Now and then, it might be a good idea to insert some magic into teaching math to your students. A great way to explore this fun side of math is using some pretty simple “magic” tricks. In this Things We Love video, Marian revisits some math teaching that can be presented through tricks. Whether as a warm-up activity or as an introduction to a topic, these ideas can be used to explore algebra and place value. Enchant your students with a few of these tricks, and we’re sure students will be curious to know how you pulled them off.

Two Truths and a Lie

“Two Truths and a Lie” is a fun game that can be used for many topics in your mathematics curriculum. This activity develops students’ reasoning skills and allows them to make logical arguments explaining why they believe one statement out of the three presented to them is the “lie.” This game can generate rich math conversations, especially if the “lie” is not an obvious one. Get creative with the statements you give to your students by using visual math elements such as graphs, number lines, and polygons, or make your statements more advanced for older grades by using algebraic expressions. We’re not lying to you when we say this is truly a “thing we love”!