Curated OER
Art Dates
Students use a timeline to measure intervals and calculate the age of works of art.
Noyce Foundation
Truffles
Knowing how to scale a recipe is an important skill. Young mathematicians determine the amount of ingredients they need to make a certain number of truffles when given a recipe. They determine a relationship between ingredients given a...
Mathematics Assessment Project
Multiplying Cells
Powers of two: it's a matter of doubling. A short summative assessment task asks pupils to determine a process to calculate the number of cells at given time intervals. They use powers of two in order to calculate the number of...
Inside Mathematics
Magic Squares
Prompt scholars to complete a magic square using only variables. Then they can attempt to solve a numerical magic square using algebra.
Inside Mathematics
Number Towers
Number towers use addition or multiplication to ensure each level is equal. While this is common in factoring, it is often not used with algebraic equations. Solving these six questions relies on problem solving skills and being able to...
Balanced Assessment
House Plan
A short assessment has individuals determine the scale of a house plan. They use the scale to calculate the size of a door and window that need to be replaced, and then divide a bedroom in two, calculating the size of rooms created.
Illustrative Mathematics
Paper Clip
With minimal setup and maximum freedom, young geometers are encouraged to think outside the box on a seemingly simple application problem. Though the task seems simple, measuring a given paper clip and finding how many 10 meters can...
Inside Mathematics
Squares and Circles
It's all about lines when going around. Pupils graph the relationship between the length of a side of a square and its perimeter. Class members explain the origin in context of the side length and perimeter. They compare the graph to the...
Noyce Foundation
Baseball Players
Baseball is all about statistics. Pupils solve problems related to mean, median, and range. They calculate the total weight of players given the mean weight, calculate the mean weight of reserve players given the mean weight of the...
EngageNY
Ratios of Fractions and Their Unit Rates
Challenge the class to calculate unit rates using complex fractions. Pupils work through examples of finding unit rates using ratios of fractions. To complete the 11th lesson plan of 22, scholars review sample work and determine whether...
EngageNY
Graphing the Logarithmic Function
Teach collaboration and communication skills in addition to graphing logarithmic functions. Scholars in different groups graph different logarithmic functions by hand using provided coordinate points. These graphs provide the basis for...
Roald Dahl
Matilda - Arithmetic
Mr. Wormwood, one of the characters in Roald Dahl's Matilda, is not the most trustworthy of characters. Have student groups take on the roles of car salespeople and play a game to see who can make the most profit by selling...
National Research Center for Career and Technical Education
Photoshop Scale
Say cheese! Can your class take a great photo and size it to fit any need? A career and technology-centered lesson plan demonstrates the correct way to resize images in Adobe Photoshop. Scholars view a presentation and work individually...
Workforce Solutions
Reality Check
Talk about a reality check! High schoolers complete a lifestyle survey indicating their preference for housing, entertainment, etc., and then calculate the salary required to support those choices. Finally, they research the types of...
Illustrative Mathematics
Comparing Years
Who knew that the Egyptian, Julian, and Gregorian year were different lengths? Your mathematicians will! They will have to calculate the difference between the years in seconds and find the percent change. Using dimensional analysis,...
It's About Time
Energy Flow in Ecosystems
Emerging biochemists more fully understand the flow of energy in ecosystems as they explore the laws of thermodynamics and relate them to energy transfer in food chains. They also investigate heat loss from the human body and how...
Virginia Department of Education
The Ratio of Surface Area to Volume
Demonstrate the ratio of surface area to volume in your high school class by using phenolphthalein, gelatin, and an onion. Intrigue the class by leading a discussion on osmosis and diffusion, then making "scientific jello." Participants...
Illustrative Mathematics
Giantburgers
What is a million between friends? This fast food chain claims to serves a certain percentage of Americans every day. The resource agrees, but depending on how you calculate it, you could be a million off. Let your fast food munchers be...
Mathed Up!
Money Problems
Mo' money, mo' problems! But don't worry, here is an assessment that proves to young mathematicians that they can solve actual money problems. The resource includes 11 money problems involving addition, subtraction, multiplication,...
Virginia Department of Education
The Rate of Motion
How much time does it take to jump over three balloons? Pupils calculate the speed of tasks that require different motions. They determine motions for tasks such as walking, skipping, hopping, and jumping before creating a...
Willow Tree
Interior Angles, Exterior Angles, and Diagonals of Polygons
How does the number of sides of a polygon affect the angle measures? Learners recognize a pattern in finding the total measure of interior and exterior angles and the number of diagonals. They use the patterns to calculate...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
The Great Elephant Census Modeling Activity
They say elephants never forget—and your class won't forget an insightful modeling activity either! Junior zoologists take part in a mock elephant census using the sample count and total count methods. The included materials provide...
Cornell University
Atomic Bonding
Explore the connection of surface area to bonding within atoms. Learners complete lab investigations to model changing surface area with different sizes and concentrations of atoms. A flour fireball demonstration follows the labs to...
California Education Partners
Lashelles Garden
Let knowledge grow bountifully like plants in a garden. Given a diagram of a rectangular garden split into plots, scholars determine the area of the entire garden and the areas of the individual plots. As a culminating activity, they...