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- Food A Bowlful of Rice
Food A Bowlful of Rice
Key Learning Area
Mathematic : Number
Measurement
Level
Middle Primary
Description
Students work on a strategy to come up with an estimate of how many grains of rice would be in a bowl of rice.
Lesson overview
To estimate how many grains of rice are in a bowl
Lesson duration
One hour
Main learning outcomes
Number: Select the appropriate operations and computation methods to solve problems involving whole numbers and money
Measurement: Make increasingly accurate estimates of measurements using informal units and standard units.
Materials required
- Rice bowls
- Uncooked rice
- Spoons of varying sizes
- Kitchen scales
Procedure
- Tuning in
Show the front cover of The Really Big Food Project to the class. Pose the question ‘How many grains of rice would be in a bowl of rice?’.
Ask the students for guesses of how many grains of rice would fit into a bowl of rice similar in size to the bowl in the picture. Record all responses on a chart. - Cooking rice
Carefully measure out two cups of uncooked rice. Place in a saucepan and boil until the rice is cooked. When rice is cool, ask the students to check how much cooked rice is equivalent to two cups uncooked rice. As a class, work out how much uncooked rice would need to be cooked to fill a rice bowl. - Mathematics Investigation
Explain the Mathematics Investigation to the students. In groups of four, the students will discuss how they could come up with a close estimate of how many grains of rice would be in a bowl of rice. Each group is to work out a plan for justifying their estimate. Give each group a rice bowl and the amount of uncooked rice that would be needed to fill their bowl as determined by the cooked rice. Allow students time to experiment and come up with a solution to the problem. - Group presentation
Each group will present their estimate and how they reached it. Record estimates on the chart next to the original guesses. Discuss which answers would be more accurate and why. Discuss whether it is possible to get an accurate answer to the problem. What are the variables with grains of rice that will influence the answer?
Extension Activity
Compare space taken up by different varieties of rice.
Suggested follow-up activities
Volume – Using rice as an informal measurement unit to measure volume of different containers.
