Enrich Instruction in a Geometry and Measurement Unit with Technology
Calculating Areas with Geometer’s Sketchpad
iLearn Grade 6
Math Session 6.7
Focusing Questions
How can we make the most of our technology resources for studying area?
Instruction
Framing The Session
Open up a new SmartBoard notebook page. Go to the Gallery and search for a grid. Open up related folders, and select the Graphing folder. Open up Pictures and Backgrounds, and select Grid-large. Have students trace their hand on the screen, and count the grid squares inside the tracing.
Teaching
Step 1- Discuss the results.
Step 2- Participants shall find the area of their hand considering two scenarios: if the grid is a 1 inch grid, and if the grid is a ½ inch grid. Be sure students understand why the estimate with ½ inch grid paper requires that the estimate be multiplied by ¼ to get the area in square inches.
Guided Practice
Guide participants through the process of discussion. Discuss which grid was easier to use to estimate the area of their hand and why.
Work Time
Getting Started
Take the next 25 minutes to complete the following:
• Complete IMPACT Mathematics Course 1 Investigation 1 pages 515-517_2nd ed.,2004 Problem Sets A, B, and C. Use Geometer’s Sketchpad Parallelogram Area activity.
• To explore the area of triangles, students should complete IMPACT Mathematics Course 1 Investigation 2 pages 518-521_2nd ed.,2004 Problem Sets D, E, F and G. Use Geometer’s Sketchpad Area activity and choose the “Triangle” page tab.
Getting Started
• To explore the area of circles students should complete IMPACT Mathematics Course 1 Investigation 3 pages 522-524_2nd ed.,2004 Problem Sets H and I. Use a New Geometer’s Sketchpad page to create circles for Problem Set H. On the new sketch, go to the Graph menu/ Grid Form and select Square Grid to draw the circles on a grid.
• The Course 1 IMPACT Mathematics Lab Investigation on pages 525-527_2nd ed.,2004 provides the opportunity to show how to use Microsoft Excel. This is not available in the revised text.
Work TimeParticipants will...
• Step 1- Use Geometer’s Sketchpad Parallelogram Area activity to complete IMPACT Mathematics Course 1 Investigation 1 pages 515-517_2nd ed.,2004 Problem Sets A, B, and C: Pairs
• Step 2- Use Geometer’s Sketchpad Area activity and choose the “Triangle” page tab to complete IMPACT Mathematics Course 1 Investigation 2 pages 518-521_2nd ed.,2004 Problem Sets D, E, F and G: Individuals
• Step 3- Open a New Geometer’s Sketchpad sketch, go to the Graph menu/ Grid Form and select Square Grid. Draw circles on the grid to help complete IMPACT Mathematics Course 1 Investigation 3 pages 522-524_2nd ed.,2004 Problem Sets H and I: Groups of 2 or 3
Share
• Ask selected participants to share particularly good examples of their work. Review the following investigations.
• IMPACT Mathematics page 517_2nd ed.,2004 Share & Summarize
• IMPACT Mathematics page 521_2nd ed.,2004 Share & Summarize
• IMPACT Mathematics Investigation 3 page 524_2nd ed.,2004 Share & Summarize
• (If using the IMPACT Mathematics Course 1 2nd ed. Lab Investigation Share page 527 examples 9-11)
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