Task Card #3

Materials: 5 gallon-sized ziplock bags, numbered 1-5; jelly beans or other small objects for counting (edible or non-edible); calculators; pencils; paper

Task: Counting Estimation--How Many Beans?
Time Allotted: 20 minutes

Each of the bags represent the beans Jack received when he traded his mother's cow. Estimate, then count, how many beans Jack received. Group Leader: The group leader says, "Silly Jack traded a cow for beans. Poor, poor Jack; bet his mother's mad."

Jobs: Group leader and team members...

1. Study the five bags filled with jelly beans (or items representing beans).
2. Estimate how many items are in each bag. On a piece of paper numbered 1-5, write an estimation for each bag. Fold the paper in half so no one can see the numbers.
3. After everyone has written down their estimations, count the items in each bag.
4. The person making the closest estimations gets a jelly bean to eat.
5. Determine different ways to group and practice recounting them.
   Example: place them in sets of 2, 4, etc.

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