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What is it?
Picture the scene. You have just your class how to work out the gradient and distance between two points, they have practiced the basics, and now you are on the lookout for something different. If only there was a way to ensure they continued to get that valuable practice, but in a slightly more engaging context that may just lead to them developing other skills along the way. Well, fear not! Your prayers have been answered. This is a lovely, original strategy game, where two students play against each other, plotting points on a coordinate grid and working out the gradient and distance. The twist is that once a particular gradient or distance has been used, it cannot be used again!
How can it be used?
This is an ideal activity to use either straight after gradients and distance have been taught, or as a way of revising the skills. You also have the added bonus that it helps to develop the skill of completing the gradient/distance calculation on a grid by imagining the appropriate right-angled triangle. As with any game like this, you are faced with the problem of checking students’ answers. With so many different possibilities for game structures, how on earth are you going to check if students are making mistakes or not? Well, that is the beauty of competition – the opposing player has every opportunity to check the player’s answers. Any disputes could be settled by you, or better still be another student. If you are feeling particularly brave, a good question to ask might be: “what is the longest game two people could play before one person cannot move?”. I would love to say I have worked that one out myself, but I would by lying. I just love the simplicity of this game, and yet it does absolutely everything I could want.
Thanks so much for sharing
Craig Barton
Download: Gradients and Distances Game
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