Curated OER
The Wonderful World of Colors
First graders imagine what life would look like in one color, then many. They play a game with colored cards where students call out the names of colors. They match colored cards with objects of same color. They read "The Color Box."
Smithsonian Institution
Ceramica de los Ancestros
Scholars join a field expedition team to unearth a plethora of treasures from Central America. Artifacts listed in alphabetical order come with an informational blurb and a picture designed for participants to color. Activity pages...
Curated OER
Shapes of Africa
First graders learn the names of geometric shapes and about African cultures. For this geometry and culture lesson, 1st graders describe real world objects and learn to name them with geometric terms such as square, circle, and triangle....
NTTI
Putting Together Ten
Groups explore sets of 10 items in two varieties (i.e. 3 white buttons and 7 black ones, or 5 bears and 5 bunnies). They brainstorm about their objects, write math sentences to represent what they have, and report their discoveries to...
Curated OER
Solar System
Explore the solar system in detail, from it's origins to its components. Visual data gathered by actual space missions has been used to create the images and animations on each page of this stellar electronic book about the solar...
Curated OER
X-ray Spectroscopy and the Chemistry of Supernova Remnants
This link takes you to a comprehensive unit that delves into emission spectra and supernovas. There are four parts: How and where elements are created, electromagnetic radiation, spectroscopy, and the newest technology for studying our...
Curated OER
What Floats Your Boat?
Students explore the principles of buoyancy and Archimedes' Principle and design their own flotation device. They compare the dimensions of a model to the real object to determine scale and analyze the models to suggest improvements.
Virginia Department of Education
Geometry and Volume
The history of math is fascinating! Utilize a woodcut primary source image from 1492 and posters from the 1930s to help geometers apply their volume-calculation skills to real-life questions.
Curated OER
Scale Me Down
Students create scale drawings, and ultimately scale models, of real-world objects in this Math lesson about ratios, proportion, scaling factors, and cross products. The lesson includes ideas for cross-curricular extensions and is...
Curated OER
Measuring Mania
Second graders turn into measuring maniacs with this activity! With real world objects, 2nd graders practice measuring accurately to the nearest inch and centimeter. After a lecture/demo, students practice with a worksheet imbedded in...
Curated OER
Electronic Geometry Notebook
Students examine the relationship between two and three dimensional shapes. They use their drawings to solve problems. They create a notebook of the formulas and how they relate to the real world.
Intel
Understanding the Design Process
Can you build a better mousetrap? Broken into two sessions, this plan introduces learners to the design process. The first session has pupils look at the world through a design perspective by redesigning everyday objects. In the second...
Curated OER
Geometry Jeopardy
Students identify the pattern in a problem. In this geometry lesson, students make predictions, collect and analyze data. They apply the idea of scales and measurements to the real world.
Curated OER
Transformation: Reflection
Tenth graders identify and analyze appropriate key vocabulary terms associated with transformations and reflection. Students experience creating and recognizing reflection with hands-on manipulations. Students discover real-world...
Curated OER
Measurement: Finding Areas of Rectangles
Gardening geometers construct the formula for the area of a rectangle by viewing a video revolving around two young people, their lawn mowing business, and their need to charge by the square meter. A relevant real-life application lesson!
Curated OER
Introducing Trig
Fifth graders explore the importance of triangles in the real world. They find the unknown side of a right triangle using a scale drawing. Students use Pythagoras' Theorem and other appropriate ratios.
Curated OER
Energy, Work and Power
Students examine the differences between potential and kinetic energy. In this physics lesson students view a video and apply what they learn about energy to apply it to real world situations.
Teach Engineering
Linear Regression of BMD Scanners
Objects may be more linear than they appear. Scholars investigate the relationship between the number of bone mineral density scanners in the US and time. Once they take the natural logarithm of the number of scanners, a linear...
PBS
Reading Adventure Pack: Robots
Two activities work with a fiction and nonfiction book about robots‚—Robot Dreams by Sara Varon and Robot by Roger Bridgman. Scholars read each story, then build a robot out of found objects, examine robot sensors, and search for...
EngageNY
Graphing Quadratic Functions from the Standard Form
Use context to explain the importance of the key features of a graph. When context is introduced, the domain and range have meaning, which enhances understanding. Pupils use application questions to explore the key features of the graph...
Curated OER
Narrow Corridor
Buying a new sofa? Learn how to use the Pythagorean Theorem, as well as algebra and graphing techniques, to determine whether the sofa will fit around a corner (which I'm sure you'll agree is a very important consideration!).
Virginia Department of Education
Surface Area and Volume
Partners use materials to wrap three-dimensional objects to determine the formula for surface area. The groups use an orange to calculate the amount of peel it takes to completely cover the fruit. Using manipulatives, individuals then...
Curated OER
Ratios And Scale
students investigate the concept of using a ratio in the work of construction and solve problems using real life applications. They read descriptions of how various types of construction professionals use ratios on the job. The lesson...
Achieve
Greenhouse Management
Who knew running a greenhouse required so much math? Amaze future mathematicians and farmers with the amount of unit conversions, ratio and proportional reasoning, and geometric applications involved by having them complete the...