Two Buckets Puzzle
Most likely, you’ve ran across some variation of the two buckets puzzle at some time in your life. You have two buckets. One bucket holds exactly five gallons. The other bucket holds exactly three gallons. How can you measure exactly four gallons of water into the five gallon bucket?
Looking for more first day of school activities and puzzles for your classroom? I have a giant blog post dedicated to 40+ activities for the first week of school.
Here’s a few examples of some of these engaging activities for the beginning of the school year.
Groupwork Norms for the Two Buckets Puzzle
When I taught physical science, I used this during the first week of school to give my students practice with problem solving while practicing some of our groupwork norms:
- Give reasons for your suggestions.
- Confusion is part of learning.
You can read more about these groupwork norm posters and download a set for your own classroom. Other tasks for practicing groupwork norms include Broken Circles, Rainbow Logic, and Guess My Rule.
Two Buckets Task Card
I created a task card for my students outlining the two buckets puzzle.
Students really struggled with the precision necessary in solving this puzzle. I had to continually circulate the room and remind students that eyeballing half of the bucket was not an acceptable problem solving strategy.
Students were challenged to work together to produce posters describing their solution process to the two buckets puzzle with words and illustrations
Student Work
Reflection Form
After groups finished their posters, they completed a group reflection sheet to get them thinking carefully about the groupwork norms we were intentionally practicing.
Puzzle Solutions
Puzzle solutions are available on a password-protected solution page. I do not openly post the puzzle answer keys because one of my goals as a resource creator is to craft learning experiences for students that are non-google-able. I want teachers to be able to use these puzzles in their classrooms without the solutions being found easily on the Internet.
Please email me at sarah@mathequalslove.net for the password to the answer key database featuring all of my printable puzzles and math worksheets. I frequently have students emailing me for the answer key, so please specify in your email what school you teach at and what subjects you teach. If you do not provide these details, I will not be able to send you the password.
Not a teacher? Go ahead and send me an email as well. Just let me know what you are using the puzzles for. I am continually in awe of how many people are using these puzzles with scouting groups, with senior adults battling dementia, or as fun activities in their workplace. Just give me enough details so I know you are not a student looking for answers to the puzzle that was assigned as their homework!
Search Die Hard Jugs Problem on youtube for a video intro to this puzzle
Great suggestion!