Baking Brownies
The 2nd and 3rd graders were having a party to celebrate the
100th day of school. They decided to bake brownies. Each pan
of brownies would serve 4 students. There are 38 students in
the 2nd- and 3rd-grade classes.
How many pans of brownies will they need to bake?
Baking Brownies
Copyright 2008, Exemplars, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Baking Brownies
Suggested Grade Span
K–2
Grade(s) in Which Task Was Piloted
2
Task
The 2nd and 3rd graders were having a party to celebrate the 100th day of school. They
decided to bake brownies. Each pan of brownies would serve 4 students. There are 38 students
in the 2nd- and 3rd-grade classes.
How many pans of brownies will they need to bake?
Alternative Versions of Task
More Accessible Version:
The 2nd and 3rd graders were having a party to celebrate the 100th day of school. They
decided to bake brownies. Each pan of brownies would serve 4 students. There are 36 students
in the 2nd- and 3rd-grade classes.
How many pans of brownies will they need to bake?
More Challenging Version:
The 2nd and 3rd graders were having a party to celebrate the 100th day of school. They
decided to bake brownies. There are 38 students in the 2nd- and 3rd-grade classes. The
brownie pans are 6 inches by 6 inches and will serve 4 students.
How many pans of brownies will they need to bake? Determine the possible dimensions of
each serving of brownie.
NCTM Content Standards and Evidence
Number and Operations Standard for Grades Pre K–2: Instructional programs from prekindergarten through grade 12 should enable students to ...
Baking Brownies
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Understand meanings of operations and how they relate to one another.
• NCTM Evidence: Understand situations that entail multiplication and division, such as
equal groupings of objects and sharing equally.
• Exemplars Task-Specific Evidence: This task requires students to find the multiple of 4
that is closest to the number 38 and to interpret the “remainder.”
Compute fluently and make reasonable estimates.
• NCTM Evidence: Use a variety of methods and tools to compute, including objects, mental
computation, estimation, paper and pencil and calculators.
• Exemplars Task-Specific Evidence: This task requires most students to compute using
objects and paper and pencil.
Time/Context/Qualifiers/Tip(s) From Piloting Teacher
This task is considered a short- to medium-length assessment in that it requires about 15
minutes for most students to solve.
Links
This task could be given during the time of the 100th day of school! This task could link to other
party tasks.
In the past, Exemplars has published a menu of tasks with this same theme:
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"Party Balloons," K–2
"Cake, Cookies and Pie," K–2
"Blowing Up Balloons," K–2
"Patty’s Party," K–2
"A Party Cake," K–2
"Too Much Food," 3–5
"A Celebration," 3–5
"Goodbye Party Fun," 3–5
"Cookie Cutters," 3–5
"Deluxe Birthday Cake," 3–5
"Halloween Party," 3–5
"Happy Birthday Abby," K–2
"Happy New Year," 3–5
"Miss Amico’s Birthday Bash," 3–5
"Mother Nature’s Plan for My Birthday," 6–8
"Party Mix Preparations," 3–5
Baking Brownies
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• "Party Seating," 3–5
• "Portfolio Pizza," 3–5
• "Valentine Party Set Up," K–2
Common Strategies Used to Solve This Task
Most students will draw a diagram of the brownies and attempt to divide them as a problem
solving strategy.
Possible Solutions
Correct solutions would include 10 pans. 38 ÷ 4 = 9.5, so 10 pans of brownies are needed.
There will be two brownies remaining, which the student should address in her/his solution.
More Accessible Version Solution:
Correct solutions would include nine pans of brownies (36 ÷ 4).
More Challenging Version Solution:
Correct solutions would include the solution to the original task as well as possible ways to
divide 36 square inches by 4, such as each slice being 3 inches by 3 inches, 1.5 inches by 6
inches, or other ways that equal a total of 9 square inches.
Task-Specific Assessment Notes
General Notes
Diagrams will be the primary representation seen in student work. Better diagrams will be those
that are labeled and communicate clearly. Some students will organize solutions in tables or
charts. Mathematical language in student solutions will be limited to that of computation.
References to “half” may also be present.
Novice
The Novice will have difficulty representing 38 students.
Apprentice
The Apprentice may not be able to correctly address the extra brownies.
Practitioner
The Practitioner’s solution will contain a correct answer of 10 pans, and the student will address
the two extra brownies.
Baking Brownies
Copyright 2008, Exemplars, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Expert
The Expert will achieve a correct solution and may verify the solution by solving the task with
pictures and then numbers and comparing the two. Expert students might also comment that 4
is not a factor of 38, and therefore there will be a remainder.
Baking Brownies
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Novice
Baking Brownies
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Apprentice
Baking Brownies
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Practitioner
Baking Brownies
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Expert
Baking Brownies
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Expert
Baking Brownies
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