Fantasy Football and Mathematics: A Resource Guide for Teachers and Parents, Grades 5 and Up (Fantasy Sports and Mathematics Series) [Paperback]

Dan Flockhart (Author)

Book Description

Series: Fantasy Sports and Mathematics Series | Publication Date: March 23, 2007

A great new way to getall kids excited about math!

Fantasy sports are a hit worldwide, and now teachers and parents can take advantage of this phenomenon to give students a reason to look forward to doing math. The games and activities in Fantasy Football and Mathematics will get kids excited about learning and practicing math, even if they're not big sports fans. With this fun-filled educational resource you can teach one math concept or many, and plan lessons that can last for a week or a whole season.

Here's how it works. Students create fantasy teams by picking real-life professional football players, following their players' statistics, and calculating their team's total points using algebraic or nonalgebraic methods specifically designed to complement the math skills they are learning. The instructions are easy to follow, and the dynamic hands-on games address all learning styles and abilities. The book includes more than 100 scoring systems that give you the flexibility to customize the content according to your students' skill levels.

In addition to the basic Fantasy Football game, the book contains easy-to-use lesson plans, reproducible worksheets for extra practice on 46 different math concepts, graphing activities, quizzes, a pre- and post- test, and an answer key. More than just a fun way to learn math, the book's activities also support the NCTM Math Standards.



"I had students' eyes light up like never before when I told them we were going to play Fantasy Football in math class! The students who have never been successful at anything in math are now my experts helping other students. They are so proud of themselves!"
--Julie Myers, Lyman Moore Middle School,Portland, Maine

"Playing Fantasy Football and Mathematics from a preservice teacher perspective allows my secondary math methods students to see the power of teaching math with motivational and mathematically sound materials. My students are very engaged in Fantasy Football."
--Dana Pomykal Franz, assistant professor, Curriculum and Instruction, Mississippi State University

Also available in the Fantasy Sports and Mathematics series:

Fantasy Baseball and Mathematics | Fantasy Basketball and Mathematics | Fantasy Soccer and Mathematics

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Teachers who are seeking to find ways to engage and motivate their students through sports, particularly baseball, would be well served by this resource book." (Education Review, May 2007)

Review

“Playing Fantasy Football and Mathematics from a preservice teacher perspective allows my secondary math methods students to see the power of teaching math with motivational and mathematically sound materials. My students are very engaged in fantasy football.”
–Dana P Franz, Assistant Professor, Curriculum & Instruction, Mississippi State University

“Fantasy Sports and Mathematics!  Finally, a fun and effective method for not only teaching math knowledge but going further and providing a framework for students to comprehend, apply, and analyze the learned competencies.  A rare and innovative example of academics using sports to teach students life skills.” –Kim Beason, Associate Professor of Park and Recreation Management, Mississippi State University

"I have used Fantasy Sports and Mathematics for the past two years in my pre-service math education classes. It is an outstanding curricular example of making learning meaningful and connected, getting students to make data-driven decisions in an engaging and exciting activity." 
–Tim Van Soelen, Instructor of Education, Dordt College, Sioux Falls, SD.

"Dan Flockhart’s innovative Fantasy Sports and Mathematics books are rich and innovative tools for inspiring students to delve deeply into the study of mathematics.  He helps students create a solid personal understanding of abstract mathematical concepts through practical application in the form of fantasy sports.  His books are a highly accessible, motivational, and unique resource for teachers who want their students to appreciate the relevance and importance of mathematics in their own lives."
–Ann Diver-Stamnes, Professor, Humboldt State University, CA

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 1 edition (March 23, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787994448
• ISBN-13: 978-0787994440
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #723,608 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Get students excited about math, November 20, 2007

By 

Gabrielle (Indianapolis, IN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fantasy Football and Mathematics: A Resource Guide for Teachers and Parents, Grades 5 and Up (Fantasy Sports and Mathematics Series) (Paperback)

I have been using Fantasy Football in my classes this fall. Students that are good in math, but not so much socially are working peacefully with students that are good with sports, but not so much mathematically. All are more excited about math than they once were.
I knew nothing about football going in, but this book makes Fantasy Football easy. I still don't know much about football, but I do know that a touchdown is worth .25 and a PAT is worth .042. (At least in the scoring system I used) You can tailor the scoring system and worksheets to your students' needs. Even though I don't know football and really am not terribly interested in it, this program has been easy to implement and I think very worthwhile.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I LOVE Fantasy Football & Mathematics!, December 5, 2007

By 

A. Winkie "Gifted and Talented Program teacher" (GA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fantasy Football and Mathematics: A Resource Guide for Teachers and Parents, Grades 5 and Up (Fantasy Sports and Mathematics Series) (Paperback)

I teach 5th grade gifted and talented students in an enrichment pull out class. I have 3 groups and I see each group 1 full day per week. We started Fantasy Football at the beginning of the school year. It's now Week 13 and my students are still enthusiastic and engaged. We started off slowly with the integer equation and we're now using the default equation - adding, multiplying, subtracting and reducing fractions with ease.

A neighboring school is also using Fantasy Football & Mathematics, so we started a "friendly" competition. Each week we post our high scores on our web pages and the school with the highest score wins. A local sporting goods store donated a football helmet and we put helmet stickers on for each win. When the season ends, the school with the most wins will get to dump a water cooler on their teacher. The kids are psyched about this and right now it's too close to call! :)

I would recommend FF&M to any teacher who is looking for a way to motivate his/her students to use and extend their math skills. Your kids will beg to play and their level of engagement lasts for the entire season. The points equations range from easy to extremely challenging, so it is appropriate for grades 5 - 12. It makes an excellent enrichment program and you can choose how much time you want to devote to it each week. Dan Flockhart has a website that you can use to easily check your scores and there is even an online competition that includes celebrities, students and teachers. When football season is over,you can play Fantasy Basketball or start Fantasy Baseball in the spring. It's a highly motivating program that will have even your mathphobes asking "Are we playing Fantasy Football today?"

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Want to Engage Students Mathematically?, November 21, 2007

By 

D. Cam (Castro Valley, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Fantasy Football and Mathematics: A Resource Guide for Teachers and Parents, Grades 5 and Up (Fantasy Sports and Mathematics Series) (Paperback)

This is the first year that I have been using Fantasy Sports Math. I teach remedial math (below Algebra I) for 9th graders at a large suburban public high school. I teach on a block schedule...100 minutes per class every other day, and I have my students create their own Fantasy Teams, which they calculate points for once per week. It's an extremely effective "filler" activity that have students primarily on-task as they busily sort through, calculate, and post their player's stats...all while learning how to convert equivalent fractions, turn improper fractions into mixed numbers, etc. It's exciting to "talk smack" with the students as I have my own team and see students do the same as they compete with their other classmates. For this reason, I give it four and a half stars (if Amazon had that option). FSM's user-friendliness took a huge step forward this year as the author funds a website that actually gives you the weekly stats of each player...so no more looking at cumbersome newspaper box scores (yikes!). Also, with the purchase of the book, the author gives you a Player Value ranking that allows students to create their own team given a $40 million salary cap. The author also made me aware that students' calculation can be verified quickly online. Overall, definitely a recommended book to buy. Keep up the great job, Mr. Flockhart!