Cuisenaire Rod

This lesson plan is entitled Train Riddles. Students set up riddles for each other to solve, each with its own unique solution. In solving and also creating riddles, students assign specific values for each rod length and are working with fractions and percentages (one rod is half the size of the other). This is a fun and interactive way for studenst to explore these concepts in a game that is both challenging and educational.

NLVM Money

The one entitled 'Money' under Number Operations 6-8 is a nice illustration for those who have not had much experience with money. I do remember subbing for various classes where this was part of the lesson. The class would have illustrations of various coins in the room. I, as the teacher, would point to each respective coin as
students conveyed its value and then added it to an accumulating total. This online version is a different, more modern way of communicating the same lesson.

NLVM Pie Chart

The virtual manipulative I wanted to comment on this week was the Pie Chart, available in Grades 3 through 5 Probability. This manipulative is useful in a mathematical context seeing how different percentages look when viewed in a pie. Additionally, I have found it useful in a therapeutic sense with some children. I counsel some younger individuals and quite often they falsely conclude cognitively that something is 'entirely my fault' or overemphasize one aspect of something. One common example is a child of divorce who blames him/herself entirely for the marital problems that exist. A pie chart like this along with a discussion of other factors that contribute to a given situation may ease the guilt a child is experiencing and have a positive effect on behavior and academics.

Geo Board Lesson Plan

The purpose of this lesson is for students to identify attributes that distinguish polygons and use geometric language to describe polygons.
The lesson proceeds by asking students to solve several Geoboard riddles. The riddles are as follows:

• It has 3 sides. Each side is a different length. It has one interior peg. It has no right angles.
• It has 4 sides. It has only one pair of parallel sides. No sides are the same length, or congruent.
• It has 6 sides. It has an area of 5 square units. It has 2 right angles.

Students then work in pairs as they try to come up with solutions for each of the riddles, examining different geometric properties as they proceed towards a solution. Solutions are presented to the class along with rationale for creating the particular solution. The lesson can be extended asking students to create their own riddles.

NLVM Attribute Trains

This NLVM game is found under Grade 6-8 Geometry. I had some initial difficulty with this game, but then started to have some fun after playing it a few times. The game allows the user to recognize patterns in either shapes, colors, or numbers within a particular shape. It is mentally challenging the first few times, and I liked it in the sense that it allows users/students to not only pay attention to sides in a geometric figure (triangle, square or pentagon) but also forces the student to recognize a pattern that develops. The game allows users to select a shape and place it in the next open space. If the selected shape does not follow the pattern, it is simply placed back and the user selects another shape to try and fit the pattern.

Lesson Plan Cuisenaire Rods

This lesson uses Cuisenaire Rods to create triangles.

Objective: Students will explore the relationships of the lengths of the sides of triangles.

Procedure: The lesson opens with the teacher showing students how a triangle can be formed using three different rods. The rods are arranged so that one corner of a rod touches each other.(The example highlighted in the CD used orange, yellow and dark green). The teacher then selects a combination of three rods (for example orange, yellow, and red) that do not come together to form a triangle. Students are encouraged to try 10 different combinations and determine whether each specific combination leads to the creation of a triangle with the three rods touching corners. Students are instructed to write the list of combinations down (length of rod and color) and indicate whether a triangle was found. In doing so, students are to look for a pattern why some combinations will and some will not result in a triangle. (In the activity, students will find that the sum of any two sides of a triangle ust be greater than the third side. If the sum of the 2 shorter sides does not exceed that of the third side, a triangle is not formed).

**In total, the CD specifies that 125 total combinations can be created (10 equilateral--all rods equal, 65 isosceles--two rods equal, and 50 scalene--all three rods of a different length)

Activity Extension--The primary focus of the activity is to see that in order for a triangle to be formed, the sum of any two sides must be greater than the third (The Triangle Inequality Theorem). The lesson can lead to a further discussion in geometry focusing on scalene, equilateral, and isosceles triangles.

Online Manipulative Deal or No Deal

For this week's online manipulative, I wanted to share a link to the game Deal or No Deal. I used this once in a class for a lesson on probability. The teacher can play the game with the students to provide an interactive lesson.
The game essentially starts with the teacher selecting a student to choose one case. Six other cases are chosen before te dealer makes an offer to purchase the original case. Probability or odds can be inserted into the lesson by asking the class 'How many cases left are higher than the offer presented? What is the probability or odds that you will have a case higher than that of the offer which was presented?'
There are also game sheets available so each student can work along as the teacher operates the online version. Students become involved as the teacher calls on different individuals to open the cases as the game progresses.


http://www.nbc.com/Deal_or_No_Deal/game/flash.shtml