Grades 3-5 Math Problem Solving in Action_ Getting Students to Love Word Problems

136 ◆ Mini-Lessons

Fascinating Facts

Fascinating facts are another way to get students to love word problems.
Pick some fun true facts and have the students make up problems based
on those facts (see Figure 8.7).

Figure 8.7 Fascinating Facts: Elephants

*Picture: Dollar Photo

• Elephants are fascinating
  creatures. There are 2 types of
  elephants: African elephants and
  Asian elephants.


• Elephants are the largest land
  animals in the world.


• The largest elephant weighed
  24,000 lbs! Wow!!


• Adult elephants drink 210 liters
  of water a day.


• Elephants can live to be over
  70 years old.


• African elephants can weigh up
  to 6,000 kg or 6.6 tons.


• The elephant’s trunk can be up to
  2 meters long.


• Elephants can spend up to 16 hours
  a day looking for and eating leaves,
  grass, twigs and roots.


• Baby elephants weigh 230 lbs!
  Read the fascinating facts. Write
  3 different word problems about
  elephants based on the facts.

http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/

sciencefacts/animals/elephant.html;

http://www.animalfactguide.com/

animal-facts/african-elephant/;

http://www.happyelephantcontest.

com/fun-facts/

Problem 1: Problem 2:

Problem 3: Bonus Problem

http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/animals/elephant.html;

http://www.animalfactguide.com/animal-facts/african-elephant/;

http://www.happyelephantcontest.com/fun-facts/