Lake Mead, a Colorado River reservoir on the Nevada-Arizona border, is the largest water reservoir in the United States (Figure 1). In the summer of 2021, Lake Mead registered its lowest level on record since its initial filling in the 1930s. Drought, fueled by climate change, along with increasing demand for water by the 25 million people Lake Mead serves, has shrunk this reservoir to approximately 36 percent of its full capacity. On August 16, 2021, the Bureau of Reclamation announced the first-ever water shortage declaration on the Colorado River[1]. Initially, this Tier 1 water shortage declaration results in reduced water deliveries to the states of Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico with agricultural communities being the first to feel the cuts.

In this task students explore changing areas and patterns of numbers. It is a low floor high ceiling task that can be used with many grade levels. The question posed is : what is the biggest fence that can be made out of 36 pieces of fence?

Our friends at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute have created an interesting task where they share data they collected from Blue Whales. We send many thanks to the MBARI scientists and the American Museum of Natural History for creating and posting these wonderful resources. This collection of videos, text passages and interactive data graphs will light up minds as students explore data that has been collected to explain what goes on when a Blue Whale is under the surface of the ocean.

Maybe some of you recall from childhood, discovering a set of 6 little cardboard cards filled with numbers that came as a prize in a Cracker Jack Box? I clearly remember the day I got this prize. I was fascinated that it always worked, playing it over and over again with anyone who would engage me. I carried the cards with me everywhere and eventually they ended up wet mush after spinning through the washing machine in the pocket of my pants. Decades later they were reintroduced into my life. It was Christmas day in London and everyone was excited about Òcrackers.Ó I didnÕt understand the excitement until Jo explained that it was a little game between two people where the winner got a prize Ð not food. Guess what prize I won? The 6 cards were back in my life!

This activity provides students an opportunity to go through the data cycle process focusing on a statistical investigative question based on something students would like to learn about themselves. In our day-to-day experiences we are surrounded by variability and this activity provides students an opportunity to formulate a question that can be answered with data, as they collect, consider, and analyze the data and then interpret and communicate their findings. We are thankful for Giorgia Lupi and Stefanie Posavec who shared their Dear Data journey with the world.

This task is an opportunity for students to think about why the rules of exponents work, so they can use them with that understanding, rather than trying to remember rules. The handout has a table with some sections already completed so students can complete the rest by noticing patterns and discussing them.

At youcubed we are so excited to share this activity derived from a problem in Core-Plus Mathematics, Course 1. The problem included here is from Unit 3, Linear Functions, where students explore a small sample data set from the World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository, faostat3.fao.org. We love the use of real data as students work, in this case, with linear functions and data.

It seems that taxis have been a part of my life for years. When I was a teacher and academic in London I would see the iconic Black cabs zipping around the streets of London, and I would occasionally travel in them. It was years later when these Black cabs became important again, as some of the first evidence on the plasticity of brains Ð even adult brains Ð came from studying the brains of drivers of Black cabs in London (see video link below). Researchers found that after their intensive spatial training the brains of the drivers of Black cabs strengthened and grew. Years later I was teaching my freshman class when I met Tessa, who proposed this taxi activity for youcubed.