MATHEMATICAL FUN & CHALLENGES IN THE GAME OF SET^®

By Phyllis Chinn, Ph.D. Professor of Mathematics
Dale Oliver, Ph.D. Professor of Mathematics
Department of Mathematics
Humboldt State University
Arcata, CA 95521

The Game of SET

In 1988 Marsha Falco copyrighted a new game called SET. This game proves to be an excellent extension for activities involving organizing objects by attribute. In addition to reinforcing the ideas of sameness and distinctness, the SET game, and variations on it, provide an interesting and challenging context for exploring ideas in discrete mathematics. Even though the NCTM's 1989 Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics includes discrete mathematics as a standard for grades 9-12, the activities suggested here are strongly supported by the K-4 and 5-8 standards involving mathematics as problem solving, communication, and reasoning.

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