Curated OER
Building Sets of 13 and 14
Compose and decompose sets of 13 and 14 and compare sets of each with your little learners. They use objects to construct sets of 13 and 14, record their answers, and compare sets in several different ways.
Illustrative Mathematics
Which Weighs More? Which Weighs Less?
Expand the the comparative language of young mathematicians with a hand-on weight measurement activity. Working independently or in pairs, children compare the weight of large wooden blocks to various other classroom objects, recording...
Curated OER
Comparing Fractions with Objects and Pictures
Scholars will compare fractions using objects and pictures. They view pre-made pictures and concrete objects of fractions. Then use small white boards to draw pictorial representations of fractions.
Curated OER
Comparing Sets
Kindergarteners and first graders work with Reese's Pieces to explain comparing sets, create comparison sets, and compare sets of numbers and objects. A good lesson that uses a "tasty" manipulative!
Illustrative Mathematics
Which Number is Greater? Which Number is Less? How do you Know?
When comparing groups of objects, it's easy for children to identify which has more, but it's not so easy for them to explain their reasoning. This simple whole-group activity provides multiple opportunities for learners to compare...
Illustrative Mathematics
Sort and Count II
Capture the engagement of young mathematicians with this hands-on sorting activity. Given a bag of objects, students work independently sorting the items based on their physical attributes, counting to determine the size of each group....
Center for Learning in Action
Introduction to the States of Matter
Liquids, gases, and solids are the states of matter in which scholars investigate in a lesson plan that offers in-depth information and engaging activities that look into the three states and the changes their properties make when mixed...
Illustrative Mathematics
Money in the Piggy Bank
It's time to crack open that piggy bank and see what's inside. First, count up the pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters, identifying what fraction of them are dimes. Then calculate the total value of the coins, writing another fraction...
Lakeshore Learning
Comparing and Ordering Fractions
Math can be satisfying for the mind and the stomach! Incorporate slices of pizza into your fractions lesson with a set of informative resources. After a brief guided lesson on comparing and ordering fractions, young mathematicians...
University of Colorado
The Moons of Jupiter
Middle schoolers analyze given data on density and diameter of objects in space by graphing the data and then discussing their findings. This ninth installment of a 22-part series emphasizes the Galilean moons as compared to other...
Curated OER
Object Graphs
Students identify geometric shapes, demonstrate construction of an object graph, compare sets of objects, estimate which student has the most geometric shapes in his or her bag, and play computer game Jump Start Kindergarten.
Illustrative Mathematics
Sort and Count
Young mathematicians are on their feet and moving around in this primary grade sorting activity. After giving each child an object or picture card, they then sort themselves into groups, counting to see which has the most or least...
Digital Public Library of America
Teaching Guide: Exploring Little Women
Louisa May Alcott's Little Women is a literary masterpiece as well as a timestamp of the formative mid-nineteenth century in America. Using a primary source set of photographs, letters, and portraits, readers discuss the ways...
California Academy of Science
Kinesthetic Astronomy: The Meaning of a Year
How many times have you traveled around the sun? Aspiring astronomers grasp what a year is and they differentiate between orbit and rotation by walking around the sun right within your classroom. Place a lamp in the center of the room to...
Gwinnett County Public Schools
Analysis of the Tuck Everlasting and The Birchbark House Text Exemplars
Looking to introduce some text-based questions into your ELA lessons? Practice the kinds of skills the Common Core demands with the seven text-based questions and the essay prompt provided here. Designed to be a three-day instructional...
Curated OER
Measurement and Conversion of Units in a Recipe
In a cross-curricular measurement and literacy lesson, your class will identify and compare cooking measurement instruments. They read a recipe and sequence a set of similar instructions in which the steps have been mixed up....
Mathematics Assessment Project
Representing 3-D Objects in 2-D
How does the shape of the surface of water in a container change as water leaks out? After tackling this question, learners take part in a similar activity with more complex figures.
Curated OER
Compare and Contrast Historical Time Periods
What do images tell us about history? Dress, setting, and actions all convey cultural norms, and in essence, give reference to historical time and place. Learners compare and contrast Kunisada's Actor with Flute in Snow to Hokuei's...
Illustrative Mathematics
Longer and Heavier? Shorter and Heavier?
For many young children it seems obvious that longer objects are heavier than shorter objects. This assumption is put to the test as the class investigates the relationship between length and weight in a whole-group activity. Using a...
University of Colorado
Spacecraft Speed
Space shuttles traveled around Earth at a speed of 17,500 miles per hour, way faster than trains, planes, or automobiles travel! In the 13th installment of 22, groups graph different speeds to show how quickly spacecraft move through...
Illustrative Mathematics
Size Shuffle
In the eyes of children the world is a simple place, objects are either big or small. This simple activity aims to expand the comparison language of young mathematicians as they use the words taller and shorter to compare their...
Virginia Department of Education
The Rate of Motion
How much time does it take to jump over three balloons? Pupils calculate the speed of tasks that require different motions. They determine motions for tasks such as walking, skipping, hopping, and jumping before creating a...
NASA
Pop Can Hero Engine
Hang a soda can from a string and watch it spin by the force created by water streaming out of slanted holes. This plan provides background information, detailed materials and procedures, discussion questions, a lab worksheet, and...
Center for Learning in Action
Density
Explore the concept of density within states of matter—gases, liquids, and solids—through a group experiment in which young scientists test objects' texture, color, weight, size, and ability to sink or float.