring, analysing & modelling data 600 minutes (15 x 40 min lessons)
Key Ideas:
Year 5 - Students refine their understanding of chance and randomness by using data from their daily
activities to describe possible outcomes and their likelihood. They analyse trends and relationships and make
predictions about possibilities in the future.
Year 6 - Students engage with data to understand, analyse and apply notions of chance and probability in the
social and natural worlds.
Additional Key Ideas:
Year 5 - Students generate and analyse data from a diverse range of sources (including online) and
perspectives to investigate situations drawn from their personal lives and the world around them. They use
this data to explore patterns and relationships, and to inform their choices and actions.
Year 6 - Students engage with data by formulating and answering questions, and collecting, organising and
representing data in order to investigate and understand the world around them.
Standard Outcomes:
3.3 - Analyses data to search for patterns in events where the range of outcomes is generated by situations
where chance plays a role.
3.1 - Poses questions, determines a sample, collects and records data including related data, represents
sample data in order to investigate the world around them.
Essential Learnings: Key Competencies:
 Identity – a sense of personal and group identity  KC1 – using information
 Thinking – a sense of creativity, wisdom and enterprise  KC2 – communicating ideas
 Interdependence – a sense of being connected with others and  KC3 – planning & organising
their world  KC4 – working in teams
 Futures – a sense of optimism about their ability to shape their  KC5 – using maths
futures  KC6 – solving problems
 Communication – a sense of the power and potential of literacy,  KC7 - using technology
numeracy and ICT

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years -3–
100060964 Assignment 1
Tasks for Enquiry: Key Questions:
Finding out about the Learner
Lesson 1
(Adapted from Bobis, Mulligan & Lowrie 2009)
Brainstorm words that could be used to describe What words are used to describe when there is a
chance (examples: likely, unlikely, certain, possible, chance of something happening?
impossible, probable, maybe)

Have students working in pairs; ask them to choose

four words that are brainstormed and plot them on a
“chance” line (with certain at one end and never at
the other). Discuss entering fractions and whole
numbers on the line

Determine students prior knowledge of the Maths What do you know about probability?
term probability Can you give me an example?
Do you know how to represent it?
Lesson 2
(Adapted from Bobis, Mulligan & Lowrie 2009)
Play Heads or Tails as a class. If I flip a coin what are the possible outcomes?
Students put hands on head if think a head will be
face up after the coin is tossed. Students will put
hands on bottom if think a tail will be face up after the
coin is tossed
Discuss why students chose to put their hands on Why did you put your hands on your head/bottom?
their heads/bottoms. Did anyone keep their hands on their head/bottom for
Explain that the possible outcomes (head or tail) are every toss? Why?
called the sample space Does anyone know what the probability is of getting a
Introduce students to the term random, where all head or a tail?
possible outcomes have an equal chance of
occurring
Lesson continued in ‘Explore’ phase

Lesson 10 & 11
(Adapted from Same or Different, Maths 300 2001) What is the sample space of this game?
Have a pair of students assist you demonstrate this Does the player who needs to choose the same
game. colour blocks have a fair chance of winning?

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years -4–
100060964 Assignment 1
Have 2 red blocks and 1 yellow block in a bag.
Students chose one block at a time. Student who
chooses two blocks the same colour wins a point and
students who chooses two blocks that are different
colours wins a point
Lesson continued in ‘Explore’ phase
Explore
Lesson 2 cont’d
Have students collect data of when they
see/hear/read of information relating to
chance/likelihood
Share their findings and discuss as a class
Lesson 3 & 4
Students play Heads or Tails as a class again.
Record how many times a head is face up and how
many times a tail is face up. Ensure you flip the coin
a large number of times
Lesson continued in ‘Getting the Idea’ phase
Lesson 5 & 6
(Adapted from Fenichel 2001; Bobis, Mulligan &
Lowrie 2009)
Introduce students to chance and probability with
dice. Ask the students the probability of rolling a 5
and the probability of rolling an even number.
Discuss as a class.
Have the students work in pairs to roll and record
when they roll a 5 and when they roll an even
number. Ensure they keep track of how many rolls
Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years
100060964
Why? Why not?
Are the outcomes for this random?
What do you think it means when;
-the weather forecaster says there is a 50%
chance it will rain tomorrow?
-the newspaper says it’s very likely that the Crows
will beat Port Adelaide?
-mum says it’s highly unlikely that you will be allowed
to go to Sarah’s for a play?
-on your “chance” line, where would that word go?
Use other examples relevant to what the students
found?
Why did you put your hands on your head/bottom?
Did anyone keep their hands on their head/bottom for
every toss? Why?
Does anyone know what the probability is of getting a
head or a tail?
What is the probability of rolling a 5?
What is the probability of rolling an even number?
Why is that?
Why isn’t it the same as rolling a 5?
Are the outcomes of rolling a dice random?
-5–
Assignment 1
they make. Ask the pairs to roll the dice 15 times
only.
Lesson continued in ‘Getting the Idea’ phase

Lesson 7
(Adapted from Bobis, Mulligan & Lowrie 2009; Reys
et al. 2007)
Introduce two 6-sided dice What number do you think will come up most often
Discuss students thoughts on which number will when the two numbers are added together? Why?
come up most often if the numbers on the dice are What number do you think will come up least often?
added together Why?
Have students work in pairs and roll their two dice 15
times.
Ask the students to record their results
Lesson continued in ‘Getting the Idea’ phase

Lesson 10 & 11 cont’d

Have the students work in pairs to play and record What is the chance of pulling out the same coloured
their findings of Same or Different blocks?
Lesson continued in ‘Getting the idea’ phase What is the chance of pulling out different coloured
blocks?

Lesson 12 & 13
(Adapted from Cheng n.d.)
Students work in pairs with a pack of cards.
Have the students flip a card from the top of the
pack, starting a new pile.
For the purposes of this game have the students
predict they will turn over a king and have them
record their chance of doing so, along with the
outcome
Demonstrate to the whole class and then work in
pairs.
(Students may want to record the cards they have
flipped over or look back on those cards in the pile)
Lesson continued in ‘Getting the Idea’ phase
What is the chance that you flip over a king?
Why is it 1 in 13, when there are 52 cards?
Now that you have flipped this card what is the
chance now that you will flip over a king? Is it 1 in
12? Why? Why not? Would it be 4 in 51?
Why does keeping that card out of the pack make a
difference to the chance of flipping another card?
Do you think the outcomes of flipping cards are
random? Why? Why not?

Getting the Idea

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years -6–
100060964 Assignment 1
Lesson 3 & 4 cont’d
Use the data collected from playing Heads or Tails,
table and graph the classes results.
Firstly table the first 10 flips.
Discuss how many of these 10 flips were heads and
how many were tails?
Table all of the flips
Discuss how many of the flips were heads and how
many were tails?
Explain the law of large numbers
Lesson 5 & 6 cont’d
Use the data collected from rolling the dice, table and
graph the results of each pair.
Discuss how many times each pair rolled a 5 and
how many times each pair rolled an even number.
Collate all of the pairs data and table and graph the
results of the class.
Discuss how many times the class rolled a 5 and
how many times they rolled an even number.
Introduce the students to the term independent event
Lesson 7 cont’d
Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years
100060964
How many of these were heads?
How many were tails?
If the chance of flipping a head/tail is 50% why don’t
our results show this?
Do the results represent that there is a 50% chance
of flipping a head or a tail when we look at all of the
flips?
If I flipped a coin and a tail was face up, when I
flipped the coin a second time will I flip a tail or a
head?
Why? Why not?
Why would the chance still be 50%?
Why wouldn’t the chance be 50%?
What is the probability of rolling any number on the
dice?
What about an odd number?
Why do you think that the results of the whole class
closely represent that there is a 1 in 6 chance of
rolling a 5? Or a 1 in 2 (or 50%) chance of rolling an
even number?
If the chance of rolling a 5 is 1 in 6. If I rolled the dice
and rolled a 5, what would be the chance that if I
rolled the dice again that it would be a 5?
Why? Why not?
Why would the chance still be 1 in 6?
Why wouldn’t the chance be 1 in 6?
-7–
Assignment 1
Using the data collected from rolling the two dice,
table and graph the results of each pair
Discuss which number came up the most
Before tabling the classes results ask the students to
write down all of the possible sums and what
numbers on the dice could make that sum
Have the students predict what total number was
rolled the most by the class
Table and graph the classes results
Discuss how many times 7 was the total of the dice
rolled
Discuss how many times 2 & 12 were rolled
Lesson continued in ‘Practicing the Idea’ phase
Lesson 10 & 11 cont’d
Use the data collected from the students working in
pairs and discuss each pairs results.
Collate the class’s data and discuss.
Introduce students to the term conditional probability
Add a second yellow block into the bag and have the
students play again.
Ensure they record how many times the same or
different blocks were pulled from the bag.
Discuss some of the pairs results.
Collate the class’s results and discuss.
Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years
100060964
What number came up the most in your pair? Why do
you think that is?
What number came up the least? Why?
How many sums make …?
Do you think that there is an equal chance of rolling
one number against another number? Why? Why
not?
What number came up the most in the classes
results? Why do you think that is?
What number/s came up the least? Why?
How many times did the person who had to pull out
the same blocks win?
What about the person who had to pull out different
blocks?
How does pulling out a red block effect the chance of
who wins?
How does pulling out a yellow block effect the chance
of who wins?
Why do the class’s results show such a difference
between the same and different? Does anyone
remember what that is called? (Law of large
numbers)
Do you think the person that has to pull out the same
coloured blocks might win more times now?
Why? Why not?
Will there be a random outcome now that there are
the same number of each coloured block? Why?
Why not?
If I pulled a red block out, what is left in the bag?
What coloured block is my opponent more likely to
draw from the bag? Why?
If that happens, what is the chance that I will pull out
-8–
Assignment 1
 a yellow or red block? What percentage is that?

Lesson 12 & 13 cont’d

Use the data collected from the students flipping their
cards and share with the class
Lesson continued in ‘Practicing the Idea’ phase
What was your chance of flipping over a king once
you had flipped over two kings? One king? Three
kings? Four kings?
Why was your chance of flipping over a king different
to Robbie’s?
If you had flipped over three kings in 29 cards, what
would your chance be of flipping over a king?

Practicing the Idea

Lesson 7 cont’d
(Swan 1997)
Play The Great Car Race 1 (Appendix 1) Who do you think will win?
Is this a fair race? Why? Why not?

Lesson 8 & 9
(Original lesson idea)
Have students work in pairs or small groups to play a
variety of games that have independent events
Examples:
Twister
Snakes & Ladders (with a 10-sided dice or two 6-
sided dice)
Trouble
Beetle (Maths 300 2002)
Cut & Predict (Swan 1998; Cheng n.d.)
Using the game of choice have the students record What is the chance of spinning a blue left foot?
what their chance of flipping/rolling/spinning is? What about a different combination?
Allow students to record a variety of different What is the chance of rolling a 3 on the dice? What is
combinations the chance of rolling a double number? What is the
chance of flipping over a king?
Have the students play the game, recording the What is the chance of flipping over any card that is a
number of flips, rolls, spins and their outcomes heart?
What is the chance of ….?
Have each pair/group table and graph their results. What is your sample space?
Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years -9–
100060964 Assignment 1
Lesson cont’d in ‘Applying the Idea’ phase Is this random? Why? Why not?

Lesson 12 & 13 cont’d

Have the students play the same game but this time
allow them to choose and predict which suit they will
flip over
Ensure students record as they go
Share their outcomes with the class
Discuss
What is the chance you will flip a card of the same
suit (heart, club, spade, diamond)?
Why is it 13 in 52? Could we represent this another
way?
What is the chance you will flip a different card?
What is the chance you will flip two 3’s over in a row?
Or two cards of the same suit?

Lesson 14 & 15
(Original lesson idea)
Have the students work in pairs or small groups to
play one of these games that have conditional
probability events.
Examples:
Fish
Snap
Uno
Using the game of choice have the students record At the beginning of the game what is the chance of
what their chance of flipping number/suit/colour is? flipping over a yellow card? After 6 cards were flipped
Allow students to record a variety of different over, what was your chance then?
combinations After flipping over 20 cards, and one king, what
would your chance of flipping over a king be on the
next flip?

Have the students play the game, recording their

prediction, the number of flips and their outcomes

Have each pair/group record their results in a

manner so others can read the outcome/s.
Lesson cont’d in ‘Applying the Idea’ phase

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 10 –

100060964 Assignment 1
Applying the Idea
Lesson 8 & 9 cont’d
Share outcomes of playing games with class. What was the chance/probability of
Describe why and how that happens rolling/flipping/spinning a …?
What is the sample space of your game?
If you had three dice/ two ten sided dice, what would
the probability be then?

Lesson 14 & 15 cont’d

Share outcomes of playing games with class. Did your game rely on independent events or
Describe why and how that happens conditional probability?
If you had two packs of cards, what would the
probability be then?
Was the chance of flipping a particular card over
random? Why? Why not?
Maths Language: (Bobis, Mulligan & Lowrie 2009; Reys et al. 2007)
Likely Unlikely Sample space
Possibly Certainly Random
Probably Impossibly Law of large numbers
Probability Chance Independent event
Maybe Conditional probability
Learning Outcomes:
Students are able to determine the chance of something happening when it is an independent event
Students are able to determine the chance of something happening when conditional probability plays a role
Students can describe when something is more likely/probable to occur and when it isn’t
Students are able to represent the chance or probability of something happening using fractions, decimals
and percentages
Students use Maths language
Students are able to explain to others why something does or doesn’t occur

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 11 –

100060964 Assignment 1
Equipment/Resources:
Packs of cards
Dice – 6 sided and 10 sided
Coins
Twister
Trouble
Snakes & Ladders
Uno
Formative Assessment Summative Assessment
Spinning the Wheel worksheet (Appendix 2) Pair/group presentation about games played for both
independent events and events where conditional
Probability Problem Solving worksheet (Appendix probability plays a role.
3) Independent Events assessment rubric (Appendix 5)

Class Observation checklist Conditional Probability Events assessment rubric

(Appendix 4) (Appendix 6)

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 12 –

100060964 Assignment 1
The students will be assessed throughout the unit of work as well as at the end of the unit of
work. A number of formative assessments should occur throughout the unit of work, these can
be found in appendices one, two and three. Two of these assessments are worksheets the
students can complete either individually or with another student. The intention of these
assessments is to share the student’s answers with the class. Appendix two would be used early
in the unit, whereas appendix three would be used later in the unit after the concept of
conditional probability is introduced to the students. Appendix four is a checklist to be used by
the teacher, the teacher can begin to use this checklist from the beginning of the unit of work. All
students should be able to complete the tasks listed on this checklist by the end of the unit of
work.

The final summative assessment tasks that the students need to complete are for their
independent events games and their games where conditional probability plays a role, the
rubrics for these assessments can be found in appendices five and six. The teacher must
complete these rubrics and assess whether the students demonstrated the skills in an excellent
manner, good, satisfactory or poor manner.

The appendices do not include a large number of worksheets because I would expect the
students to find their own ways of recording, tabling and graphing their results, and hence I
would not provide them with templates to do so.

There are no cross curricula links within this unit of work, however use of books that discuss the
chance or probability of something occurring (not within a Maths context) could be used
throughout the unit.

Learning about chance and probability in the classroom assists students to understand why
certain events occur. Chance and probability play a role in a number of everyday games as well
as games at side shows and the like, providing students with the opportunity to play these
games allows them to see for themselves just how the outcome can be, or is affected.

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 13 –

100060964 Assignment 1
References
Beetle Game Plan 2002, Maths 300, viewed 5 April 2009,
<http://www1.curriculum.edu.au/maths300/m300bits/121pbeet.htm>.

Bobis, J, Mulligan, J & Lowrie, T 2009, Mathematics for children: Challenging children to think
mathematically, 3rd edn, Pearson Education Australia, Frenchs Forest, NSW.

Cheng, C n.d., Curriculum design for mathematics lesson – probability, TeAch-nology.com,

viewed 29 March 2009, <http://search.teach-nology.com/units/probability.pdf>.

Fenichel, M 2001, Understanding probability, Discovery Education, viewed 29 March 2009,

<http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/programs/probability/>.

Reys, RE, Lindquist, MM, Lambdin, DV & Smith, NL 2007, Helping children learn mathematics,
8th edn, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., NJ.

Rogers, A 2002, Suggested mathematics learning sequence/cycle, University of South Australia,

viewed on 12 March 2009,
<http://www.unisanet.unisa.edu.au/learn/EDS/?PATH=/Resources/100679/Online+study+resour
ces/&default=Noticeboard.htm>.

Same or Different Plan 2001, Maths 300, viewed 5 April 2009,

<http://www1.curriculum.edu.au/maths300/m300bits/153psame.htm>.

Swan, P 1997, Dice dilemmas: Activities to promote mental computation and develop thinking
about chance processes, A-Z type, Woodvale, WA.

Swan, P 1998, Card capers: Developing mathematics from playing cards, A-Z type, Woodvale,
WA.

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 14 –

100060964 Assignment 1
Appendix 1

Reproduced from Swan 1997, p. 37

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 15 –

100060964 Assignment 1
Appendix 2

Reproduced from Fenichel 2001, p. 8

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 16 –

100060964 Assignment 1
Appendix 3

Probability Problem Solving

Complete this worksheet alone or with a partner, but be sure to complete your own sheet. Each
answer must be written as a fraction, decimal and a percentage.

1. Your sock drawer is a mess. There are 12 black socks and 6 red socks mixed together. What
are the chances that, without looking, you choose a red sock from your drawer?

What are the chances you choose a black sock?

If you have chosen a black sock out of your drawer and kept it out, what are the chances that
you will not wear an odd pair of socks today to school?

2. You are rolling a 6 sided dice, what are the chances of rolling a 6?

3. You are rolling the same dice, what are the chances of rolling an even number?

4. If you roll two dice, what is the chance of rolling a double number?

5. You randomly choose a card from a deck of cards, what is the chance you will select a jack?

6. Using the same deck of cards, if you have already selected a jack of clubs and kept that card
in your hand, what are the chances that you select another jack?

Or another card that is a club?

7. You are visiting a kennel that has three German Shepherds, four Labradors, six Chihuahuas,
five poodles and four Western Highland terriers. When you arrive the dogs are taking a walk,
what is the probability of seeing a German Shepherd first?

What about a Western Highland terrier?

8. Two out of three students in Miss Parsons class prefer to bring their lunch, rather than buying
it. If twenty students prefer bringing their lunch, how many students are in Miss Parsons class?

Adapted from Fenichel 2001, p.7

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 17 –

100060964 Assignment 1
Appendix 4

Class Observation
Chance, Data & Probability

Brooke
Robert

…
Belinda

Leanne
Claudia

Peter

..

..

..

..

..
Emma
Is able to describe likelihood of
something occurring
Can describe the chance of
flipping a head or tail
Can describe the chance of
rolling a number on the dice
Can describe the chance of
flipping a card in a pack of
cards
Can describe an independent
event
Can record, table and graph
data for independent events
Is able to make predictions
about why something may/
may not occur?
Can record and make sense of
data for conditional probability
events
Can describe a conditional
probability event
Is able to represent the chance
of something happening in
fractions, decimals and
percentages

© Parsons 2009

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 18 –

100060964 Assignment 1
Appendix 5

Independent Events Assessment

Excellent Good Satisfactory Poor

Recorded, tabled and graphed
findings are easy to read and
interpret
Can describe the outcome of their
game
Can describe using Maths language
why certain things occurred
Can explain to the class so the
class understands
Uses examples to ensure the class
understands
Can answer questions from the
class about why things occurred?

© Parsons 2009

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 19 –

100060964 Assignment 1
Appendix 6

Conditional Probability Events Assessment

Excellent Good Satisfactory Poor

Recorded findings are easy to read
and interpret
Can describe the outcome of their
game
Can describe using Maths language
why certain things occurred
Can explain to the class so the
class understands
Uses examples to ensure the class
understands
Can answer questions from the
class about why things occurred?

© Parsons 2009

Brooke Parsons Mathematics Curriculum for Early & Primary Years - 20 –

100060964 Assignment 1