LFCDS Upper School Math Program Completes Annual Fantasy Football League Project

Super Bowl XLIX brought an interesting end to the 2014-15 NFL Football season. At Lake Forest Country Day School (LFCDS), sixth-grade students in the Upper School math program closed out the semester in a similarly exciting fashion by completing their annual fantasy football league math project.

This interactive project involved each student drafting and managing their own fantasy football team and scoring each game using decimal and fraction calculations throughout the semester. According to Ty Stuckslager, Math Department Chair at LFCDS, “This project provides an engaging way for students to practice their operations without feeling like they’re doing math.”

During the first weeks of school, each student was given a mock $40 million budget to “spend” on customizing their team during the draft. This process allowed students to assess talent, manage priorities in a timed setting, and practice sound budgeting tactics.

After drafting teams, each student competed against his or her fellow classmates, with Upper School math teachers taking part in the competition as well. Games began on the opening day of the NFL season and ran all the way until mid-December. The season ended during the LFCDS winter break.

Similar to regular fantasy football leagues, points were awarded to teams based on their drafted player’s performance during the live game. However, instead of automated point-keeping, students at LFCDS scored each of their games manually. Students used decimal form to calculate their total scores during the first half of the season, and switched over to fraction form for the second half of the season.

According to Matthew Nocella, a Lake Forest resident and sixth-grade student at LFCDS, “It was such a fun activity to do in math class. After completing the project, we all felt like we learned our decimals and fractions in an entertaining way.”

Last Friday, the project came to an official end with a celebratory pre-Super Bowl party. Teams gathered to eat snacks and review the winners from the regular season.

Lake Forest Country Day School serves students from more than 30 communities throughout the North Shore and beyond. A regional center of excellence for early childhood, elementary, and middle school education for children ages 2 to Grade 8, LFCDS is committed to inspired teaching, academic rigor, attention to individual needs, and responsible citizenship as well as the dedication to producing students of strong character with a passion for learning. For more information on LFCDS, please visit www.lfcds.org or call (847) 234-2350.