Birds of a feather flock together, so it's easy to estimate their number. Pupils watch an installment of a larger Real-Life Math series in which a zookeeper explains how she uses math to estimate the number of birds. They then try out the sampling strategy using small objects.

Concepts

volume, estimation, sampling, ratios

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Additional Tags

math

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Instructional Ideas

• Have a contest to see which group guesses the closest number
  

Classroom Considerations

• Knowledge of ratios is beneficial, but not necessary
• Activity requires 50-100 small objects of the same size
  

Pros

• Includes a recording sheet for estimation strategies
• Lists discussion questions to use in the activity
  

Cons

• None

Common Core

5.MD.C.3.a