Circus towers: square stacks

TLF ID L1935

Work out how many acrobats are needed to form square-shaped human towers. Start by building a square tower with four acrobats: two acrobats in the base layer and two acrobats standing on their shoulders. Examine a table and graph of the total number of acrobats in the towers. Predict the number of acrobats needed to build bigger towers. Describe how the number pattern is formed.





Educational details

Educational value
  • Students identify numerical characteristics of spatial patterns.
  • Students extend numerical patterns.
  • Students enter data into tables.
  • Illustrates the usefulness of tables and graphs to identify and display patterns.
  • Introduces students to non-linear graphs.
  • Students generalise multiplicative patterns and rules using words and algebraic forms.
Year level

3; 4; 5; 6

Learning area
  • Mathematics

Other details

Contributors
  • Contributor
  • Name: MassMedia Studios Pty Ltd
  • Organization: MassMedia Studios Pty Ltd
  • Description: Technical implementer
  • Address: NSW, AUSTRALIA
  • URL: http://www.massmedia.com.au/
  • Name: Education Services Australia
  • Organization: Education Services Australia
  • Description: Data manager
  • Person: Rod Rees
  • Description: Script writer
  • Person: Howard Reeves
  • Description: Subject matter expert
  • Person: Vincent Wright
  • Description: Educational validator
  • Copyright Holder
  • Name: Education Services Australia
  • Organization: Education Services Australia
  • Address: AUSTRALIA
  • URL: www.esa.edu.au
  • Publisher
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organization: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Description: Publisher
  • Address: VIC, AUSTRALIA
  • URL: www.esa.edu.au/
  • Resource metadata contributed by
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organisation: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Address: AUSTRALIA
  • URL: www.esa.edu.au
Access profile
  • Colour independence
  • Device independence
  • Hearing independence
Learning Resource Type
  • Interactive
Rights
  • © Education Services Australia Ltd, 2016, except where indicated under Acknowledgements. This material may be used in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Australia (CC BY-SA 3.0 AU) licence https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/au/.