Support Notes 1

If your pupils have not experienced one of these cases before, they may query why they are ‘not doing maths’. You may need to make a comment at this stage "that the maths will emerge", but it is important not to say what this is or how it comes about before the pupils have engaged with the issues in the next lesson.

The game of cricket is played on a large oval or circular ground. The pitch is a strip 22 yards long in the centre of the ground. There are three stumps at each end of the pitch. Each set of stumps has two bails resting across the top. A crease line is marked 4 feet from the stumps at each end of the pitch. The batsman’s “ground’ is the space between the stumps and the crease line. The batsmen make ‘runs’ by running to the other end of the pitch after they hit the ball.

A batsman is out by ‘run out’ if he is out of his ground when the bails are knocked off the stumps by the opposing players before he has ‘made his ground’ at the other end of the pitch. To avoid being run out, the batsman needs to have at least the tip of his bat over the crease-line and touching the ground before the bails are dislodged.

Students need to understand that in a run out, it is the position of the bat as the bail is dislodged which is the critical factor. If necessary, ask pupils to explain the run out rule to their peers until each person understands it clearly. This should include the situation of the bat being ON the crease-line when the bails are removed (in this case the batsman is OUT).

Teachers may like to bring a set of stumps and bails, together with a bat, into this lesson. Some students may demonstrate the run-out rule to their peers using this equipment. Rulers or chalk lines can be used to simulate the crease-lines. To demonstrate a 'run out' does not need the exact equipment, rather the students need to get a good understanding of the rules for in and the rules for out. Hence if traditional cricket equipment is not available, a metre ruler (the bat) and a rubbish bin (the stumps) may be used (be aware that you will need to place an object on top of the bin to act as a bail - it is possible in cricket for the ball to hit the stumps without dislodging the bail. It is only when the wicket (stumps and bails) is broken can a run-out be effected). Some teachers may feel that having pupils act out a run out in class may seem risky, but it can have a positive influence on their relationships with pupils via the enjoyment it will generate.

Teaching and Learning Issue 1: The need for hands on experience

Trialling revealed that just watching a video of a run out was not enough for pupils who had not played cricket to be able to understand the connection between bails being removed and a bat crossing the crease -some hands on experience was needed. In one trial class, the girls suggested that they do this in P.E. before the sequence was started in maths. In another there was a serendipitous event:

The day before I started the project, Year 7 had an inter-form cricket tournament which involved the whole year group. This was hugely beneficial for me in that all my pupils had an awareness of the rules and were familiar with at least two or three ways of being ‘out’. In addition to this, a female pupil proved to be the most knowledgeable in terms of knowing the rules of the game and the boys in the group reacted rather competitively to this in that they wanted to make sure they too could participate and reach a conclusion.

Another teacher made a spur of the moment decision to simulate a run out and discovered an ancillary benefit of this significant change in routine:

As we discussed the intricacies of cricket and the rules, Sean came into his own – What that boy did not know about Cricket was nobody’s business!! And so we continued – until we could not agree what a run out was, despite my best attempts – though I am convinced that this lack of understanding was so that the following could happen… So never wanting to be defeatist, nor take the easy route and show a video, I started directing pupils to move furniture, creating a cricket pitch of sorts. An empty water bottle would be the bat, a piece of paper the ball and two red plastic chairs the wickets, and so we began. Amy bowled. Jonathan took aim and ran…. Towards me… There I was ready to catch the ball and “stump” him out, however my fielders let me down, Jonathan ran pretty fast and reached out with his bat, ensuring the run was to count and promptly hit me hard with the “bat”!!!

The class paused and then erupted into laughter, as tears poured down all our faces, it was then I knew. It is not about content, nor my teaching, but about the relationships, the atmosphere and fun a good learning environment can create for our students and that we were going to enjoy this project.

Close Box

The first option opens the video clip in a Windows Media Player (or your preset Player) for the teacher to view. To view the clips in this way, left click on the link and select "open".

The second option allows the teacher to download the clip, by right clicking on the link and downloading it to the teacher's computer. These video clips are in .wmv format for playing with Windows Media Player. Once downloaded you can play them by following the instructions below.

If you are planning to show the .wmv video clips with the Windows Media Player you can slow them down and/or show them frame by frame.

In order to obtain more reliable estimates for each, pupils will need to use the standard measurements of crease-lines, bats and stump height.

1. the speed of the batsman	7. the weight of the bail
2. the distance the bail has fallen	8. the weight of the bat
3. the time it took for the bail to fall that far	9. the weight of the ball
4. the distance of the tip of the bat past the crease-line	10. the speed of the ball
5. the time the tip of the batsman’s bat has been past the crease-line	11. the looks on the fielder’s faces
6. whether the bail fell in a straight line	12. other ideas?