Slaml a m D u n k MATH ACTIVITIES FOR STUDENTS
Standards For MATHEMATICS 1. Students develop number sense and use numbers and number relationships in problem-solving situations and communicate the reasoning in solving these problems. 2. Students use algebraic methods to explore, model, and describe patterns and functions involving numbers, shapes, data and graphs in problem-solving situations and communicate the reasoning in solving these problems. 3. Students use data collection and analysis, statistics, and probability in problem-solving situations and communicate the reasoning in solving these problems. 4. Students use geometric concepts, properties and relationships in problemsolving situations and communicate the reasoning in solving these problems. 5. Students use a variety of tools and techniques to measure, and apply the results in problem-solving situations and communicate the reasoning in solving these problems. 6. Student link concepts and procedures as they develop and use computational techniques. Including estimation, mental arithmetic, paper-and-pencil, calculators and computers, in problem-solving situations and communicate the reasoning in solving these problems. 2
Box Score Search Math Standard 3 You can find an amazing amount of information about a basketball game just by reading the box scores. Look through the sports section to find the box scores from a National Basketbal Association game. Find the following information in the game: Who was the high scorer? Who scored the most 3-point field goals? What was the total amount of points scored? Who were the starting players for one of the teams?,,,, How many people attended the game? Use your imagination and the information in the box score to write a paragraph describing how the winning points were scored. No Place Like Home Math Standard 1 It s to a team s advantage to play in its home court. Look at the NBA Standings to figure out the percentage of home games your favorite team has won this year. Check the results of yesterday s games to see how many home teams were victorious. What percentage of the games did the home team win? 3
80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Title B-Ball Graphing Math Standard 3 Find the standings for the National Basketball Association in the sports section. Look at one of the Divisions and make a double bar graph to show the wins and losses for the teams. Then write three observations about your graph. Give your graph a title. Point Spread You can beef up your math skills by skimming the sports section for information. Find the basketball scores to complete this chart. In the first column write the name of the team and the number of points scored. In the second column, write the name of the opponent and its point total. In the third column compute the point spread, or difference between the two scores, and in the fourth column put the total points scored by both teams. Find the scores for at least three other games. Team Points Opponent Points Point Spread Difference 4
Basketball Word Bank Math Standard 1 Math is a big part of sports. Skim your sports section and identify all the math-related terms you can find for a sports word bank. Circle any of the words that are connected to basketball. Sports Fantasies Math Standard 3 The top sports fantasies include sinking the winning shot in an NBA title game, hitting a home run in the World Series and throwing a touchdown pass in the Super Bowl. Today s sports section may not include these sports fantasies but it does have lots of amazing sports accomplishments. Find 5 sports feats and rate them on a 1-10 scale with the best accomplishment being worth 10 points. Make a graph of your ratings. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Title 5
Basketball Word Problems Math Standard 1 Using the sports section of today s newspaper, find a story or a chart containing basketball scores. With the information you find, write three basketball word problems using the numbers that tell the scores of the games. Exchange your math problems with a partner and solve each other s problems. Basketball Geography Math Standard 5 You might be surprised to know that you can learn a lot about geography by reading the sports section. Skim the section to find the names of the home cities of the professional basketball teams. Look on a map to determine which states are represented by the most cities. Write three additional questions about the major league cities for a partner to answer. Which three teams are the greatest distance from your favorite team? Which three are the closest? 1.? 2.? 3.? 6
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Playoff Picks Look in the sports section for the names of the teams that would be in the playoffs if they were held today. The eight teams with the best records in each conference go into the post season. List the teams. What are the chances of your favorite team making the playoffs? Basketball Stats Math Standard 3 Look for the box scores from one of National Basketball Association games. Using the statistics, write five factual sentences about the game. Then look through the story about the game and see if your information is included in the article. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 7
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Average Salaries Last season the average salary paid to players in the National Basketball Association was 2.6 million dollars. Turn to the classified ads and pick out the five top-paying jobs in the newspaper. Figure out the average salary of these five jobs and compute the difference between that and the average NBA salary. Fired Math Standard 3 Coaches are often fired when their team does not perform well. Based on the records of the teams in the NBA, what coaches may lose their jobs? Predict the next three coaches to get the ax. 1. 2. 3. 8
Points Per Minute There are 48 minutes in a regulation NBA game. Find the final scores of one game and add the total points together. Divide the number by 48 to get the points scored per minute. Then find the points per minute scored for three other games. Probability Math Standard 3 Turn to the sports section and study the standings for the NBA teams. Based on their records, which team is most likely to win its next game? Which team is most likely to lose? What are the differences between the two teams records? 9
50-Plus Points Math Standard 1 This season, it s possible that more players will score more than 50 points per game than ever before in professional basketball. Check the box scores for any player who scored 50-plus points in a game. Then list the top scorer, his team and point total for each game. Basketball Time Math Standard 3 Turn to the sports section and study the basketball summaries. Make a graph to show how many points each member of any one team scored. Then write three observations about your graph. 50 40 30 20 10 0 10 Title
Magic Number The National Basketball Association playoff picture is unfolding. The teams play 82 games in the season. The eight teams with the best records in each conference make the playoffs. What is the least amount of wins you think the teams will need to qualify? How did you arrive at the number? NBA Standings Scavenger Hunt Math Standard 3 Check the standings and schedule of the National Basketball Association to find the following information. The team with the most victories The team with the lowest winning percentage The difference between the number of wins and losses for the your favorite team The won-lost percentage of your favorite team The number of victories your team is behind the division leader 11
Equipment Make a list of all the equipment you would need to play in the National Basketball Association. Can you find some of the equipment for sale in the newspaper? Write down the item and the price. All-Stars Math Standard 3 The National Basketball Association season is in full swing. Here s a chance to pick your own all-star team. Find players who are listed among the individual leaders or those listed in the box scores. Write the names of your 5 starters and the teams they represent. 1. 2. 3. 4. 12 5.
Stock Market Company Stock Price Company Stock Price Company Stock Price Stock Market Corporations play a big role in professional basketball. They buy the rights to have arenas named for them. Can you find the names of any of these companies? Check the stock market listings for the companies stock prices. How did they perform yesterday? Did their stocks gain or lose value? Driving Crazy Consider driving across the country to see the Los Angeles Lakers play the Philadelphia 76ers. You could travel 2744 miles in your car, which gets 20 miles per gallon. If gasoline costs $1.60 per gallon, how much would you spend on the trip? Turn to the NBA standings and pick out two other teams. Use the weather map to estimate the distance between the teams and compute the cost of gas. 13
Attendance Math Standard 1 Look at the box scores and compare the attendance figures for yesterday s NBA games. Make a graph to show the results of your findings. Which game had the highest attendance? How many people attended? Which game had the lowest? How many people attended? Write three other questions about the attendance information. Vital Statistics Math Standard 5 NBA players are usually tall, thin and in their twenties or thirties. Use your newspaper to find someone who fits the description of a basketball player. What do you think is this person s height, weight and age. 14
1 3 5 2 4 Sequencing the Game Math Standard 1 Select an article in the sports section that describes the action in a basketball game. Read the article and record the highlights of the game. Look for any outstanding plays or turning points that had the most impact on the game. Write down five events in the order in which they happened. Use the graphic organizer to sequence the events. Season Ticket Holders Math Standard 1 Some season ticket holders for NBA teams get 5% off the regular ticket price. Ticket prices are $10, $16, $21, $26, $36 and $44. Figure out the cost of each ticket if you get 5% off. Find five items in the newspaper that have advertised prices and determine what the cost is with a 5% discount. NBA NBA 15
Sports Survey Math Standard 5 Can you determine which sport has the most coverage in today s newspaper? Divide into small groups with each group taking a page of the sports section. Measure the column inches devoted to each sport. Make a graph to show the results and write three facts about the graph. How much coverage is about basketball? number of inches 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 1. 2. 3. Title Sports Facts Take Me to Your Leader Are there any of your favorite players among the NBA individual leaders? Select two players from each category-- scoring, field-goal percentage, 3-point field goal percentage and rebounding and show the difference between the two. Make up three word problems based on the information. 1. 2. 16 3.
On the Road Math Standard 5 Check out which NBA games are scheduled for today. Identify the teams that are playing on the road. Which team has to travel the farthest distance for the game? Use the weather map to help estimate the distances. NBA on TV Math Standard 5 Look through the television listings for any sports programs that are on television. Are there any NBA games scheduled? Find the following information: What is the sport? What time is it on? How many minutes is the event on the air? How many hours is the event on the air? What station is broadcasting? Do you plan to watch? 17
SODA You are Special An NBA team offers a special Family Night that includes 4 tickets, 4 pizzas, 4 sodas and 2 micro mini balls for $70. What do you estimate the value of each item to be? Go to your newspaper and select items that you could put together to make a great package. Can you do it for only $70? Write down the items and the cost. Investments Math Standard 3 Professional basketball players make a great deal of money. They often need to find some good investments. Go to the stock market listings and to find investment ideas for the players. Find the stock, the current price, and the change price. Are there articles in the newspaper about issues that might affect the stock market? 18 $ Dow
Mean, Median, Mode List the points scored by the players of your favorite team in the box score. Add all the numbers together. Divide by the number of players who played in the game. The answer is the average or mean. List the point totals from highest to lowest. The number that is in the middle is the median. Are any of the point totals the same? Which number came up most often? That is the mode. Climates Math Standard 5 Look through the weather page to find the warmest and coldest cities in the NBA. Find the temperature in the city of your favorite team. Then complete the thermometers below. COLDEST FAVORITE WARMEST 19
Geometry and Basketball Math Standard 4 How are geometric shapes a part of basketball? List the objects involved and write or draw the matching shape. Then do a search through your newspaper for as many different geometric shapes as you can find. Basketball Time Math Standard 5 Check the schedule to find the starting times for today s basketball games. Draw the hands on the clocks below to show the tip-off time. Find five different times the games begin. 20