1. Day 1: Four 4’s
Video

2. Day 1: Four 4’s Good Group Work Seat students in groups of four!
*** Please be thoughtful and respectful
in the ideas you share.
Seat students in groups of four!
Reflect on things you don’t like people to say or do in a group when you are working on math together. Make a list of four things and be ready to share with the class (3 min.).
Think of the converse – what DO you like people to do and say when working in a group (3 min.).
“What we don’t like” list/poster
(each group contributes one idea)
“What we do like” list/poster
(each group contributes one idea)

3. Day 1: Four 4’s
Four 4’s
Start the activity by putting the numbers 1 to 20 on the board with plenty of space in between them:
Tell students they are going to try and find every number from 1 to 20 using only four 4’s – all four of them have to be used each time – and any operation.

4. Day 1: Four 4’s
Four 4’s
You are going to try and find every number from 1 to 20 using only four 4’s – all four of them have to be used each time – and any of the four operations, as well as square roots.
Put on the board as many solutions as you can think of for each number. Put your solution up on the board whenever you think of one.
If a student puts up an incorrect solution do not correct it, wait as students will often see it for themselves, as more solutions are shared.

5. Day 1: Four 4’s
Four 4’s
When I last taught four 4’s with 6th graders they managed to find all of the numbers except 11, 13 and 19. At that point, a nice teach-able moment, I shared with students the meaning of the factorial operation. They were excited to learn this and immediately put it to good use as they saw that it allowed them to find the “missing” numbers.

6. Day 1: Four 4’s