Permutations And Combinations permutations activity2
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Activity - Ice Cream Cone Permutations
Estimated Time
40 min
Materials/ Resources needed
- Paper ice cream scoops (3 to 6 flavors cut from construction paper)
- Paper triangles to represent cones onto which to place the paper scoops
- Colored pencils, crayons, or markers
- Blank Paper
- Pencils
Prerequisites/Instructions, if any
- Today everyone will get a 3-scoop ice cream cone. (flavors- Chocolate, vanilla, strawberry)
- The big decision is this: in what order do you want your scoops arranged on your cone?
- Use the paper ice cream to discover all of the possible orders your three scoops can be arranged.
- Organize the paper ice cream cones so that patterns can be easily detected.
- Record all of the possible permutations (order in which they can be arranged) in an organized fashion using a tree diagram, organized list, table, picture, etc.
Multimedia resources
Website interactives/ links/ simulations/ Geogebra Applets
Process (How to do the activity)
- Set the stage for the ice cream shop - you may want to put a sign on the outside of your door to let everyone know they are going into the Ice Cream Shop. If you wish, you can even decorate your room and/or wear apparel appropriate for an ice cream shop worker.
- Have students work in groups or individually to use the paper scoops and cones to find all of the orders in which three scoops can be arranged.
- Have students record their results as a tree diagram, orga¬nized list, chart, etc., on the blank paper. It's important that the students see a connection between the manipulatives and the diagrams they create.
Developmental Questions (What discussion questions)
- How many flavors are available here to make a ice cream?
- What are the flavors?
- Can we put the same flavors twice in a ice cream?
Evaluation (Questions for assessment of the child)
In how many different orders can Anil, Bharat, Chetan and David stand in a line?
Question Corner
Activity Keywords
ice cream,cone,permutation,arrangements
To link back to the concept page
Permutations_And_Combinations