6-8
This lesson explores the
concept
of slope through a student-centered problem of data collection and evaluation.
Students guess which of several flights of stairs is steepest, and then use
measures of slope to test their hypothesis.
6-8
Darts is a popular game in which players throw 3 darts, one at a time, aiming for a target. Different regions of the board give different points. In this lesson, students learn how to change the scale of an object, and how to measure and draw angles using a protractor. By the end of the lesson, students have created their own dartboard. The dartboard can later serve to emphasize properties of angles and angle pairs. This activity is a good one to do prior to a lesson in which students construct circle graphs. The practice they will get in this lesson drawing circles and measuring angles will help them in their quest to more accurately create circle graphs.
6-8, 9-12
A common problem when students learn about the slope-intercept equation
y =
mx +
b is that they mechanically substitute for
m and
b without understanding their meaning. This lesson is intended to provide students with a method for understanding that
m is a rate of change and
b is the value when
x = 0. This kinesthetic activity allows students to form a physical interpretation of slope and
y-intercept
by running across a football field. Students will be able to verbalize
the meaning of the equation to reinforce understanding and discover
that slope (or rate of movement) is the same for all sets of points
given a set of data with a linear relationship.
6-8
Students will estimate the areas of highly irregular shapes and will use a process of decomposition to calculate the areas of irregular polygons.
6-8
Students use real-world examples to solve problems involving scale as they examine maps of their home states and calculate distances between cities.
6-8
In this year-long project, students design, "build," and "sell" a
house; after which they simulate investment of the profits in the stock
market. Along the way, students make scale drawings, compute with
fractions and decimals in various contexts, and even solve simple
equations. This lesson plan was adapted from an article by David B.
Smith, which appeared in the September 2000 edition of
Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School.
6-8
Students participate in an activity in which they develop number sense in and around the shopping mall. They solve problems involving percent and scale drawings.
