ESM410 Assessment One: Problem Pictures Task

Rationale
Using open-ended problem pictures is an extremely valuable tool for teaching
primary school mathematics, and assists in the development of student knowledge
regarding many different mathematics concepts. In the words of Bragg and Nicol,
an open-ended problem picture is a photograph of an object, scene or activity that
is accompanied by one or more open-ended mathematical word problems based on
the context of the photo. (Bragg & Nicol, 2011) Open ended problems are those
which have several correct solutions, allowing students to look deeply at a problem
and consider all the possible solutions. Open-ended questions are encourage
creative cognitive thinking, and assist in the development of problem solving skills
in students. It is widely believed that you need to make sure you give students
open-ended tasks that allow for multiple solution paths or multiple solutions (Reys
et al, 2009) and Bragg and Nichol state that open-ended problems, compared to
closed problems, present students with varied approaches or multiple solutions to a
problem. (Bragg and Nichol, 2011) Utilizing these problems is such an effective
teaching method because it allows students to begin to notice and think about
mathematics based on their surroundings in everyday life. Using problem pictures
also enables students to relate mathematical concepts to their real world
application, which makes the knowledge much more meaningful and engaging. To
further state the importance of implementing open-ended problems, these problems
enable students to simultaneously work on the same problem on various levels:
some will be satisfied with a single solution, others will find several, and yet others
will systematically find all the possible solutions. However, the primary importance
of problems of this kind lies in the fact that they can be used to learn various
problem-solving strategies. (Klavir & Hershkovitz, 2008) A common theme which I
have noticed throughout my time in schools as a preservice is that a number of
students dislike math because they believe its pointless, and they wont need to
know many of the concepts when they leave school. This thought is especially
common among senior primary school students, and because of this the utilization
of problem pictures can assist in eradicating this misconception. Due to the rapid
evolution of technology, and the major increase in the number of images that
children are exposed to, visual based learning styles are becoming more prevalent
in students. Using visually stimulating images which are accompanied by prompts
relating to the real world, mathematical learning becomes a lot more engaging,
relevant and effective. In my future teaching, I plan to use open-ended problem
pictures extensively in my teaching, as Ive found it to be such an effective method.
I will teach a number of different concepts using these pictures, and after getting to
know my class and their interests, Ill even be able to tailor the pictures to their
interest, making the lessons even more engaging for the students.

References:
Bragg, L. A. and Nicol, C. (2011). Seeing mathematics through a new lens: Using photos in
the mathematics classroom, The Australian Mathematics Teacher, 67(3), 3-9

Reys, R Lindquist, M Lambdin, D & Smith, N 2009, Helping Children Learn Mathematics,
John Wiley & Sons, United States of America
Klavir. R, Hershkovitz. S, 2008, 'Teaching and Evaluating open ended problems', International
Journal for Mathematics Teaching and Learning, accessed: 20/08/15,
<http://www.cimt.plymouth.ac.uk/journal/klavir.pdf>

Problem Picture One Extragreen Holidays Hotel, Glen

Waverley

Question One: How would you distribute 40 football players and 17

amongst 48 rooms, considering the maximum capacity of each room is 4
guests?

Answer to Question One: See Appendix A, B & C

AusVELS: Level 4, Mathematics, Number and Place Value
Solve word problems by using number sentences involving multiplication or division where there is no
remainder (ACMNA082)

Enabling Prompt: There is a football team of 40 players travelling to Melbourne

for an interstate match and they wish to stay at the Extragreen hotel. The Ibis hotel
must be a popular hotel as there is also a group of 17 business men wishing to stay.
There are a number of ways that the hotel could accommodate this number of
guests and the amount of rooms needed to be booked depends on the number of
people staying in each room. Each room can have a maximum of 4 guests in each.
The number of rooms which need to be booked depends on the number of guests
staying in each room. List different combinations of guest per room which would
successfully accommodate all the football players and business men.
a. Was there a way to accommodate all the guests without booking all the
rooms available?
b. If so what was the least amount of rooms which needed to be booked? Show
how many people would need to stay in each room.
c. If you were to book every room in the hotel, show how many guests would
need to stay in each room.
d. What is the maximum capacity of the hotel?
Answer to Enabling Prompt: See Appendix A, B & C
AusVELS: Level 4, Mathematics, Number and Place Value
Solve word problems by using number sentences involving multiplication or division where there is no
remainder (ACMNA082)

Justification for Change to Original Question: Modifications were made in order

to come up with an extending prompt. These changes were made in order to
challenge the students, and test their problem solving abilities. This question was
modified in order to meet AusVELS level 5 standards of number and place value,
instead of level 4 where they should be at. The prompt was designed to give
students the opportunity to solve word problems by using number sentences
involving multiplication or division where there is no remainder, as specified by The
Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority.
Extending Prompt: If there was one guest in room one, two guests in room two,
three guests in room three, all the way up to 48 guests in room 48, how many
guests will be staying at the hotel?
a. Create a similar number pattern to the one above for a friend to solve. Try
and make it a challenge!
Answer to Extending Prompt: See Appendix A, B & C
AusVELS: Level 5, Mathematics, Number and Place Value
Describe, continue and create patterns with fractions, decimals and whole numbers resulting from addition and
subtraction (ACMNA107)

Report of Trialing Problem Picture One

Childs Pseudonym, Age and Year Level:
Bec, 10, Year 4
Emily, 10, Year 4
Original Question: How would you distribute 40 football players and 17 amongst
48 rooms, considering the maximum capacity of each room is 4 guests?
Childs Response to the Question: Appendix A & B
Reflection on Childs Response:
In order to trial my open-ended problem picture of a hotel in Glen Waverley, I was
able to gain access to two grade four students. One of these students, who will be
referred to as Bec was in the top math group, whereas the other one of the
students, who will be referred to as Emily was in the lowest math group. This was a
question which involved trying to fit all the guests in the hotel room in a number of
different way. The aim of the question was to engage students in productive
exploration of a mathematical situation, by using an open ended problem with a
clear mathematical focus (Sullivan, Mousley & Zevenbergen, 2005) When first
shown the picture, both students were able to recognize the hotel. This was because
it was located close to the school, but this was done intentionally to provide
relevance. I thought that this was a question which the students would find quite
difficult, but to my surprise Bec was easily able to complete all the answers
successfully (Appendix A). She came up with a number of options which would
situate all the guests in the hotel, and was also easily able to decipher ways to book
the most and the least amount of rooms. She was also able to successful add up all
48 numbers contained in the pattern, and articulate how she came to this answer.
She also created a similar number pattern based on the problem picture. It is said
that open-ended questions involve thoughtful and investigative responses (Emry,
Lewis & Morfett, 2006) and thats definitely what I yielded from Bec. As previously
mentioned, I was very impressed with Becs results, and this is a reflection of her
knowledge of math, and justifies her position in the top math group. When Emily
responded to the question and the prompts (Appendix B), the results were more like
what I expected with this problem. Although she also gave four options as to where
to situate the guests, there were a number of simple addition errors which lead to
answers being incorrect. Surprisingly, Emilys answers to the extending prompt
were a lot more successful, even though the questions were more complex. This
may mean that she rushed a bit when answering the enabling prompt. Overall,
Becs answers were more comprehensive than Emilys, reflecting their skill level and
math group allocation. The enabling prompt aligns with the level 4 number and
place value AusVELS standard which states that students are able to solve word
problems by using number sentences involving multiplication or division where
there is no remainder. (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority,
2013) It meets this standard as students must read a worded problem and use
multiplication to calculate the amount of guests in each room and the entire hotel.
The extending prompt aligns with the level 5 number and place value AusVELS

standard which states that students are able to Describe, continue and create
patterns with fractions, decimals and whole numbers resulting from addition and
subtraction . (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority, 2013) It
meets this standard as students have to use addition to solve a number pattern,
and then create their own for their friends to attempt. In the future if I were to give
students a task similar to this, for less skilled groups I edit the picture to show less
rooms, and perhaps modify the number of guests. This two factors could be
changed for individual students or who groups in order to cater for individual skill
levels.

References for Reflection on the Trial of Question One:

Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2013), The Australian
Curriculum Retrieved August 20th, 2015, from
<http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au>
Sullivan, P., Mousley, J. & Zevenbergen, R. (2005). Increasing access to
mathematical thinking, Australian Mathematical Society Gazette, 32(2), 105-109.
The Society, St Lucia, Qld
Emry. K, Lewis. L, Morfett. C, 2006, 'Open-Ended Maths Tasks', Hawker Brownlow
Education, accessed: 21/08/15, <files.hbe.com.au/samplepages/HB2313.pdf>

Problem Picture Two Shopping Centre Map, Centro the Glen,

Glen Waverley

Question Two: Taking into consideration the map provided, what route
would you take to get from the roof of Rebel Sport (P7) to the roof of
Woolworths (B3)?
Answer to Question One: See Appendix D, E & F
AusVELS: Level 4, Mathematics, Location and Transformation
Use simple scales, legends and directions to interpret information contained in basic maps (ACMMG090)

Enabling Prompt: The roof above Woolworths at B3 has sprung a leak, as has the
roof above Rebel at P7. The repairman fixes the roof above Rebel first and needs to
navigate his way to the second leak. The roof is designed in a way which only allows
the repairman to travel one grid square at a time, and only allows him to move
forwards, backwards, left and right. It is impossible for him to travel diagonally.
There are a number of different routes the repairman could take, list as many as you
can in the time specified by the teacher.
a. Highlight the route which is the shortest
b. Highlight the route which is the longest
c. If one box on the grid equals 10m, what is the distance of the:
Shortest route
Longest route
Answer to Enabling Prompt: See Appendix D, E & F
AusVELS: Level 4, Mathematics, Location and Transformation
Use simple scales, legends and directions to interpret information contained in basic maps (ACMMG090)

Justification for Change to Original Question:

Modifications were made in order to come up with an extending prompt. These
changes were made in order to challenge the students, and test their problem
solving abilities. This question was modified in order to meet AusVELS level 5
standards of location and transformation, instead of level 4 where they should be at.
The prompt was designed to give students the opportunity to use simple scales,
legends and directions to interpret information contained in basic maps, as
specified by The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority.
Extending Prompt: While attempting to navigate his way to the Woolworths roof
at B3, the repairman gets lost and needs to use his walkie-talkie to contact the
stores manager and ask for directions. The only way that the repairman can
pinpoint his location is by looking at the landmarks around him. The repairman
notices a MYOB sign which allows him to determine his location, and provide this

information to the store manager. Imagine that you are the store manager, and by
using directional language and landmarks to guide the repairman, describe a
possible routes which he can take to reach the Woolworths roof.
Answer to Extending Prompt: See Appendix D, E & F
AusVELS: Level 5, Mathematics, Location and Transformation
Use a grid reference system to describe locations. Describe routes using landmarks and directional
language (ACMMG113)

Report of Trialing Problem Picture Two

Childs Pseudonym, Age and Year Level:
Bec, 10, Year 4
Emily, 10, Year 4
Original Question: Taking into consideration the map provided, what route would
you take to get from the roof of Rebel Sport (P7) to the roof of Woolworths (B3)?
Childs Response to the Question: Appendix D & E
Reflection on Childs Response:
In order to trial my open-ended problem picture of a map of The Glen Shopping
Centre, I was able to gain access to two grade four students. One of these students,
who will be referred to as Bec was in the top math group, whereas the other one of
the students, who will be referred to as Emily was in the lowest math group. Both
students had been to this shopping center as it is in the area of the school, and they
both had a basic understanding of the layout. This was intentionally planned as
learning and knowing is a product of activity that is individual and personal, and
based on previously constructed knowledge. (Sullivan, Mousley & Zevenbergen,
2005) When presented with this picture, the two students immediately tried to find
their favourite shops. This showed that they were already engaged with the picture.
After reading the question and enabling prompt the two students didnt need too
much guidance, and it was quite obvious that they had learnt about grid references
before. As I had expected, each child went crazy listing all the possible routes, and
really enjoyed that process. After moving on from listing possible routes, both
students were asked to highlight the longest and shortest routes. Surprising, Emily
(Appendix E) had neglected to list the quickest route, and had to quickly find it and
draw it on. This may be due to the fact that although Emily is in the lowest math
group, she had a very creative mind and was too caught up zig-zagging through the
grid references to simply draw the quickest route. Because of this, Emily was easily
able to find and highlight her longest route. Bec (Appendix D) on the other hand
immediately found the shortest route as it was the first one that she had drawn, and
had to do a bit of thinking about the longest route. Both students were also able to
multiply by 10 in order to assist them in successfully calculating the distance of
each route. The extending prompt asked students to write directions using
appropriate language, a task which both students successfully achieved. Although
both students answered successfully, Emily, who is in a lower math group than Bec

gave more detailed directions, and used landmarks as a reference. It is relevant to

mention that Emily is not only very creative, but also in a high literacy group. This
may be the reason she was able to write more detailed directions than Bec, who did
not mention landmarks but simply state what direction to walk and how far. It has
been stated that the importance of open-ended problems lies first and foremost in
the fact that they break the stereotype that every problem has one correct solution.
They also enable each student to work on the same problem according to his or her
abilities (Klavir & Hershkovitz, 2008) Emily was able to utilize her literacy abilities
in order to answer the problems. This was the only question out of the three which
Emily yielded greater results than Bec, which may be due to the fact that it isnt as
numerical as many other concepts in math. The enabling prompt aligns with the
level 4 location and transformation AusVELS standard which states that students
are able to use simple scales, legends and directions to interpret information
contained in basic maps. (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting
Authority, 2013) The extending prompt aligns with the level 5 location and
transformation AusVELS standard which states that students are able to use a grid
reference system to describe locations. Describe routes using landmarks and
directional language. (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority,
2013) It meets these standards and first students need to use the grid references
to interpret the map, and then describe locations using directional language and
landmarks. If I were to use this question in the future, one thing I might change is
making sure the students are aware that even though the repairman is on the roof,
he can see signs which tell him whats beneath him. I would change this as it may
be the reason that Bec failed to use landmarks when describing directions.

References for Reflection on the Trial of Question Two:

Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2013), The Australian
Curriculum Retrieved August 20th, 2015, from
<http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au>
Sullivan, P., Mousley, J. & Zevenbergen, R. (2005). Increasing access to
mathematical thinking, Australian Mathematical Society Gazette, 32(2), 105-109.
The Society, St Lucia, Qld
Klavir. R, Hershkovitz. S, 2008, 'Teaching and Evaluating open ended problems',
International Journal for Mathematics Teaching and Learning, accessed: 20/08/15,
<http://www.cimt.plymouth.ac.uk/journal/klavir.pdf>

Problem Picture Three IGA, Wellington Village Shopping

Centre, Rowville

Question One: What would you buy in this photo in order to spend as close
to $40 as possible? No more than two of one single item may be purchase.

Answer to Question Three: See Appendix G, H & I

AusVELS: Level 4, Mathematics, Money and Financial Mathematics
Solve problems involving purchases and the calculation of change to the nearest five cents with and without digital
technologies (ACMNA080)

Enabling Prompt:
You have saved $40 pocket money and you want to spend it at the super market to
provide food for the sleepover you are hosting on the weekend. You think your
friends will like a range of snacks, so you decide not to buy more than two of the
same item. You want to get as many snacks as possible so attempt to spend as
close to the $40 as you can. Write down each item you bought. Show your workings.
Answer to Enabling Prompt: See Appendix G, H & I
AusVELS: Level 4, Mathematics, Money and Financial Mathematics
Solve problems involving purchases and the calculation of change to the nearest five cents with and without digital
technologies (ACMNA080)

Justification for Change to Original Question:

Modifications were made in order to come up with an extending prompt. These
changes were made in order to challenge the students, and test their problem
solving abilities. This question was modified in order to meet AusVELS level 5
standards money and financial mathematics, instead of level 4 where they should
be at. The prompt was designed to give students the opportunity to solve problems
involving purchases and the calculation of change to the nearest five cents with and
without digital technologies, as specified by The Victorian Curriculum and
Assessment Authority.
Extending Prompt:
Just before paying for your items you chose in the previous question you remember
that you also have to buy a new game for your sleepover which will cost $20. Which
items can you put back to leave you with $20. Try a number of combinations in
order to get as close to $20 as you can.
Your Mum calls and says that the game you need is on special for $15, which items
will you put back now? Show your workings, and how much change remains.
Answer to Extending Prompt: See Appendix G, H & I
AusVELS: Level 5, Mathematics, Money and Financial Mathematics
Create simple financial plans (ACMNA106)

Report of Trialing Problem Picture Three

Childs Pseudonym, Age and Year Level:

Bec, 10, Year 4
Emily, 10, Year 4
Original Question: What would you buy in this photo in order to spend as close to
$40 as possible? No more than two of one single item may be purchase.
Childs Response to the Question: Appendix G & H
Reflection on Childs Response:
In order to trial my open-ended problem picture of a shelf in IGA at Wellington
Village, I was able to gain access to two grade four students. One of these students,
who will be referred to as Bec was in the top math group, whereas the other one of
the students, who will be referred to as Emily was in the lowest math group. This
was a question which involved choosing what items to buy in order to spend a
certain amount of money. In order to effectively use problem pictures, a teacher
must take some photographs of interesting buildings, scenes, opening times and
price lists. These can become part of early lessons and will add for a touch of
realism." (Sparrow & Swan, 2005) This photo of prices was taken in order to do this,
as it depicts items children typically like. I have previously done this activity with
grade 5s who thoroughly enjoyed it, and were able to complete the task which high
levels of success so I was interested in seeing how grade 4s would go. As I
expected, due to the items available for purchase being sweets and junk food the
students were immediately excited when viewing the picture, and excited to choose
what they would buy. When completing the enabling prompt, Bec (Appendix G), who
is in the higher math groups came up with one combination that was quite short of
the allotted amount of money, but then came up with another combination which
was extremely close to $40. Emily (Appendix H) on the other hand only came up
with one combination, which neglected to take into consideration that that a
maximum of two of each item could be purchased. This shows that she may have
rushed, and not read the question properly. Contrarily to Bec, Emily has also not set
out her sums vertically, shown any workings or calculated the answer correctly. This
demonstrates the difference in ability between the two students. The extending
prompt asked students to use subtraction in order to put some of the items back
and work out how much money was left. Once again, Becs answers were much
more detailed and successful. Emily did set up her sums vertically for this prompt
which I found strange, due to the fact that she didnt for the previous addition sums.
The detail and results of the students work reflects the difference in skill level
between the two students, even in simple concepts such as addition and
subtraction. It was made known to me the Emily often gives up very quickly when
trying to calculate sums, and the fact that she never gave up and wanted to buy the
correct amount of things demonstrated how picture problems can increase
engagement and enjoyment levels. It is a very important thing is to plan the
questions in advance, as creating them is not something that can be done on your
feet, (Sullivan & Lilburn, 2004) which is why these prompts were carefully thought
about well in advance of being taught. The enabling prompt aligns with the level 4
money and financial math AusVELS standard which states that students are able to

solve problems involving purchases and the calculation of change to the nearest
five cents with and without digital technologies. (Australian Curriculum Assessment
and Reporting Authority, 2013) The extending prompt aligns with the level 5 money
and financial math AusVELS standard which states that students are able to create
simple financial plans. (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority,
2013) This prompts meet these standards as students first solve problems
including purchases, and then have to carefully use a financial plan in order to buy
everything they need. In the future if I were to give students a task similar to this,
for less skilled groups I would make prices simpler, and perhaps whole dollars. For
more advanced groups, I feel having different amounts of cents to add up provides
an engaging challenge.
References for Reflection on the Trial of Question Three:
Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2013), The Australian
Curriculum Retrieved August 20th, 2015, from
<http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au>
Sullivan, P. & Lilburn, P. (2004), Open-ended math activities: using "good" questions
to enhance learning in mathematics, 2nd ed., Oxford University Press, South
Melbourne, Vic., pp. 5
Sparrow, L., & Swan, P. (2005). Starting out: Primary mathematics, Victoria:
Eleanor Curtain Publishing.

Cross Curricular Links:

There are a number of different curriculum areas which each problem photo could
be linked with. English is an obvious one for all three as they involve reading and
writing. Problem picture one could be linked to Health and Physical Education as the
prompt involves a football team. Picture two could be related to the Geography area
of the Humanities curriculum, as it is all about mapping, grid references and
directions. Picture three could be related to the Economics area of the humanities
curriculum, due to the fact that the picture and the questions all relate to money.
Thinking processes is another cross curricular link which could be applied to all
three of the pictures and obviously a number of simple and complex thinking
processes are necessary in order to successfully complete the task.

Appendices:
Appendix A (Becs answers for picture one)

ppendix B (Emilys answers for picture one)

Appendix C (Other answers for picture one)

Appendix D (Becs answers for picture two)

ppendix E (Emilys answers for picture two)

ppendix F (Other answers for picture two)

Appendix G (Becs answers for picture three)

ppendix H (Emilys answers for picture three)

Appendix I (Other answers for picture three)