A cup or small container
Small counting bears (or similar manipulatives)
Paper and pencils for recording estimates (optional).Preparation:
Gather a cup and a set of small counting bears.
Ensure each pair of students has a cup and a set of counting bears.
Introduction to the Activity:
Explain to students that they will play a game called “Show & Hide” where they will estimate and count the number of counting bears in the cup.
Demonstrate the process: Show the cup with the counting bears to a partner, then hide them, and let the partner make an estimate.
Playing Show & Hide:
One student places a certain number of counting bears into the cup, quickly shows the cup to their partner, and then hides the bears.
The partner makes an estimate of how many bears were in the cup and records their guess if desired.
The student then counts the bears together with their partner to check the estimate.
Switching Roles:
After a few rounds, switch roles so that each student has the opportunity to estimate and count.
Encourage students to discuss their estimation strategies and how they arrived at their guesses.
Reflection and Discussion:
Facilitate a discussion about the importance of estimation and how close or far off their estimates were from the actual count.
Reflect on the strategies used for making estimates and how counting verifies those estimates.
Extension (Optional):
Vary the activity by using different types of manipulatives or increasing the number of bears in the cup.
Introduce additional counting and estimation challenges, such as varying the number of bears or using larger numbers.