This set of resources is from Tools 4 NC Teachers.

This file contains a set of 6 lessons to be used during the first week(s) of school to develop students' mathematical mindsets. Lessons include:
Lesson 1: What is Math?
Lesson 2: Mathematicians Work Together
Lesson 3: Mathematicians Cooperate
Lesson 4: Mathematicians Ask Questions
Lesson 5: Mathematicians Learn from Mistakes
Lesson 6: Mathematicians Persevere

This resource is part of Tools4NCTeachers.

Math games are fun, motivating, and provide opportunities for students to build number concepts, reasoning, and fluency. These games may be used as math stations or as whole group learning opportunities. This file contains directions and materials for Cluster 2 math games.

Students will explore properties of sound and sound waves, experiment with building models of various musical instruments, then design and build a playable musical instrument of their choosing.

Children love to build! The Keva Planks have become very popular to use in classrooms. KEVA planks are about 1/4 inch thick, 3/4 inch wide and 4 1/2 inches long.You build structures by simply stacking the planks. There is no glue and no connectors. Keva planks creations are meant to be temporary. Students can create beautiful works of art, towers and much more and half the fun is destruction.

This lesson is the first of a two-part series on the properties and uses of different materials. In Materials 1: Materials and Manufacturing, the familiar tale of The Three Little Pigs is used as an introduction to materials and manufacturing. Students examine the properties, limitations, and durability of a variety of materials, then evaluate which of the materials would be best for building a model house. If used in its entirety, this lesson could take several science class periods.

Four full-year digital course, built from the ground up and fully-aligned to the Common Core State Standards, for 7th grade Mathematics. Created using research-based approaches to teaching and learning, the Open Access Common Core Course for Mathematics is designed with student-centered learning in mind, including activities for students to develop valuable 21st century skills and academic mindset.

Zooming In On Figures

Unit Overview

Type of Unit: Concept; Project

Length of Unit: 18 days and 5 days for project

Prior Knowledge

Students should be able to:

Find the area of triangles and special quadrilaterals.
Use nets composed of triangles and rectangles in order to find the surface area of solids.
Find the volume of right rectangular prisms.
Solve proportions.

Lesson Flow

After an initial exploratory lesson that gets students thinking in general about geometry and its application in real-world contexts, the unit is divided into two concept development sections: the first focuses on two-dimensional (2-D) figures and measures, and the second looks at three-dimensional (3-D) figures and measures.
The first set of conceptual lessons looks at 2-D figures and area and length calculations. Students explore finding the area of polygons by deconstructing them into known figures. This exploration will lead to looking at regular polygons and deriving a general formula. The general formula for polygons leads to the formula for the area of a circle. Students will also investigate the ratio of circumference to diameter ( pi ). All of this will be applied toward looking at scale and the way that length and area are affected. All the lessons noted above will feature examples of real-world contexts.
The second set of conceptual development lessons focuses on 3-D figures and surface area and volume calculations. Students will revisit nets to arrive at a general formula for finding the surface area of any right prism. Students will extend their knowledge of area of polygons to surface area calculations as well as a general formula for the volume of any right prism. Students will explore the 3-D surface that results from a plane slicing through a rectangular prism or pyramid. Students will also explore 3-D figures composed of cubes, finding the surface area and volume by looking at 3-D views.
The unit ends with a unit examination and project presentations.

Students will resume their project and decide on dimensions for their buildings. They will use scale to calculate the dimensions and areas of their model buildings when full size. Students will also complete a Self Check in preparation for the Putting It Together lesson.Key ConceptsThe first part of the project is essentially a review of the unit so far. Students will find the area of a composite figure—either a polygon that can be broken down into known areas, or a regular polygon. Students will also draw the figure using scale and find actual lengths and areas.GoalsRedraw a scale drawing at a different scale.Find measurements using a scale drawing.Find the area of a composite figure.SWD: Consider what supplementary materials may benefit and support students with disabilities as they work on this project:Vocabulary resource(s) that students can reference as they work:List of formulas, with visual supports if appropriateClass summaries or lesson artifacts that help students to recall and apply newly introduced skillsChecklists of expectations and steps required to promote self-monitoring and engagementModels and examplesStudents with disabilities may take longer to develop a solid understanding of newly introduced skills and concepts. They may continue to require direct instruction and guided practice with the skills and concepts relating to finding area and creating and interpreting scale drawings. Check in with students to assess their understanding of newly introduced concepts and plan review and reinforcement of skills as needed.ELL: As academic vocabulary is reviewed, be sure to repeat it and allow students to repeat after you as needed. Consider writing the words as they are being reviewed. Allow enough time for ELLs to check their dictionaries if they wish.

Students learn about material reuse by designing and building the strongest and tallest towers they can, using only recycled materials. They follow design constraints and build their towers to withstand earthquake and high wind simulations.

Students learn about civil engineers and work through each step of the engineering design process in two mini-activities that prepare them for a culminating challenge to design and build the tallest straw tower possible, given limited time and resources. First they examine the profiles of the tallest 20 towers in the world. Then in the first mini-activity (one-straw tall tower), student pairs each design a way to keep one straw upright with the least amount of tape and fewest additional straws. In the second mini-activity (no "fishing pole"), the pairs determine the most number of straws possible to construct a vertical straw tower before it bends at 45 degrees—resembling a fishing pole shape. Students learn that the taller a structure, the more tendency it has to topple over. In the culminating challenge (tallest straw tower), student pairs apply what they have learned and follow the steps of the engineering design process to create the tallest possible model tower within time, material and building constraints, mirroring the real-world engineering experience of designing solutions within constraints. Three worksheets are provided, for each of two levels, grades K-2 and grades 3-5. The activity scales up to school-wide, district or regional competition scale.

This resource is part of Tools4NCTeachers.

Math games are fun, motivating, and provide opportunities for students to build number concepts, reasoning, and fluency. These games may be used as math stations or as whole group learning opportunities. This file contains directions and materials for Cluster 3 math games.

Can you use things from around the house and/or your yard to build houses like the three little pigs? Try a house out of straw (or a close substitute), stick...