Ms. Amber Nakamura's Mathematics Website
Algebra Project
What would your dream house look like? A cottage? A medieval castle? High schoolers enrolled in Algebra design the perfect house while using slopes to write equations for various aspects of the project.
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Creating Plays from Children's Stories
Students explain how individual elements (e.g., plot, theme, character, conflict, etc.) comprise the structure of a play. They write an original one-act play with developed characters, specific setting, conflict, and resolution.
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Drama/Theatre
Young scholars discover how setting, props, and character-action communicate information about the characters and the story. Access to videos and a video camera are important to make this lesson a success.
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Garage Band Introduction
Learners create a new project. They are told that the Garage Band is a program that comes on Macintosh computers. Students are told that they project doesn't matter what tempo or key if they are recording live music. They go back to the...
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Scene Writing
Eighth graders create an original scene or short one-act play within specified guidelines. Assessment is based upon the performance of student-created scenes during class time. Rubrics for assessment and connection to state standards...
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Snail Car
Students design and create robotic cars using Legos and the Robolab program. They hold a "snail race" where the slowest car that can be determined to be actually moving is the winner.
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Creating Comic Strips
Students create comic strips to communicate ideas that cannot be expressed through words alone.
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Amate Bark Paintings/Folk Arts of Latin America
Students explore the history of bark paintings in South America and produce their own version of these paintings.
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Emotion Masks
Students analyze and discuss masks of different cultures as an art form to evoke emotion. This instructional activity culminates in the creation of individual mask designs and self-directed assessment (included).
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Expressive Self Portrait - Mixed Media
Students create self-portraits using prior artistic knowledge and personal experiences. Emphasis is placed on the works of Albrecht Durer, Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Frida Kahlo, Romare Bearden, and Chuck Close for inspiration.
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Chinese Shadow Puppets
Students explore Chinese culture by performing a shadow puppet play. They create the puppets, develop a script, and rehearse and perform a play which illustrates an understanding of Chinese stories and traditions.
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Poetry Writing
Students compose a piece of poetry modeled after the poetry of Carl Sandburg and share their poem(s) with their colleagues. They use a cluster diagram to organize their thoughts and brainstorm their ideas.
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World-Water Hero
Students make up a superhero. In this water quality lesson, students create a superhero with super powers that can improve water quality and availability.
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Northwest Indian Masks
Students explore the cultural importance of Native American masks. In this indigenous cultures lesson, students are first introduced to the tribal groups of the Northwest and how they used masks for medicine, religion, and entertainment....
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The Voice of Voting: How do We Judge Design
Students examine various methods of judging popular culture and compare them to the judging of the People's Design Award. In this popular culture and design lesson, students research different ways of voting in popular culture, beginning...
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Dealing With Tragedy in the Classroom
Students compose a letter, organize a group effort, discuss the idea of patriotic symbols and explain their importance, use visual representations to express feelings and explain the importance of sustained volunteerism.
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Color Scheme Design
Students create a work of art using specific color scheme guidelines studied previously. State standards for the arts are addressed in this six day instructional activity for the high school art class.
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Product Design and Production in the Global Economy
Eleventh graders explore the design, manufacture and consumption of personal audio devices and cellular products. They examine the related issues, choices, and consequences in the global economy for such purchases. They research...
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Web-search And PowerPoint Presentations-The Cell
Sixth graders create a PowerPoint presentation using information that they have compiled from their web search and rubric web sites, text and other applicable references. They work in pairs to complete these searches and projects.
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Introduction To Composition And Elements Of Design
Young scholars create a finished drawing with a dynamic, asymmetrical composition. Pencil sketches are encouraged for final projects. Students assess their own work prior to submitting the artwork.
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Out of the Dust
Students create a poem that expresses the physical and emotional turmoil of living through the Dust Bowl. In this Out of the Dust lesson, students research facts about the time period and discuss the cause-effect patterns associated...
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Twain: An American Humorist
Students examine American humor and character through analysis of works by Mark Twain. In this cross curricular lesson, students develop a definition of American humor and determine how and why some consider Twain the 'first truly...
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Ribbon Wand Dancing
Pupils construct a ribbon wand which, through the use of line, color, contrast and shape can be used to better express a given emotion. Students improvise a brief dance created through manipulation of ribbon wand using three distinct...
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Fifties/Sixties Musical Playwriting Workshop
Students write a coherent script based on characterization, theme, conflict and emotional tone as found in the songs' lyrics and develop an understanding of the enjoyment that comes through discipline and hard work leading toward a...