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Listed under:  Mathematics  >  Statistics and probability  >  Probability
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How to win at rock-paper-scissors

Find out how to win at rock-paper-scissors using game theory. According to this theory, how should you decide on your next move when you play multiple rounds? See if you can apply this theory in multiple rounds of rock-paper-scissors with someone. Did you win? |Why would this theory be useful in economics?

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Conduct chance experiments: Year 8 – planning tool

This planning resource for Year 8 is for the topic of Conduct chance experiments. Students draw on what they have learnt about probabilities related to compound events and apply this knowledge in a variety of experiments. The use of digital tools and simulations allow for repeated practice of compound events and help to ...

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Come in spinner

Students recognise and describe variations in results and conduct a simple experiment with spinners.

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Back to the books

In this lesson, students will explore how bookmakers set odds, and how these odds are carefully determined in order to guarantee the bookmaker the best chance of making a profit. Students learn how to convert between odds and probabilities and calculate the expected profit or loss based on odds. The lesson is outlined in ...

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Prediction vs. reality

This lesson explores how we perceive randomness. Students toss coins and record their observations while half of the class fake their results. They will then explore the differences between the random results and fake results sets and investigate theoretical probabilities for large numbers of coin flips. The lesson is outlined ...

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Sports betting

In this lesson students will take ownership of a gambling organisation. They will look at long term statistics of various sporting matches to set the initial odds and then monitor live betting to adjust the odds they are offering gamblers, in order to demonstrate how sports betting organisations guarantee they always make ...

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Micro:bit missions: Take a chance on me (Integrating Mathematics): years 6-8

This resource comprises two activities that allow students to explore the concept of chance in Mathematics. Students use computational thinking while using a micro:bit as a digital system to generate and collect data. Students implement programs involving branching and iteration in visual and general-purpose programming languages.

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Possible outcomes: Year 6 – planning tool

This planning resource for Year 6 is for the topic of Possible outcomes. Students represent the probability of an event occurring on a scale of zero to one as decimals, fractions or percentages.

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Chances are!

Students calculate the sum of probabilities for a chance experiment and compare frequency predictions with actual data.

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Probability calculations: Year 8 – planning tool

This planning resource for Year 8 is for the topic of Probability calculations. Students are introduced to more complex probability concepts, terminology and visual representations for all combinations of two events. Students learn the language and differences between the connectors: ‘and’, ‘or’(inclusive or exclusive), ...

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Introduction to games of chance

This lesson explores how to predict outcomes of games of chance. Students investigate the concepts of luck, skill and fairness, using dice games. They calculate probabilities for one and two dice rolls and compare the odds for different combinations of dice in a variety of game scenarios. The lesson is outlined in detail ...

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One word changes it all

Exploring the meaning of 'and' and 'or' in probability.

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Can you beat the system?

In this lesson, students calculate the average expected value of losses on a roulette wheel over time, and use these values to analyse the cost of gambling on these games. They also study the flaws inherent in betting systems to determine whether these systems are weighted in the favour of game operators making a profit. ...

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Poker machines (simulation)

This lesson explores how poker machines work and what is meant by the term Return to Player (RTP) percentage. Students run simulations to determine how small betting amounts can lead to a large cumulative loss over time and examine how reinvesting profits or wins from playing the poker machine back into the machine has ...

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Lucky lottery

In this lesson, students play a simple lottery game, analyse their odds of winning and how this influences the decisions they made. Students determine the differences between experimental and mathematical probability, conduct a simulation modelling an event and critically evaluate the odds of winning the lottery. The lesson ...

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The wide wide world of sports betting

This lesson explores the difference between perfectly predictable events (like the roll of a die) and less certain events (such as sports). Students investigate mathematically how sports bookmakers create odds to guarantee themselves a profit and pay gamblers less for a win than they deserve. The lesson is outlined in ...

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Catalyst: Probability and the birthday paradox

Even when a maths problem seems simple – for example, the chance of two people sharing a birthday – the maths can run counter to our human intuition. Mathematician Lily Serna poses a maths problem to the Clovelly Bowling Club: how many people do you need to gather to get a 50 per cent chance of any two people in that group ...

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Big data, better hospitals

Overcrowding in hospitals is one of the biggest challenges facing our healthcare system . In order to reduce hospital waiting times, the Patient Admission Prediction Tool (PAPT) uses historical data to predict how many patients, and with what kinds of injuries, are expected to arrive at the emergency department each day ...

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MathXplosion, Ep 49: The probability of finding matching socks

Check out this probability puzzle that requires you to weigh all the possibilities. Pick the most likely outcome when confronted with a drawer full of loose, unpaired socks! How did Eric come up with a matching pair?

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MathXplosion, Ep 8: Birthday probability

What is the probability there are at least two people in your class who have the same birthday? If you have at least 23 people in your class, the chances are good. Find out the maths behind this theory.