Developed and presented by:CATHY JONESSecondary Math Instruction SpecialistCenter for Mathematics and Science EducationArkansas NASA Education Resource Center346 N. West Avenue, Room 202Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701(479) 575-3875(479) 575-5680 (FAX)E-mail: cej001@uark.eduWeb: http://www.uark.edu/~k12 info/Wiki: cmasemath.pbwiki.com

Grades 4-7

Estimation

Measurement

Mathematical goals: As students participate in the 3 activities, they will estimate, measure in metrics (linear, capacity, & weight), find differences, and mean.

Other academic gains: Reading the station cards students will gain historical facts of the “Old West.”

Materials needed & management instructions:COWBOY HAT TOSS: Station Cards, Cowboy hats, meter stick, additional meter sticks or metric tape measure, masking tape. Print and laminate the station card. Set up a station with enough room to toss a hat. Use the tape to mark off a starting line. Toss with the same type motion as tossing a frisbee. On a table or to the side of the tossing area, tape down a meter stick and label it, “ 1 meter” so the students will have a visual to relate to in their estimating. Use the other measurement devices to measure the distance thrown. Complete the data on the recording sheet.COWBOY HAT CAPACITY: Cowboy hats of any size that will hold water (plastic, foam, etc), metric measuring cups or graduated cylinders, various sized containers of water, additional water, containers to set under the hats, paper towel.Set up the station at a table. Set the hats inside the container to catch any spilled water. For student’s benchmark in estimating, label the capacity on various sized bottles of water. Use the additional water to fill the hat and measure the water it hold in Liters. Complete the data on the recording sheet.COWBOY BEANS ESTIMATION: Tin can filled with dried pinto beans, unopened 1 lb and 2 lb bags of dried pinto beans, triple beam balance, extra container to hold the beans in the can.Set up the station at a table. Have the unopened bags of beans labeled in grams for the students to use as a benchmark in their estimating. Let students find their own method, but watch and make sure they realize they must find the mass of the container, in order to find the mass of the beans alone. Complete the data on the recording sheet.

Cowboy hats are one of the most recognizable pieces of apparel in the world.  When you see someone wearing a cowboy hat the mind

immediately turns to cattle and horses, open ranges, and the untamed West. The cowboy hat was invented by John Stetson in

1865 and it didn't take long for the cowboys on the open range to realize that the large brim protected them against the elements.

You often see cowboys taking their hats off and giving it a wild throw…some in excitement, such as when they make a good ride in a rodeo and some in disgust when the cows break out of the corral or

when the cowboy did not make the 8 seconds ride on the bull.

For this activity toss the hat, estimate the distance in meters, then measure the accurate distance. Record all the information on the

Recording Sheet.

1Meter

Print this page. Cut apart and place on a strip of paper making it stretch the length of a meter. Laminate and place alongside a meter stick while students are doing this activity.

. Many cattle drives from Texas to markets in Nebraska and Kansas took place between 1866 and 1900. The Chisholm Trail, which went through Oklahoma, become so crowded that cattle and men had great difficulty in finding water along the way.

Daily travel distances were gauged by the location of Waterin’ Holes. A cattle drive typically covered about 10 to 15 miles a day with a drive to western Kansas taking between 25 and a 100 days. The cowboy often used his hat to dip into the water and he drank right along side his horse.

For this activity estimate the capacity of the hat in liters, then measure what it will actually hold. Record all the information on the

Recording Sheet.

1Liter2 Liters

Approximately 3.8 Liters

Print this page. Cut into 3 strips. Laminate and attach to the appropriate size containers and place on the table while students are doing this activity. (Approx. 3.8 liters is a gallon.)

The centerpiece of any cattle drive was the chuck wagon. In many ways the cook or "cookie" was the most important member of the

drive, and he generally got paid better than the other men. The cook drove the chuck wagon ahead of the herd and was responsible for selecting campsites in the evenings and stopovers for the noonday

meal. Besides the cook, there was the trail boss, an experienced cowboy who had been up the trail before, knew where the grass and water were and also knew the dangers along the trail. Typical meals

consisted of bread, meat, beans with bacon and coffee.

For this activity estimate the mass/weight of the BEANS in the can, then use the scales to find the accurate mass of the BEANS. Record

all the information on the Recording Sheet.

454 grams

907 grams

Print this page. Cut into 2 strips, laminate and place 454 gr with a 1 lb bag of pinto beans, place 907 gr with a 2 lb bag of pinto beans.

Hat Toss: __________meters _________meters ________meters

Hat Capacity: __________liters _________liters _________liters

Beans Estimation: __________grams _________grams _________grams

How good of an ESTIMATOR are you?

Find the MEAN (average) of the differences. ROUND your answer to HUNDREDTHS PLACE (2 DECIMAL PLACES).

Mean of the differences:______The cowboy (or cowgirl) with the least difference will be the all around winner.

Now pardner, complete the recording sheet, make sure your name is at the top, and place it in the box. GOOD LUCK ON THE ROUND-UP!

Name