Young mathematicians spin their way to a deeper number sense with this fun, collaborative activity. Using two spinners, one with the numbers 0-9 and the other with the decades 00-90, pairs of students take turns building and comparing...

This collaborative activity investigates the meaning of a trapezoid and a parallelogram. It begins by presenting two different definitions of a trapezoid. Learners are to reason abstractly the difference between the two definitions and...

Learners investigate the symmetries of a convex quadrilateral in a collaborative activity. Rigid motion and complements are explored as learners analyze different cases of reflections across a line.

An excellent lesson that encourages learners to discover how complex figures can be broken into simpler shapes when measuring area. Working with block letters, learners are given the freedom to develop their own strategies for...

An excellent activity that effectively pulls together the concepts of area, fractions, and equivalent fractions! Using 3x2 rectangular arrays, 3rd graders are introduced to the concept of area in terms of square units. Building on this...

Challenge your class to construct a definition for trapezoids. Looking at four examples and four non-examples, students individually create definitions and use them to classify an unknown shape. Allow for small group and whole-class...

Develop young mathematicians' understanding of place value with this hands-on math activity. Working in pairs, learners take turns building two-digit numbers by rolling two ten-sided dice. Base ten blocks are then used to model the...

Rewriting expressions in different forms is an essential algebra skill. Support the development of this skill by using a task that asks scholars to begin with a linear, quadratic, and rational expression and then manipulate...

How many different ways can a teacher organize a class into groups? In a grouping activity, learners explore the number of possible combinations of groups given different total participants and size criteria. They then make...

Learners must investigate the validity of a claim made in a running magazine. They must identify and look up unprovided information, make appropriate estimations, and be able to convert units. Might be best used as a group or whole-class...

Your algebra learners will manipulate an expression's form in order to make obvious the value of it increasing, decreasing, or staying the same, when one variable is changed as the others stay constant. Your future physicists'...

Investigate the complexities of design problems using geometric concepts. The task asks scholars to design a fence for a horse based on the distance it can travel within one hour. It is a seemingly simple task — until individuals learn...

The shortest distance from point A to point B is a straight line, but measuring distance gets more complicated when there are three points! Given the location of three friends, individuals determine the best point for all three friends...

Are there some rectangles that are more square than others? A thought-provoking task asks individuals to create a formula that objectifies the square-ness of a set of rectangles. They then use their formulas to rank a set of...

Package design is a mathematical task for any business. Young scholars use a package design to determine the number of packages required for specific shipments. Using ratios, proportions, and fractions, they make decisions about the best...

What came first, pedestrian one or pedestrian two? Scholars consider a problem scenario in which two people walk at different rates at different times. They must decide who reaches a checkpoint first. Their answers are likely to surprise...

Looking for higher-level thinking questions? This assessment provides questions that challenge young mathematicians to think and analyze rather than simply memorize. Topics include piecewise functions, linear modeling, exponential...

It's time to discover what your classes have learned! The final lesson in the 25-part module is an assessment that covers the Pythagorean Theorem. Application of the theorem includes distance between points, the volume of...

Lesson 16 in the series of 28 is a mid-module assessment. Learners simplify expressions, write and solve equations, and write and solve inequalities. Most questions begin as word problems adding a critical thinking component to the...

Common Core mathematical practices require that young mathematicians not only know how to add fractions with unlike denominators, but also to recognize when adding fractions are appropriate for the word problem. Fifth graders are given...

Your young population scientists analyze a table of values, write a model to represent the real life data, finish the table of data and predict future populations in a collaborative, real-life activity.

What does slope have to do with lines? Pupils work with lines and determine the slope of the lines informally and with the slope formula. Groups use their knowledge to calculate the slopes of parallel and perpendicular lines. They also...

Need a quick way to administer and grade a multiple choice quiz? Keep this bubble sheet as a staple of your curriculum toolkit! It can be used for assessments with up to 30 multiple choice or true/false questions.

Young mathematicians have the hang of graphing with integer coefficients now. Can they generalize what they've learned to equations with variable coefficients? The task asks individuals to verify the solution to the system is (x,y) and...