Logarithm Speed Dating Activity

Logarithm Speed Dating is the perfect activity to give students practice converting between exponential and logarithmic form.

Source of Activity

I learned about logarithm speed dating from Amy Gruen who refers to it as “Super Speedy Quiztastic Fun.”

How Does Speed Dating Work?

When you first print a mathematical speed dating activity, it will look like you printed a set of flash cards. While you could use these as traditional flash cards, the speed dating activity structure is so much more fun than just quizzing yourself!

Each student is given one card. Students take turns pairing up and quizzing and coaching each other through solving the problem on the card. When both students have solved both cards, the students trade cards and find a new partner.

Continue this speed dating process until the teacher calls time.

Reflections from Using the Activity

I printed off Amy’s log flash cards. There were two levels of questions, so I printed them on two colors of card stock and laminated them.  I introduced the idea by asking my students if they knew what speed dating was.  A few of them did.  But, most of them didn’t.  When I asked them if any of them had tried it, they looked at me like I was crazy and reminded me that they were only 15-16.  Apparently, speed dating is only for the truly desperate, and they’re not that desperate yet.

And, then they had to ask me if I had ever tried speed dating.  No.  No, I haven’t.  Instead of rearranging tables, I had students make two lines that faced each other.  I let them pick their initial partner.  I passed out the flashcards and instructed them to keep the answer facing themselves.

Speed dating is simple.  Hold up your card so your “date” can see the question.  When your date tells you what they think the answer is, you should either congratulate them on getting it right or provide coaching/feedback on what they did wrong.

“Ummm…If I’m on a speed date, and the guy across the table from me doesn’t know what he’s doing, I’m not going to coach him on how to be a better speed dater.”

My kids did eventually catch onto how to effectively coach one another.  I was able to see several light bulbs go off during this activity.  Then, the other person holds up their card, and the process repeats itself.

When we did this, I got to be both a participant and the person who gets to ring the bell that tells everybody to wrap up their conversation and move onto their next date.  In actual speed dating, you exchange information at the end of the date so you can get in contact with one another if the date went well.  In logarithm speed dating, we exchanged cards with our partner before moving on to our next partner.  I had one line of students move down two spaces to reach their new partner.

Both class periods, I had an odd number of students.  So, I got to participate in the speed dating process.  I even got every question right.  Imagine that!  Overall, I think my students really enjoyed the activity.  It was something different.  It was fast-paced.  It provided instant feedback.  It gave students an opportunity to coach other students who were having trouble.  And, I was able to eavesdrop on conversations and get a sense of exactly where my students stood in relation to logarithms.

My students’ only complaint was that the cards were used were too small.  In the future, I will make bigger cards for this activity.  I’m curious what other topics I could use this practice structure for…

Oh, and I got this comment from one of my students.  I think it’s a compliment.  I’m going to ignore the fact that they were probably insinuating that I would be terrible at non-mathematical speed dating.

“If mathematical speed dating were a real thing, you would rock it, Ms. Hagan.”