Slider Puzzle: Lesson 1

Lesson 1: Strategic thinking with Slider Puzzle

1. From the Home screen of your XO, click on the MaMaMedia icon.
2. Open the Slider Puzzle activity from the MaMaMedia Activity Center.
3. Click on and explore the puzzle image subject list on the right, then click to choose one image to solve.
4. Explore how the puzzle works. Click on a tile with the mouse to move it into the vacant square. Note that you can move the tiles up, down, right and left, but you cannot lift them off the board.
5. Change the number of squares from 9 to 12 to 16. Observe how the game becomes more challenging when you select more squares.
6. Click on “Shuffle” to mix the tiles up in a new way. Click on Solve to see the picture in its complete state.
7. Work in pairs or independently to solve a 9-tile puzzle. If you solve your puzzle quickly, try solving one with 12 or 16 tiles. Walk around and help other students who are still solving their puzzles.
8. After playing with the puzzle for a while, write down some of your problem-solving strategies or questions.
9. Discuss each person’s strategies and questions as a group. Identify what strategies worked and what didn’t work. Discuss the things you found difficult or frustrating.
10. Create charts with shared experiences, differences and similarities. One student can record all the students’ ideas on the XO Laptop.