Dice Difference Problem: 6th grade probability

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Activity Notes

We throw 2 dice - 1 Blue and 1 Green.
What is the difference in values?

The difference can be 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5

I say to my friend:

I win if the difference is a 0, 1 or 2.
You win if it is a 3, 4 or 5.
Each of us has 3 chances to win.
Let's play!

Guided Activity

Do the experiment 200-1000 times.

Is my game fair?
Which difference happens most often?
Which difference happens least often?

Now for some dreaded theory ...

Make a table with the value of the green die across the top row and the value of the blue die going down the first column and the difference between the values at their "intersection" Show me!

Theoretically, how many possible combinations of dice can be thrown?
Theoretically, how many of these combinations will have a difference of 1?
- How many ways can a difference of 5 happen?
- What percentage of times should 0 happen?
Does this agree with your experimental results?
What is the percentage of times that a 0, 1 or 2 occurs? How about a 3, 4 or 5?

The 6 events - a difference of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 are mutually exclusive and complete. "Mutually exclusive" means no 2 events can happen at same time and "complete" means no other events can occur.

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