math

ctivity 1:  Logic: What is it? Exploring logic using Looney Pyramids

There’s an interesting game called Zendo that really pushes its players to stretch their minds and find their inner enlightenment. To read up on it, check out the description and the rules at the game designer’s website:

http://www.koryheath.com/zendo/

In order to play this game, players usually need a set of what are called “Looney Pyramids,” and the rules specifically refer to “four stashes.” A “stash” in this case is 15 pieces in of one color in three different sizes, 5 of each size. So if you don’t have the official pyramids, you can play this game with anything that follows those guidelines. See the job aid for directions.

Activity 2:  Are you a Mastermind?!

How about a more straight forward logic game? Have you ever played Mastermind? It’s the game of code breaking, and has been around for a good while. You can check out it’s Wikipedia page here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mastermind_(board_game)

Activity 3:  Crack the Code

Try your luck at this game and see if you can “crack the code!”

http://www.web-games-online.com/mastermind/index.php

 See the job aid for directions.

Check Your Understanding

Project Assignment  What does it take to be a “winning strategy”?

While not the only reason we play games, people do like to win games once in a while. So far you have explored four key elements of your chosen game (general math behind it, the player’s influence, numerical boundaries, and sets). Can you use this information to formulate a possible winning strategy in your game?

Be very specific in what a player would need to do to implement your strategy, making sure to include different scenarios and helpful conditional statements.

Submit Here