The SAT likes to test student’s nerves by replacing numbers with letters. This can be frustrating, since most high school math problems involve at least one number. The best way to approach these problems is as a code-breaker; they have given you enough clues, if only you can find them. Here’s a game that will help your student discover that cracking the code is a lot easier than it looks.
What You Need:
- A pencil
- A few pieces of paper
- 2 or more players (you can be one.)
- Candy or another small prize
What You Do:
- Print or copy the following examples of codes: “Rhe girst oetter nf yhe qord bs trong.”“Ths sntnc hs n vwls.” “The has words scrambled been the of order” “Edoc doog a eb nac sdrawkcab gnitirw.” “ancay ouyay alktay otay igspay inpay atlinay??”
- Give each player five minutes to crack the codes just by using common sense.
- Have the players tell you their answers and compare them to the right ones: “The first letter of each word is wrong.” “This sentence has not vowels.” “The order of the words has been scrambled.” “Writing backwards can be a good code.” “Can you talk to pigs in Latin?”
- Offer a prize to the person who got the most right, or to everyone who broke more than 3 codes.
- "Extend the lesson to math. Show them this SAT problem: “If AB + BA = CDC, what does C equal? (A,B,C, and D represent separate digits within a larger number.) This looks impossible! ..." If we know neither A, B, or D, how can we know C? This is where we need to use a little bit of common sense to crack the code. We could spend a lot of time plugging in numbers for A and B, and trying to come up with an answer that fits the form of CDC. Or, we could use some critical thinking. What’s the LARGEST number you can create by adding two 2-digit numbers? If we add 99 and 99, we’ll get 198. We can never get a number bigger than that; we’ll never even get to 200. No matter what A and B are, the number must be in the hundreds. Therefore, the only possible value for C is “1.”
- One more problem: 9 xJ KL If K = 4, then L = ? There are two ways to do this: First, we can try to think of a number in the forties that is a multiple of nine. The only possibility is 45, so L must be 5. Or, we might remember that the digits of any multiple of 9 add up to 9. Therefore, we know that K + L = 9, so L = 5.
Related learning resources
Party Noise Makers
Activity
Party Noise Makers
Party noise makers help you ring in the New Year loud and proud. These party noise makers are eco-friendly and festive for your holiday celebration.
2nd grade
Arts & crafts
Activity
SAT Essay Tips
Activity
SAT Essay Tips
Need some SAT Essay Tips? Check out these ABCs (and DEFs) of acing the SAT essay.
High school
Activity
Crack the Code
Worksheet
Crack the Code
Put your state capital knowledge to the test in this big, bad state capital quiz!
5th grade
Social studies
Worksheet
Morse Code
Worksheet
Morse Code
Every child loves to communicate in secret code! Learn the Morse Code alphabet with this great printable.
3rd grade
Worksheet
Learn Morse Code
Worksheet
Learn Morse Code
Learn some of the common Morse code prosigns with this fun activity!
3rd grade
Reading & Writing
Worksheet
Riddles and Codes #2
Worksheet
Riddles and Codes #2
Reveal the answer to this clever riddle by cracking the number code in this Riddles and Codes worksheet.
1st grade
Worksheet
SAT Card Shark: Strategies for Sentence Completion
Activity
SAT Card Shark: Strategies for Sentence Completion
How to make sure SAT test tricks touch home? Try this game for some card-slinging study fun!
High school
Activity
Memory Makers
Workbook
Memory Makers
Help your kid put her memory and recognition skills to the test with these object, color and sight word memory games.
kindergarten
Reading & Writing
Workbook
What Is Code?
Lesson plan
What Is Code?
What is code? In this lesson you'll introduce students to the concept of code (a system of symbols used for communication) using both physical and virtual experiences.
1st grade
Science
Lesson plan
The SAT Crossword Challenge
Activity
The SAT Crossword Challenge
Struggling to memorize all those SAT words? How about challenging Mom or Dad to a crossword puzzle duel?
High school
Activity
SAT Math: The Distance Formula
Activity
SAT Math: The Distance Formula
Riddles about two trains passing in the night are often featured on SAT tests. Help break these problems down into five easy steps.
High school
Activity
Color Code the Paragraph
Worksheet
Color Code the Paragraph
In this exercise your students will color code the key components of an example informative paragraph.
3rd grade
Reading & Writing
Worksheet