Art Heist! (Self-Checking Using Addition and Subtraction)

The art teacher is missing a poster of a very famous painting! He's not sure which one is missing, but if we solve the clues, we can figure out what painting is missing so that we can find it and return it to him by Friday. (Feel free to embellish and elaborate. :)

Day 1:
Counting on addition: “What painting is missing?” Tell students that counting on works well when you're adding a big number and a small number. Emphasize that you can start with the bigger number and then count-on the smaller number. (For example, 4 + 32, we'd start with 32 and count four more...33, 34, 35, 36.) Maybe do a couple of examples with them before handing out the worksheet.

Day 2:
Addition and grouping: MATH-terpieces
Do the first three paintings (Degas, Monet, Renoir) of MATH-terpieces by Greg Tang as well as the Picasso painting. (Half the students can look at the book, while the other half will look at the images on a laptop.) After they have done the math, tell them that the painting is by the artist whose paintings are a really different style than the others.

Day 3:
So now we know that the painting we’re looking for is Three Musicians by Pablo Picasso. This painting is worth millions of dollars (maybe show them where the millions’ place is?) and it’s in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. We’re going to take a train across the country to see what it looks like.
Students start at 0 (Cedar City) and roll the dice to advance across their map. For each roll of the dice, they write the addition sentence (0 + 5 = 5, 5 + 4 = 9…47 + 3 = 50, etc.) and put an x on the number line to keep track of which of the 50 stops their train stops at. They may use their number lines or count-on addition to find the answers. When they reach NYC, have them write the reverse number sentences to get them back to Cedar City. (50 – 3 = 47… 5 – 5 = 0, etc.)

Day 4:
The Museum of Modern Art gave us a picture of what Three Musicians looks like, but the colors are missing! Use addition to figure out what colors to use in the color-by-number. When time is almost up, take students to find the poster (which has been hung in the hall beforehand.) Return the painting/poster to its owner for your reward. If students haven’t finished coloring, encourage them to take it home and finish so that they can earn a treat.