Spending Money
In this lesson, students use the Understand, Plan, Solve, and Evaluate (UPSE) problem-solving model to first identify and organize relevant information, and then devise and carry out a plan to solve one-step mathematics word problems with a missing addend. The lesson was designed with English learners (ELs) in mind and includes instructional strategies designed to make linguistic and content input comprehensible: a focus on vocabulary, manipulatives, visuals, cooperative learning, anchor charts, graphic organizers, technology applications, and sentence stems/frames.
Communication in Space
Students will work in cooperative groups to create an accurate arrangement of mirrors that work together to relay a laser beam from a Mars space station to Earth’s Mission Control, which will model utilizing satellites in space for communication, an accommodation necessary for manned space exploration.
Teacher In Action
45-45-90 Triangles
To learn the pattern of the side lengths of a 45-45-90 triangle, students complete a gallery walk, a card sort activity starting with using the Pythagorean theorem, and activity to locate if there is an error in a presented problem and if so to identify what the error is.
Math at the Carnival
As students rotate through engaging learning stations, they utilize concrete objects, pictorial models, mnemonic devices, and strip diagrams to solve real-world, two and three-digit subtraction word problems, with and without regrouping.
Comparing Fractional Parts Using Pizza
Students will compare fractional parts in a real-world situation using play dough as a model for pizza.
Student working through task
Keeping it Concrete with Candy
Students will work collaboratively to apply and use digits, value, greater than/less than and base 10 knowledge to communicate numbers up to 1200 with a Halloween theme.
One-Step Word Problems
Students participate in a teacher-created three-act task in order to solve math word problems. They reactivate their prior knowledge and determine the question to solve the main problem during Act One. Act Two engages students in a differentiated, rich task. During Act Three, students compare and discuss their work with peers outside their original groups.
Solve Problems using Place Value Strategies with a Carnival Theme
Students will work collaboratively through a fictitious real-world scenario to solve one‐step and multi‐step word problems. The lesson will involve solving addition and subtraction within 1,000 using a variety of strategies based on place value.
Pizza Place Value
Students compose and decompose numbers up to 1,200 in more than one way by participating in a teacher-created Three Act Task using a real-world scenario.
Cooking Up Word Problems
Students rotate through four stations, collaboratively utilizing different strategies and manipulatives to analyze, explore, solve, and generate real-world culinary problem situations.
Are You in Your Place?
Students will be able to use concrete and pictorial models to compose and decompose numbers with place value.
Working with Literal Equations
The lesson will provide a conceptual basis for illustrating the parallelism between solving multi-step equations and translating literal equations into solutions for specified variables.
Students working together
Finding Clues to Solve Equations and Inequalities
Students will solve one variable two-step equations and inequalities using a variety of materials while working independently and collaboratively in learning stations.
Place Value Party
In learning stations, students prepare for a birthday party by using their knowledge of place value to compose, decompose, and represent numbers using standard, word, and expanded forms.
Solving Word Problems with Friends
Students will work in groups and solve one-step word problems using a protocol to guide their thinking.
Strike a Pose
The students will solve two-step equations through modeling, expressing algebraically, and writing out the steps to their solutions.
Rational Number Stations
Students will visit two different stations and work as a group to add, subtract, multiply, and divide rational numbers.
Stages of Ecological Succession
Students will collaborate on a electronic slideshow presentation and observe, record, and describe the role of ecological succession including both primary and secondary succession.
Demonstration and Analysis of Dihybrid Crosses
The students will review related vocabulary, watch the teacher model a dihybrid cross, and then perform a dihybrid cross and answer questions about the outcomes with a partner.
Step Into the Problem: A Strategy for Visualizing a Math Problem
Teachers will show students a tool to help them understand a problem situation. The tool called Step into the Problem, will walk students through the steps of comprehending a problem: Read the problem, Turn and Talk, Act it Out, Notice and Wonder, and Reflect. Students will be given a problem situation and will go through the steps to show that they understand the problem situation.