Taxman
You need:
A partner
Paper and P e ncil
W r ite the numbers 1 to 6 in a hor izon tal ro w. You (Player A) will play th e Taxm an
(Player B). Every tim e it is your turn, you can ta ke any number in the list, as long as at
least one factor of that num b er is also in the list. You get your num ber and the Taxm a n
gets all of the factors of that num ber that are on the list. For exam ple, if you take a 4, the
Taxm an would get 1 and 2 since those ar e the factors of 4 lef
t in the list.
The Taxm an m u st get som e thing every tim e, which m eans you cannot choose a num be r if
no factors of the num ber rem a in on the list. W h en no num b er in the list has any factors
lef t in th e lis t , the gam e is over and the Taxm an gets a ll th e n u m b ers that are lef t in th e
list.
**Variations: Try Taxman with the num b er s 1 � 10 or the numbers 1 � 12. Can you find
a winning strategy for any string of num a winning strategy for any string of num
bers?
Ada p t e d f r om M easuri n g Up: Prot otypes for Mat h ematics Assessme n t . Mathem atical Sciences E d ucation
Bo ard . Nation a l Res ear ch Coun cil 19 93 .
Bowl � A � Fact
10 9 8
6 5 4
3
7
1
2
You need:
A partner
One die
Paper and P
encil
Draw 10 circles in the sam e place ment
as bowling pins and write the num bers
1 � 10 in the circles as shown.
Roll a die th ree tim e s and record the
digits. W o rk with your partner to write
num b er sentences (using only those
three d i gits) that equ a l as m a ny of the
num b ers 1 � 10 as possible. Record each
num b er sentence and cross out the
corresponding answer (i.e. pin).
Can you elim inate each of the ten numbers for a strike? If not, roll the die three more
tim es and use those new digits to produce number sentences. Can you get a spare?
Ma th ema tics Ed u c a tion C o llab o r a tive (MEC )
Bu ild ing Su ppo rt fo r S c ho o l Ma th ema tics: Wo rking
with Parents and the Public
Ada p t e d f r om M easuri n g Up: Prot otypes for Mat h ematics Assessme n t . Mathem atical Sciences E d ucation
Bo ard . Nation a l Res ear ch Coun cil 19 93 .