Lesson: Math Gone Wild

Ask students to brainstorm different ways that animals demonstrate intelligence or critical-thinking skills. If students have difficulty thinking of examples, share the following:

• Octopuses can unscrew bottle caps to access what’s inside the bottle.

• Dolphins can recognize themselves in a mirror.

• Elephants cooperate with each other.

Play the video. Afterward, hold a class discussion using the following discussion prompts:

• How are olive baboons similar to humans? (They vote.) How are they different? (They communicate with actions rather than using words or writing when they vote.)

• When did you see math used by the olive baboons in the video? (Baboons use angle measurements to determine whether they should vote on which leader to follow or strike a compromise. When baboons vote, the group with the greater number of baboons wins the vote.)

Distribute or digitally share the “Central Idea” literacy skills sheet with each student. Read the introductory section of the article aloud. Then have a volunteer read “Wolves Pick Pack Size” aloud. Complete the first row of the skills sheet as a class. Then in pairs or independently, have students read the other animal sections and fill out the remaining rows on their sheet.

Have students individually read through the introduction and the example of the “Annotating Word Problems” box on page 9. Discuss each step of the annotation process and ask volunteers to share if they would have annotated the example problem in a different way. Then work through question 1 of the “Your Turn” section as a group. Have students read part A to themselves and mark up the question. Select volunteers to share what they annotated. Have students individually devise a solution strategy and restate the question in their answers. Repeat this process with parts B and C. Then have students work independently or in pairs to solve the remainder of the “Your Turn” questions.

For students who may struggle with word problems, provide them with the following options if needed:

When reading the problem:

• Read the problem aloud or have students use the online article’s text-to-speech function.

• Partner students who struggle with reading the problems with students who are fluent readers.

When annotating the problems:

• Have volunteers model, write, or think aloud how they might annotate one of the given problems.

When solving the problem:

• Suggest that the students draw a picture or use a model.

• Discuss possible solution strategies as a class. Do not verify the validity of different solution strategies suggested during the discussion—let individual students figure out which strategies are valid.

• Pre-teach any skills needed to solve the word problems.

For one day, have students journal about the times they encounter math in their everyday life. Have them review their notes and write 3 word problems based on what they wrote. Select students to share their word problems and practice annotating and solving them as a class or use them to incorporate into a future assessment.