It's more than just numbers on a line, its an organizational, mental math machine to help learners understand the value of numbers. The tool is handy when introducing positive and negative integers to see their values and...

One of the most common, everyday applications of math is dealing with money. This single problem calculating how much change Margie receives is more involved than it appears at first glance. An understanding of how fractions and decimals...

Students draw a chart (included in the lesson) to use with their investigation. They review terminology of triangles and receive toothpicks to use in the lesson. Beginning with three toothpicks, students form a triangle. They complete...

Students research number values by participating in a candy exercise. In this math function instructional activity, students utilize baking ingredients to create cookies and multiply how many M&M's will go into the batch if you want...

Review and use standard units of measure with your math class. They move from station to station estimating and measuring length, volume, weight, and area. At each station they estimate and measure, and then compute the difference...

Learning about factors and multiples is all fun and games with this simple math activity. The lesson begins with the teacher and class playing the Factor Game together as students figure out the rules and uncover key...

Field trip! The class will review what they know about organisms that dwell in freshwater ponds, then trek down to the old water hole to collect specimens for examination. This includes several web links, useful tips, and an excellent...

Students use scientific observation and inference to examine the Hazen Brigade Monument. For this observation lesson, students review the reasons for building monuments in society. Students then recall monuments they have seen and...

Lead the class in a review of the basic concepts and procedures involved in measuring length, weight, and volume. After whole group instruction, small groups and individuals practice measuring by completing a variety of fun activities...

Students explore how the angle and distance of an object can change it's temperature. After reviewing how the position of the Earth affects the temperature of the planet, student groups design and perform an experiment to test how...

The object is to model fraction division by asking “How many are in one group?” It is a difficult concept to understand, but developing the model that shows one cup to a certain amount of container or one container to a certain amount of...

Students perform different activities to better explain that the word "Average" has 5 different meanings.

Learners utilize a balance scale. In this applied science lesson, students compare the weights of two objects using an elementary balance scale. Learners balance the scale with weights to find how heavy an object is.

Students make a prediction. For this applied science lesson, students guess the number of items in a jar. Students create a bar graph to show the predictions and the actual amounts.

Mixed numbers can be added conceptually, algorithmically, and physically. Have the class visualize mixed numbers by adding fraction bars together. They then discover the algorithmic process that simplifies adding mixed numbers. Finally,...

Put the graph into graphing and allow learners to understand the concept of point plotting and how it relates to data. The worksheet provides a nice way to connect data analysis to a graph and make predictions. The worksheets within...

Young mathematicians dive into the number line to discover decimals and how the numbers infinitely get smaller in between. They click the zoom button a few times and learn that the number line doesn't just stop at integers. Includes...

Profit always seems to get everyone's attention. The same is true during a lesson on estimation. Learners use given information to estimate the cost of supplies for a painting job. They then develop a strategy for estimating the...

Students review what a cylinder is and how a cylinder is measured. They build a variety of cylinders with different heights and radii. They compare the surface area and volume of each cylinder and discuss anything that surprises them...

Most middle schoolers probably feel that quilting is at best an activity left to their grandmothers. This lesson uses the Zome modeling system to get them to realize how shapes in quilting are really tessellations and repeating patterns....

Students access information at remote sites using telecommunications, identify impacts by reviewing past El Ni??o events, make and use scale drawings, maps, and maps symbols to find locations and describe relationships.

Using M & M's candies, young statisticians predict the color distribution in a packet of candies and test their predictions against their group and the larger class. A review of converting between fractions, decimals, and percents...

How can 5th graders show understanding that 30 x 225 is half of 60 x 225 without completing the computation? They can use an area model and draw it out. An array, or an open array, is an area model that allows for young learners to...

The ancient Mayans had a complex calendar and number system with a rich history. In fact, the date 12/21/2012 was the center of much controversy as to whether or not it was the end of time. It wasn't the end of time, but...