Usually, we teach kids how to do something. Then, every once in a while, we have to teach kids how to NOT do something. In 7th grade math, for example, one of the objectives is for students to know that you can’t divide by zero. That seems simple enough, but there isn’t a lot of meat there. How do you practice not dividing by zero? How do you make it memorable enough that students will remember? Well, I’ve searched out some ideas to make this concept truly memorable. Remember, kids don’t just remember something because we tell them. They have to have meaningful experiences with the concept.
Here are some activities you can do to make NOT dividing by zero memorable:
Dividing by Zero Poster
This poster or graphic organizer from Ms. Calcul8 is a way to help kids remember that you can’t divide by zero. It’s super simple and students can add it to their interactive notebook. You could have students write this pattern to remember the rule on a whiteboard every day for a week and then explain it to a partner. It’d be important also to make sure to show dividing by zero as a fraction as well as written as a division problem from left to right. This poster is great because it’s mathematical and it’s easy to remember. If you only do one thing to help kids remember that you can’t divide by zero, this is what I would do.
This in What Happens When You Divide by Zero
Pinterest is full of memes and funny t-shirts that show what happens when you divide by zero. You could have a few of these memes and have student rank them by how good they are. You could even print them out and then put them in order from best to worse. This type of activity will have students using higher order thinking skills and they’ll get meaningful repetitions with this concept.
Why We Can’t Divide by Zero? Explained
This free resource explains why we can’t divide by zero. This is more of resource for teachers, but you could have students look at it, too.
Ask Siri to Divide Zero by Zero
If you have an iPhone, try asking Siri to divide zero by zero. Her response will get you laughing and you students will want to share it with their friends and family. This is just another quick way to talk about dividing by zero and how we can’t do it.
Don’t Divide by Zero Video
This video shows a comedic take on dividing by zero. You could have your students watch this short cartoon and then write a summary of what happened. They could even reenact the part where the character was dividing by zero on his calculator. Humor is a great way for students to remember something. They can divide by zero on their calculator and then explain what happens.
Try one thing..
Usually, I recommend to try one thing. This time I would try a couple of things and remember to spread them out over time and not just work on this concept on one day. Students need meaningful repetitions to move something from short term to long term memory. I hope you and your students have a lot of fun remembering to NOT divide by zero.
