Geometry gets an engineering treatment in an exercise involving a belt wrapped around two wheels of different dimensions. Along with the wheels, this belt problem connects concepts of right triangles, tangent lines, arc length, and...

Written to assess students' knowledge of interpreting expressions that represent a quantity in terms of its context, this machine-scored task also allows for a good discussion about units guiding the problem solving and solution.

Here is a fun project. Sammy observes a chipmunk and a squirrel to see how many holes each needs in order to stash the same number of acorns.  Scholars could find the answer algebraically or create a table to analyze the...

Your Geometry learners will collaboratively prove that the tangent line of a circle is perpendicular to the radius of the circle. A deliberately sparse introduction allows for a variety of approaches to find a solution. 

How is religious freedom connected to the conflict between China and Tibet? After reading an online passage of background information, your learners will divide into groups and both read and view an interview with the Dalai Lama. They...

A great way to practice with unit rates, the activity gives your mathematicians an opportunity to compare different statements and select which are true. They can practice with "choose all that apply" by setting each statement into its...

Practice ratios and unit rates with tracking how long Lin took to ride her bike. Provided with different questions, your mathematicians can assemble their answers using a chart or setting up ratios. The activity is included in a set of...

Let's see how complicated we can make this simple task. The last activity associated with a 10-part series has groups design and build a Rube Goldberg machine. Teams determine a simple task to accomplish and use the engineering design...

Enhance problem solving skills while refining grammar proficiency with a learning game focused on subject and object pronouns. With playing cards in hand, class members create a dialogue in which one presents a problem while the other...

This is an interesting geometry problem. Given the figure, find the area of a triangle that is created by the intersecting lines. The solution requires one to use what he/she knows about coordinate geometry, as well as triangle...

Packing for a trip? This activity allows learners to decide how many magazines and protein bars they can buy with twenty dollars. They can organize their work in a chart to track how many items they can purchase. There are two different...

Forty percent of food in the US goes uneaten while 14.5 percent of US households lack a secure supply of food. As part of the preparation for a performance task assessment, groups consider statistics such as these about food waste and...

Here is a resource where algebra learners show their understanding of a system of equations involving a circle and a line. Once graphed, learners see two points of intersection, one where the ordered pair is read, and a second where...

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...

Part of as assessment series, the activity follows the lesson Molly's Run to practice ratios and dividing with fractions. Different solution options are given for your learners' preference. The commentary explains how the...

Here is a coin problem where the algebra learner determines the pair of linear equations needed to solve the system. Whether the equations are taken from a table, or your scholars recognize the format of a coin problem, it is an...

Determining relationships is all part of algebra and functions. Your mathematicians will decide the type of relationship between airports and population and translate what the slope and y-intercept represent. The problem is multiple...

Space, the Final Frontier. The nine NASA-created challenges in this unit are designed to teach class members the engineering design process. Each challenge comes with teacher and student pages that can be used individually or as a...

Ever feel like you're headed up the down escalator? Don't let your pupils get stuck in that rut! Practice writing equations to solve a problem using an engaging lesson. A video presents information that allows learners to determine how...

One of the hardest skills for many young geometers to grasp is to move beyond just declaring obvious things true, and really returning to fundamental principles for proof. This brief exercise stretches those proving muscles as the...

Examine the consequences of varying speed.  An engaging set of five problem sets challenges young mathematicians by targeting a different grade level from K-12. In the initial lesson, scholars make conclusions about the time it...

Science, technology, and math come together in this one combination exercise. Analyzing the common soda can from both a purely mathematical perspective and a scientific angle allows for a surprisingly sophisticated comparison of...

Class members blend their knowledge of functions and problem-solving skills to provide business advice to the Turbo Blender manufacturers. Through a project-based approach, learners examine marginal cost data to produce a function....

Without ever using the actual term, this exercise has the learner develop the key properties of the midsegment of a triangle. This task leads the class to discover a proof of similar triangles using the properties of parallel...