Here’s a math question I asked back in 2008 (Dr. H. was our principal).
This year, Dr. H gave Mr. Byrd a raise. He’s now making $2.99 an hour! If he works 85 hours a week, how much will he earn in two weeks?
So first, let’s scrap the silly fake numbers. I was foolishly aiming for “engaging” rather than interesting thinking. I’ll replace those numbers with something actually useful:
Cafe Byrd offers baristas $14.99 per hour for up to 40 hours a week. What is the maximum weekly pay?
Up to Analyze
Then, I always want to try to hit the Analyze level of Bloom’s Taxonomy. And to Analyze we need a second option.
I’ll introduce another coffee shop:
Byrdbucks Coffee offers baristas $17.99 per hour. If you work 40 hours a week, what is their weekly pay?
Now, I’ll ask questions about this situation, moving around on Bloom’s Taxonomy.
- Cafe Byrd is offering overtime pay at $19.99 per hour for up to five hours beyond your original 40 hours. Which coffee shop would you choose to work for?
- How few hours could you work at Byrdbucks in order to make the same amount of money as 40 hours at Cafe Byrd? What if you include the overtime pay?
- Create a third coffee shop with an even more enticing offer than Byrdbucks or Cafe Byrd.
See how long we can stick with this same situation by asking questions that prompt different types of thinking? We don’t need 20 different low-level calculation problems when we climb Bloom’s. And my last question leaves the door open for all sorts of interesting directions. Will someone interpret “more enticing” to include a retirement plan? Paid vacation? A free iPad? Will they make a logo and sample menu for the third cafe?
And, yes, there’s a video version of this sequence over at Byrdseed.TV.