Scientific American
Life-Sized Drawing
Ocean explorers or mathematicians research the wreck of the CSS H.L. Hunley. They investigate the actual dimensions of the Hunley using math and measuring skills. Afterward, they sketch a large scale drawing of the submarine outdoors on...
University of Nottingham
Drawing to Scale: A Garden
See how design and geometry go hand in hand. The activity asks learners to use geometry to design a backyard garden given dimensions of each feature. Scholars work with ratios and scale to develop an accurate scale drawing that includes...
Consortium for Ocean Leadership
Measure for Measure
How does your class measure up? Young scientists create a scale drawing of the JOIDES Resolution in a collaborative activity. The lesson incorporates mathematical principles with deep-sea exploration to focus on enhancing measurement...
Noyce Foundation
Which is Bigger?
To take the longest path, go around—or was that go over? Class members measure scale drawings of a cylindrical vase to find the height and diameter. They calculate the actual height and circumference and determine which is larger.
Curated OER
Mathematics of Scale
Students problem solve to calculate the number of times various listed objects could fit onto Tacoma Narrows Bridge. They create a scale drawing of the listed objects in comparison to the bridge.
Curated OER
How Big is a Blue?
Students determine the length of different whales using a rope marked off and color coded to each length. They create life-size scale drawings of whales on butcher paper.
Curated OER
Fall Plowing: Drawing to Scale
Young scholars explore coordinates and scale drawings. In this drawing to scale lesson, students discuss symmetrical and asymmetrical shapes, geometric, shapes and estimation of size. Young scholars recreate a portion of a drawing using...
Curated OER
Megabeasts
Create larger-than-life insects for the classroom. Bugs are usually pretty small, but during the Jurassic period they were huge. Kids use diagramming and scale conversion to enlarge a modern day insect so that it is as big as its ancient...
Curated OER
Measure for Measure
Young mathematicians work to recognize the relationship between their scale models of the Joides research vessel and the real vessel. They calculate the relationships between various parts of the ship using fractions, ratios, and...
Curated OER
Scaling Down Art
Students change the scale of a work of art using ratios, percentages, and proportions. While this is technically an art lesson, there is quite a bit of mathematics involved in converting to the correct scale.
Noyce Foundation
Photographs
Scaling needs to be picture perfect. Pupils use proportional reasoning to find the missing dimension of a photo. Class members determine the sizes of paper needed for two configurations of pictures in the short assessment task.
Curated OER
Building a Ship Lesson Plan
Pupils draw a ship to scale, and calculate the real life size. They show that measurements on the drawingsare annotated with the distances reported in inches (fractions and decimals), and their real-world equivalents
Curated OER
Similarity
Middle schoolers engage in a lesson that is concerned with the concept of similarity. This takes higher order thinking skills and being able to separate into categories. Specifically in this lesson they are introduced to the scale and...
Noyce Foundation
Granny’s Balloon Trip
Take flight with a fun activity focused on graphing data on a coordinate plane. As learners study the data for Granny's hot-air balloon trip, including the time of day and the distance of the balloon from the ground, they practice...
Curated OER
Grid it, Map it
Students participate in designing a city layout using grids and coordinates. They work on a city space and create a grid on a life size layout on the gym floor.
Curated OER
Math - Design a Ship
Young scholars design a ship. They calculate square footage and draw their ship to scale. They build models of their ships.
Curated OER
Maps/ Scales and Conversions
In this math activity, students look for the actual values for the measurements of distance. The answers are found on page three.
Curated OER
Design Your Space
Students evaluate the acceptable use of classroom space. The class participated in a brief lecture and discuss of floor plans and how they are used in architecture. Using graph paper, they create a scale drawing of the classroom...
Curated OER
Introduction to Fractals: Geometric Fractals
Middle schoolers study and observe the patterns made by the areas of the Sierpinski Triangle. Students use the computer to draw two or three iterations to discover the number patterns. Middle schoolers complete worksheets based on...
Curated OER
Design-A-Room Project (Part 3 of 3)
Learners culminate a unit on measurement with a focus on area and perimeter. They design a floor plan of their dream room on graph paper showing the proper area and perimeter. They plan the budget for their room and make a 3-D scale...