The purpose of this activity is to learn that you can click on a cell to use its contents in a new expression rather than typing the address of the cell.

In the digital version of the activity, students use an applet to calculate values from other values in a spreadsheet. The applet allows students to directly type into the spreadsheet cells without navigating somewhere or opening another application. Use the digital version if it is available so that students can practice using the spreadsheet tools available in this course.

Ask students what new shortcut they learned in the spreadsheet. Namely, when students want to use the contents of the cell in a computation, they can click on a cell rather than type in its address. Ask students what other things they had to remember about using spreadsheets.

The mathematical purpose of this activity is for students to become more efficient at entering values into a spreadsheet. In later units, students may wish to use the techniques in this activity to quickly compute the values of sequences by continuing the pattern.

Monitor for students who use a recursive formula, for example, typing = B2 + 2 in cell B3. Also look for students who use an explicit formula, like typing = A3 / 3 in cell B3. After students complete the first question, ask students to share their various spreadsheet formulas that work. Assure them that either is okay.

In the digital version of the activity, students use an applet to fill in many spreadsheet cells with a pattern. The applet allows students to work directly in the spreadsheet without navigating away or using another application. Use the digital version if it is available so that students may have more practice using the spreadsheet tools available in this course.

Tell students that the technique used in this activity extends a set of operations to additional cells in the spreadsheet. Invite students to experiment with extending some other patterns in the spreadsheet.

Some students may misunderstand the instructions and continue to refer each cell back to the number of their month. Each row after the first instruction is meant to refer back to the previous value.