Newsletter 6: Estimation

If you find yourself asking questions like:
​“How long is this going to take?”
“How many people are in line?”
“How much is this going to cost?”
Chances are good your family is ready to explore Estimation 180 ​

Estimation 180 taps into this natural curiosity to quantify the world around us, providing both students and teachers with opportunities to build number sense one school day at a time.
Andrew Stadel, the creator, describes the process:

• Ask a quantifiable question about an image
• Avoid guessing
• Make an estimate
• Share your reasoning

 There are two important parts to these estimation exercises:

1. Before making an estimate, create a range by asking for reasonable wrong answers.
   1. What is an estimate that is too low?
   2. What is an estimate that is too high?
2. Make an estimate using context clues from the image, information from previous Estimation 180 challenges, or personal experiences. Go around the table sharing estimates and the reasoning behind each estimate.

 Try it with this image from Day 29.
How many sheets remain on the smaller roll of toilet paper?
Need a clue? Head to Day 28 for the full roll.

The video answer can be found here.

There might be days you can’t do these Estimation 180 challenges at the table because you’re on the road. Use the fast food drive-thru as yourTable Talk opportunity. If there's a long line, simply ask, “How long is this going to take?” Go around the car making estimates and then start the timer. The winner gets a free ice cream cone.
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*Ice cream cone not included with this newsletter.
​
Hopefully this week's Table Talk Math has your dinner table sharing ways in which math can serve a conversation.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us on Twitter (@TableTalkMath) or reply to this email.

Thank you for taking the time to improve math fluency for children, one table talk conversation at a time. For previous newsletters, check out the archive each week.