A key skill students need to learn in elementary is probability. This seems like a difficult task. However, when I see a standard that might seem hard to tackle, I can make it into something fun and interactive for students. You can use simple manipulatives and fun games that have a gradual release to teach probability in elementary with the flip of a coin.
Teaching Probability in Elementary with a 2 to 1 Ration
One of my favorite games to teach probability requires two students, one coin between them, a piece of scrap paper, and a pencil. Each child chooses one side of the coin—heads or tails. Then have the students fold the piece of scrap paper in half. Whenever the coin falls on heads, the student who chose heads puts a tally on his/her side. If the coin lands on tails, the student who chose tails puts a tally on his/her side.
Once they have flipped the coin 50 times, you tally up how many points each person has. Whoever has the most points, wins! It’s easy for students to see how often one side was landed on compared to the other. You can always change this probability exercise to meet the age and attention span of your students as well. If 50 is too many, you can say stop after two or three minutes or say flip the coin 20 times instead of 50.
Two Coins and Two Kids
This next way to teach probability to students requires two students, two coins, a piece of scrap paper, and a pencil. Have the students fold the piece of a paper in half again. Instead of heads or tails, this time the students will choose either “same” or “different”. Then they will both flip a coin at the same time. If they are both the same, you put a tally in the same column. However, if they are different, that’s where your tally should go. You want to tally the points by 5’s in this game.
Again, after fifty flips, you can see who has more points. To help teach probability in elementary more, I like to ask the questions:
- Do you think the game is fair?
- What if one person received two points when they are the same and other person got one point when they were different. Is this fair?
These questions get them thinking about probability more.
Adding a Twist to Two Coins and Two Kids to Teach Probability in Elementary
The third game is a spinoff of the second game. You will need all the same pieces but instead of writing same and different on the paper, the students will write their names. With this probability game, each student has one coin. The first person flips a coin. Then the second person wants to match it to get the point. If the coins are both the same, the second person gets a point. If they are different, the first person gets the point. With this game, students will switch who goes first each time. So it would be a student 1, student 2, student 2, student 1, student 1 pattern. After fifty flips, check out the score.
How to Use These Games
I like to start using the first game as a whole class activity. Then I have students branch out and work in pairs. At then end, it’s important to ask, “Is the result the same as in the previous games?” This will help them see how probable something is. Students can use an interactive journal to help them keep track of their results.
Teaching probably in elementary might seem like a big task. But by breaking it down into a game can make it so much easier and a lot more fun for you and your students. In addition, using selective grouping, your students can work together to gain an understanding of the various concepts. These games are quick but can be used over a length of time. For more probability games, check out this fun dice activity or sign up below for a set delivered right to your inbox!
