REVERSE TIC TAC TOE

PROBLEM:          Can I make the other person win at Tic Tac Toe?

RESEARCH:

HYPOTHESIS: Do you know how get three in a row? Can you figure out the way to make the other person get three in a row and not get three in a row yourself?

MATERIALS:          pencil and paper          

PROCEDURE:

1. Play Tic Tac Toe the regular way to discover the strategy to get three in a row. Remember the object of the game is for you to get three in a row.

2. Look for a second strategy that will make a tie game every time. No one wins when it is a tie.

3. Now try to make the other person win. Both of you must try not to get three in a row.

4. Keep your trials neat, accurate, and save them to turn in as your data. You must do at least 16 trials for each strategy.

5. Number the trials, circle the first move, and indicate if it was a win, lose, or tie game.

NOTE: You can just play Tic Tac Toe and turn in this assignment. However, if you want to complete this assignment and learn from it, LOOK FOR BOTH STRATEGIES.

DATA: Be sure to turn in your game sheet.

QUESTIONS:

1. What is the secret to make the other person win?

2. What is the secret to making the game end in a tie?

3. Are the strategies any different if you are playing the game in reverse?

CONCLUSION: This is not optional. You must explain what you learned by doing this activity.

Remember that you must answer the question you asked in your original problem statement.

NOTE: BE SURE TO HAVE YOUR PARENT OR GUARDIAN SIGNS YOUR WORK. PARENTS: YOUR SIGNATURE SHOWS YOUR STUDENT HAS DONE THE WORK.

TEACHER SECTION:

POSSIBLE HYPOTHESIS: Students have a tendency to say, “Of course, I can win.” There needs to be a strategy involved in their hypothesis. They need to think of how they make the other person win.

POSSIBLE CONCLUSION: If you let the other person start first, you can make them win, but you never start first when you want to let the other person win. When you want a game to tie, you have to start first and put an X or an O at the middle of the game. But, if the other person knows how to play, you can’t make him win.

E-Mail

Judy Schneider

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