7 Fun Math Discussion Questions For Middle School

Most students think of math as something to be done with paper, a pencil, and a calculator. While completing assignments and sitting for exams is often a key component of a math class, incorporating discussions into the classroom can help students conceptualize the topic in a new way. We have found some exciting and entertaining math discussion questions that may also help some students discover an interest in math they never knew they had!

Read on to learn more about why conversations about math are important and how to utilize them in your classroom.

Fun Math Discussion Questions To Use In Your Middle School Math Classroom

How Does Using Fun Math Discussion Questions Improve Outcomes?

Solving math problems is often thought of in an overly simplified way; either you can find the answer, or you can’t. In reality, encouraging students to discuss math problems and solve them together can help them identify holes in their knowledge and illustrate new ways of reasoning through complex questions. They can learn to see patterns in how problems are solved, making them more likely to correctly answer similar questions in the future. Having these types of discussions is also helpful for teachers to gauge if students are having difficulty with a particular concept so they can target their lessons more appropriately. Here you can find more fun math discussion questions here.

Open-Ended Discovery Questions

Before diving into specific examples, it’s essential that your students know how to discuss math in a meaningful way. There are several types of questions that students can ask depending on what information they’re hoping to find and where they are in the process. If your students are new to these types of conversations, you can help by creating a list of fun math discussion questions for them to refer to.

Comprehending the Problem

To start, you’ll want to ensure everyone is on the same page regarding the problem they need to solve and what the variables are. You can help them evaluate a story problem by asking them to identify the important information and rewording the problem more simply. Students can also share their methods for organizing the information within the problem.

The digital co-teacher made with ❤️ by teachers

ByteLearn saves you time and ensures every student gets the support they need

Making Sense of Strategies and Solutions

The bulk of your conversations will likely be made up of these types of questions. They can share how they decided on their method for solving the problem and then break it down into a step-by-step process. Teaching students how to explain how they know their answer is correct is a vital part of having these discussions. This can look like having them draw diagrams to show their work, asking them to try another method to see if they come up with the same answer, or having them explain their solution to a student who missed class.

Evaluate and Recalibrate

A final step in these conversations is to have students reflect on their problem-solving methods and participation in the discussion. Some of these questions might be:

Did you have a prediction at the beginning? How did it change once you learned more?
Was there a pattern that could help you solve another problem like this in the future?
Name a few things you learned from this exercise.

Fun Math Discussion Questions Examples

Now that your students understand the types of questions that drive these conversations, here are some samples of fun math discussion questions to get you started. You can tailor the structure and specific content of these activities to your classrooms, but it’s best to have them work independently or in pairs first so they can build confidence in their solution before presenting it to a bigger audience.

Filling the Pool

Ask your students to figure out how long it would take to fill a pool of a certain size with a hose that pumps water at a certain rate. For added difficulty, you can also include that the pool is being drained at a slower rate and have them determine how much longer it would take to fill the pool then. Some potential discussion topics for this problem include:

What are the variables in this equation? Do any factors remain the same?
Did you need any more information to make finding the solution easier?
What is a situation in real life where you might have to use these same skills?

Count the Corners

Have the class determine how many corners are on a three-dimensional shape. The shape can be as complex as you wish, depending on your students’ abilities. If you want, you can add a competitive element to this exercise by having students make an initial prediction and then rewarding those who come the closest. Sample questions could be:

How could you use a diagram to solve this problem?
Can you first count the number of corners on a simpler shape to see if you can find a pattern?
After they’ve found the solution, ask the class to share which methods did and did not work for them.

Cruise Ship Passengers

If x% of passengers left a cruise ship for an activity and y passengers are remaining, how many total passengers are there? You can try changing these variables multiple times to illustrate a pattern and to show that the process of solving the problem remains the same even when the content of the question changes. Some discussion topics to get you started are:

How many different math skills do you think we’ll have to use to solve this?
Have you solved a problem like this before?
Do you have to make any assumptions to solve this problem?

How Fast Can He Run?

If Sam runs x miles a day, how long will it take him to run x miles? This question has a lot of potential for adding difficulty depending on how advanced your students are. You can add in other factors like wind resistance, running more slowly for a few days due to an injury, or have your students learn about converting miles into yards, kilometers, etc. Help your students think about this problem with some of these questions:

Can you think of another way to get the same answer?
How would you explain your method to a classmate without giving the answer away?
Can you write your own problem that would require students to use the same skills?

If you have any fun math discussion questions that you use in your classroom, share it with us by retweeting our article. Are you looking for more math resources, click here. If you are a middle school math teacher and you are looking to give your students undivided attention and step-by-step help, we have something special for you, click here.