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Here Comes the Sun
Many phenomena in life are periodic in nature. A task-based lesson asks scholars to explore one of these phenomena. They collect data showing the sunrise time of a specific location over the period of a year. Using the data, they create...
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Graphing Elements
How do you graph a sentence? Scholars do just that as they represent relationships between independent and dependent variables with a graphical representation. Given a sentence, they determine the pertinent relationship and create a...
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Graphical Depictions
Parent functions and their combinations create unique graphical designs. Learners explore these relationships with a progressive approach. Beginning with linear equations and inequalities and progressing to more complex functions,...
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Going Up
Going on up—and up and up! An open-ended task asks learners to model the movement of an amusement ride with parametric equations. They then analyze their equations to determine how the shadow of the ride's car moves as it rises at a...
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Gestation and Longevity
Is the gestation length of an animal a predictor of the average life expectancy of that animal? Learners analyze similar data for more than 50 different animals. They choose a data display and draw conclusions from their graphs.
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Functions by the Slice
Piece by piece ... dismantling a function can highlight interesting patterns. The task asks learners to slice functions in sections with the same vertical change. They then recreate the graph with these slices positioned horizontally....
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Bill the Ball Bearing Man
Just how durable could a hollow ball bearing be? Learners model the strength of the walls of a ball bearing as a function of the radius of its cavity. They use their models to make reasonable conclusions about the probability of failure...
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Cultural Growth
Scholars read and interpret a graph relating bacterial growth in a culture over time. They apply knowledge of derivatives, estimation, and graphing to the skill practice questions.
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Crossing the Axis
Mathematicians typically reference eight different types of functions. Scholars learn about the requirements for graphing a function and must decide how many different functions fit. To finish, they define each specific function meeting...
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City of New Orleans
In the United States, most trains operate at a top speed of 100 miles per hour. Scholars use information on the distance and time of a train trip to determine if the train ever reaches a specific speed. They connect pieces of information...
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Cities and Gas Stations
In Utah, one stretch of highway goes for 106 miles without a single gas station. Where should people build one? Scholars face the dilemma of where to place a new gas station between three cities. They consider distance and proximity to...
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Circumscribed Polygon
Trigonometry teachers often go off on a tangent, and here's a worksheet that proves it! First, young mathematicians use a formula with tangent to prove a formula correct for area. Then, they draw conclusions about the area of a circle...
Mathematics Vision Project
Module 2: Congruence, Construction and Proof
Construct yourself a winning geometry unit. A set of lessons introduces geometry scholars to constructions and proofs with compasses and straightedges. It also covers triangle congruence through transformations. This is the second of...
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Cheetah's Lunch
Run like a cheetah. A performance task challenges pupils to solve several different problems involving the speed of a cheetah. Given information for scenarios where the cheetah chases its prey, they determine if the big cat is fast enough.
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Spinning an Old Record
Take a trip back in time to examine angular velocity. Using the revolutions per minute, learners calculate the speed of a point on a 33 record. They compare the speed of a point on the edge of the record to the speed of a point closer to...
Mathematics Vision Project
Module 3: Numbers and Operations
Bring some concrete reasoning to the skills of multiplying and combining terms. Using various strategies, the six activities in the module provide practice for the skills of adding, subtracting, multiplying, and diving polynomials. The...
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In Oz We Tryst
The shortest distance from point A to point B is a straight line, but measuring distance gets more complicated when there are three points! Given the location of three friends, individuals determine the best point for all three friends...
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Gravity
Weight is a function of the distance from sea level. Learners explore the many implications of this fact in an inquiry-based task. Given the function, pupils answer questions before manipulating the function to rewrite the distance from...
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Broken Spreadsheet I
There is power in spreadsheet formulas and learners use this power to model quadratic data. Given a scatterplot of a parabola, pupils create formulas in a spreadsheet to populate the data. The formulas they use lead to an understanding...
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Bicycle Chain
Model a bicycle chain with circles and tangent lines. Given the dimensions of the sprocket wheels, young scholars calculate the length of the chain that surrounds them. A second task has learners write a function for the length of a...
Mathematics Vision Project
Module 1: Transformations and Symmetry
No need to change anything about the resource. The first of eight modules in the MVP Geometry unit focuses on transformations in the coordinate plane. It connects translations, rotations, and reflections to congruence, symmetry, and...
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Catching Up
Class members have some catching up to do. Given a linear equation describing the distance of a runner, young mathematicians interpret the equation in terms of the context. They consider a general equation of the same form and describe...
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Calculator Numbers
Know thy calculator. Young mathematicians use their calculators to answer a set of questions. They consider how the number of digits the calculator displays affects the answers to calculations. They then find examples of computations...
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Build a Box
Strive for gold with an informative resource. A short task challenges learners to investigate the thickness of a box made from a given volume of gold. The box must have specific dimensions, so setting up and solving a literal equation is...