Activity Overview
The aim of this investigation is to determine positive integer solutions for a game of Cat and Mouse, which is represented as a linear equation. Spreadsheets and graphs will be used to help identify possible solutions.
Objectives
ACMNA234 - Substitute values into formulas to determine an unknown
Vocabulary
- Linear equations
- Substitution
- Spreadsheet
- Solutions to linear equations
About the Lesson
In the video game Cat and Mouse, you receive 4 points for each cat caught and 11 points for each mouse caught. Students input different final scores into a spreadsheet to see which scores give integral results. Students can then determine which scores are impossible to get. The spreadsheet results can be verified by moving the graph of the Diophantine equation to see where the graph passes through points with integral coordinates.