We hope you enjoyed the Three Brothers and the Oak Casks problem. Every Middle School team submitted a correct response. The submissions were exuberant, artful and joyful.
And here is the teaser! You can see them on display on March 1 at the next Conversation with Parents called Math: The Art of Explanation. Some of the submissions were on paper; some on poster board; some on foam board. A few were digital. One team provided a Google Doc presentation. Two teams submitted a video demonstrations.
In case you tried to work it out, the solutions were variations on this theme:
One brother would get 3 full casks, 1 half-full cask, and 3 empty casks.
The other brothers would each get 2 full casks, 3 half-full casks and 2 empty casks.
The best submissions provided this solution, and one other alternative. Some teams explained why there could be no further solutions. Very powerful mathematics. Very powerful thinking.
Below you will find the next problem, The Aunt and Her Nephew. My brother, the physics professor at University of Chicago, sent me the problem last summer and was having trouble completing the solution. Before I could figure it out, my daughter had it!
If you have a Middle School student, ask how they did with it. And see if they will give you any hints. Enjoy!
