There’s a new lesson plan just added to our Free Lesson Library: Forty Faces.

This has become a favorite of mine for many reasons, and like 1-2 Nim and Pig, it’s become one of my go-to activities for workshops with teachers. Why? Because:

• It launches incredibly swiftly, with the goal being both novel feeling and clear
• It invites creative play with many right answers
• The wrong answers can be productively and enjoyable corrected
• If you actually look at what mathematics you do in the course of the activity, you see that it’s a powerhouse of a lesson. It demonstrates so quickly just how much math arises from the right kinds of playing around

This activity features prominently in both our curriculum trainings and our math teacher circles. It was past time to get it up in the lesson library too. Click the video below to see how I introduce the activity. Enjoy!