Math Lesson #1 – November 13, 2012

Low student artifact from day #1 – Modeling shapes out of clay We had to assist Jaylynn with making her rectangle because she initially confused a rectangle with a square. At first, she was not able to understand or explain the difference between a rectangle and a square is a rectangle has two longer sides and two shorter sides, versus a square has 4 sides of equal length.

High student artifact from day #1 – Modeling shapes out of clay Jared knew right away to break up his clay into four pieces to construct a rectangle out of clay. He also easily recognized that two of the sides of a rectangle are longer than the other two sides. Once he finished with the rectangle he also helped the student sitting to his right with constructing that student’s rectangle. We did not ask him to do this, Jared assisted the other student on his own.

Third student artifact from day #1 – Modeling shapes out of clay Ray went ahead and created 2 rectangles, and then explained to us how they differed from a triangle and a square by creating the triangle and square and then counting out the sides of each. We found this both creative and interesting because he could not only construct the concept but explain it to each of us at the same time. We also liked how while Ray explained it to the 3 of us, the two students seated to his left and right were listening and then able to repeat what he did on their own plates.

Math Lesson #2 – November 14, 2012

Low student artifact from day #2 – Using geo-boards Jaylynn was only able to create a triangle after Brittany constructed one for her to copy on the geo-board. Our triangle is the green triangle formed below the triangle Jaylynn is attempting to construct. She kept wanting to build a square but when we finally suggested she try and build the triangle using both hands, she could do it (as seen above).

High student artifact from day #2 – Using geo-boards When we walked around to view student shapes on their geo-boards, Jared had constructed 3 triangles on his geo-board, and placed one triangle inside the other. While the majority of his peers were struggling with the concept of forming one triangle, he finished two. His third triangle was formed after we asked him to keep going. Jared thoroughly enjoyed constructing shapes on the geo-board.

Third student artifact from day #2 – Using geo-boards Ava constructed one triangle and then connected a 2nd triangle to the first by turning her geo-board around and repeating her steps. She was also able to explain the triangles are the same shape even though one is larger than the other because they each have 3 sides. We found her design creative because she not only constructed two different size triangles, but was able to form them starting from the same peg and opposite the other.

Math Lesson #3 – November 15, 2012

Low student artifact from day #3 – Non-defining attributes Jaylynn was the only student in class who put a square around the word YES for the bottom question instead of circling the answer like we asked students to do. Further, she did not know the answer at first but copied off the student seated next to her. She is a very good artist, but it seems she is more interested in coloring than in learning about the lesson.

High student artifact from day #3 – Non-defining shapes Jared was the first student finished with the worksheet, and he did not need any help completing any part of it. Further, he colored in the triangles very neatly and had no hesitation recognizing the shapes are the same even though they are different colors.

Third student artifact from day #3 – Non-defining shapes Xzavier really took our directions of coloring the two shapes in differently to a whole new level! He was the only student in class to color the triangles in different patterns as well as in different colors. We thought this was very creative because he not only used different colors, but a different style of pattern for each triangle, too. And, Xzavier was also the only student who colored in the circle for his answer in the second part.

Math Lesson #4 – November 16, 2012

Low student artifact from day #4 – Shape Reflections Jaylynn was unable to draw the triangles as Brittany instructed the class to do, and instead she drew 4 triangles without attempting to see the triangles reflection. Then after she had drawn her 4 triangles, she decided to decorate them.

High student artifact from day #4 – Shape Reflections Although one of Jared’s triangle reflections is different than the other triangle it is still a reflection of its pair. Jared’s work is neat and he shows he understood the concept of reflections. Both sets of his triangles are reflecting the other triangle showing he understands the triangles should look opposite the other. Further, his 4 triangles are all drawn within their given squares and none of the triangle sides are drawn over any of the folds.

Third student artifact from day #4 – Shape Reflections Henry did not necessarily draw his triangles as reflections of each other, but we liked how he wrote his name as a reflection. Even though he seems not to understand the concept from his drawings of the triangles, we believe he finally understood the concept of reflections as demonstrated by how he wrote his name.

Math Lesson #5 – November 19, 2012

Low student artifact from day #5 – Shapes mosaic Jaylynn is a wonderful artist so she especially enjoyed today’s lesson because she got a chance to “make” something. She did not write down the number of shapes she used correctly because she missed a few of the questions. Jaylynn wrote down that she used 1 circle, 1 rectangle, 2 squares, and 2 triangles.

High student artifact from day #5 – Shapes mosaic Jared did a very good job with making his mosaic, especially because he did not feel well today and was complaining of a stomach ache. Even before he received his bag of shapes Jared knew he wanted to make a robot. He also did a great job writing down how many of each shape he used. Jared wrote that he used 2 circles, 7 rectangles (which is correct because the blue shape underneath the black circle is a rectangle but its’ been partially covered), 0 squares, and 2 triangles.

Third student artifact from day #5 – Shapes mosaic We chose Michael’s picture for our third artifact because it was one of the more creative mosaics. He wrote “ON” and “OFF” on two of the shapes, and he explained to us his picture is of a robot that can turn on and off. We thought that was pretty adorable. We also really liked how many shapes he was able to use, and how creatively he used them. Michael has two triangles in the center of his robot that form a square. Instead of Michael just using a square shape, he made his own out of two different shapes. He also got all of his answers correct regarding the number of shapes he used per shape.