Lesson Plan
Illustrative Mathematics

Running Around a Track II

For Teachers 9th - 11th Standards
On your mark, get set, GO! The class sprints toward the conclusions in a race analysis activity. The staggered start of the 400-m foot race is taken apart in detail, and then learners step back and develop some overall race strategy...
Activity
Teach Engineering

Applying Statistics to Nano-Circuit Dimensions in Fabrication

For Students 11th - 12th Standards
Do flexible circuits change dimensions during fabrication? Groups use GeoGebra software to measure the length of pictures of flexible nano-circuits. To determine if the circuits change dimensions, future engineers use Microsoft...
Activity
Exploratorium

Tired Weight

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
You don't need a scale to determine weight. This activity provides a way to use the concepts of air pressure and surface area to determine the weight of a vehicle by calculating the amount of weight each tire supports.
Activity
Houston Area Calculus Teachers

Area and Volume

For Students 11th - Higher Ed
An AP calculus lesson begins with an activity to determine the volume of a solid using a cross-section. Next, learners review the ways to find the area between two curves , as well how to find the volume of a solid created...
Activity
Curated OER

House Project

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Make young mathematicians' dreams a reality with this fun drawing project. Given the task of designing their dream home, students create drawings and physical models that demonstrate their understanding of proportion and scale.
Lesson Plan
California Academy of Science

Which Way is North?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Who needs a compass to find cardinal directions? Just place a stick in the ground and record the movement of its shadow over the course of a day. Then, measure the shadow lengths in order to determine a north-south line. A simple...
Activity
Exploratorium

Tired Weight

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Take your class out to visit your automobile and use the tires to compute the weight of the vehicle. This is done by measuring the surface of the tire meeting the ground and the air pressure. This is a fun lesson in the relationship...
Lesson Plan
Illustrative Mathematics

Computing Volume Progression 3

For Teachers 5th - 7th Standards
Learners are given a volume of a rectangular tank and are asked to find the water height. Because the total volume of the tank is given in liters, your geometers will need to use a unit ratio to convert to centimeters cubed. The exercise...
Activity
101 Questions

Oversize Tires

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Big vehicles require some big tires. Given a picture of a flatbed hauling a large tire, scholars discuss and estimate the size of the tire. They then use information and video about the tires to estimate the height of a vehicle that uses...
Lesson Plan
Shodor Education Foundation

Triangle Area

For Teachers 6th - 9th Standards
While the instructional activity focuses on right triangles, this activity offers a great way to practice the area of all triangles through an interactive webpage. The activity begins with the class taking a square paper and cutting in...
Lesson Plan
Illustrative Mathematics

Computing Volume Progression 4

For Teachers 6th - 9th Standards
This resource was written for the younger math learner, but finding the volume of an irregular solid is also a problem for algebra and geometry students. Based on Archimedes’ Principle, one can calculate the volume of a stone by...
Lesson Plan
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University of Wisconsin

Sizing a Rain Garden

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Most appropriate if you are applying the entire unit to build a rain garden at your school, this installment involves calculating the area that will drain into it. Your garden planners will need data from previous lessons, so this one...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Deformation: Nanocomposite Compression

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students learn about nanocomposites, compression and strain as they design and program robots that compress materials. Student groups conduct experiments to determine how many LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT motor rotations it takes to compress soft...
Activity
Texas Instruments

Texas Instruments: Maximizing the Area of a Rectangle

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This activity is adapted from one of the TI books. Students measure lengths and widths of rectangles and record for the class to see. Each group's rectangle has the same perimeter, but different areas. After a discussion, students make...
Activity
American Chemical Society

American Chemical Soc.: Best of Wonder Science: Measure Yourself in Metric [Pdf]

For Students 3rd - 5th Standards
Activities where students take turns measuring their height, the width of parts of the hand, and the distance jumped using metric units.
Activity
Rice University

Rice University: Cynthia Lanius: Golden Ratio

For Students 9th - 10th
This site introduces students to the definition of golden ratio. It gives them a chance to estimate ratios and predict which figures are closest to the golden ratio. There is a link on this page that provides charts for students to...
Activity
Jim Loy

Jl's Math Page: The Golden Rectangle and the Golden Ratio

For Students 9th - 10th
This is a personal site from Jim Loy that describes the golden rectangle and the golden ratio. Includes several diagrams and pictures as well as formulas. A good background in math is helpful.