Jasper Woodbury Complex Trip Planning Series engages grades 5–8 students in interactive video adventures that teach logistical problem-solving through real-world scenarios. Featuring pilot Jasper Woodbury, these three ~15-minute episodes focus on optimizing time, fuel, and resources with increasing complexity (from single-route to multi-mode planning), fostering algebraic reasoning, decision-making, and critical thinking. Aligned with Common Core standards, the series includes teacher guides and student worksheets for teacher-led debriefs and extension activities to support classroom integration. Key episode highlights include:
- Journey to Cedar Creek: Students help Jasper determine if he can make it home before sunset without running out of fuel, considering one route, one mode of transportation, one speed, one fuel consideration, one driver, and budget; this is the least complex trip planning problem, building basic optimization skills.
- Rescue at Boone's Meadow: Students plan an emergency rescue, evaluating multiple transport options (e.g., boat, car, helicopter) under time and resource constraints, applying rates and multi-step calculations to select the optimal path, enhancing decision-making under pressure.
- Get Out the Vote: Students coordinate multi-mode voter transport (e.g., bus, van, walking) to maximize turnout under budget and time limits, using algebraic modeling to balance variables like capacity and routes, developing advanced logistical reasoning.
Each episode includes three CD-ROMs (story disc, teacher disc, teacher manual disc) with integrated video content (no videotape or DVD included, despite a teacher manual misprint). Available for PCs running Microsoft Windows; Mac OS X is not supported. View the Episode Comparison document below for detailed information on each episode. This series equips educators with dynamic tools to enhance students’ problem-solving and analytical skills in math and logistics.