Patterns, patterns, everywhere! Young scholars examine the multiplication table to identify patterns. Their exploration leads to an understanding of the difference of squares and sum of cubes by the completion of the 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.

Your algebra learners emphasize the"geometric" in geometric series as they use a common ratio between algebraic terms and find that it corresponds to a repeated similarity transformation. 

Here learners get to flex some serious algebraic muscles through an investigation of logistic growth. The properties of the constant terms in the logistic growth formula are unraveled in a short but content-dense...

Gain a little interest in functions with a real-life task. Young scholars analyze home loan data with a geometric sequence and series. They use the models to make predictions about the total loan payments at certain intervals in a...

Take a look at linear functions in a new environment. A three-stage algebra project first asks learners to model the salt concentration of an aquarium using linear functions. Then, using iterations, pupils create a set of input-output...

Assume all you know is that the variable Q represents a value that is bigger than the value represented by the variable P. Which is larger P + Q or 2P? The problems in this activity get more complex than...

Algebra learners are to make sense of two different-sized sand trucks and the number of trips each truck makes. The resource lists four different expressions based on the size of each truck and the number of deliveries the trucks make....

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...

Learners are asked to advise a fuel oil dealer on a possible investment. They must use two different rates to set up an equation and solve to determine how much oil he should sell now to break even after selling the remainder the next...

Your algebra learners interpret algebraic expressions, in order to compare their structures, using a geometric context. They also discern how the two expressions are equivalent and represent a pattern geometrically and algebraically.

Help mathematicians see that a formula found in a physics book has an algebraic structure. Though the formula given in the resource looks complicated, learners are to break down the expressions and interpret each part separately. Young...

Challenge algebra learners to use the difference of cubes to solve this problem. Once your charges have taken out the factor (a - b), combined the like terms and set them equal to zero, the problem becomes a factorable quadratic...

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.

Your river sportsmen will explore an example of paddling upstream as they build functions modeling speed and time in terms of the speed of the current. They then use their algebraic models to interpret features of the function related to...

Your algebra learners analyze the value of an algebraic expression to decide if it will increase, decrease, or stay the same when one variable is changed as the others stay constant. Their collaborative efforts culminate with a written...

Mixture problems are a classic in first-year algebra. Unfortunately, many learners approach them in a formulaic fashion and don't truly understand the meaning of the algebraic expressions they are using. Here, the questions are not the...

Here is a straight-forward problem of multiplying two binomials with a twist. It is up to algebra learners to decide how to turn this product of sums into a sum of products. However, it is not the quadratic that is the answer; it is the...

Your young microbiologists will interpret and solve exponential equations in this real-world context task set in a hospital research scenario. Learners think in terms of the functions as well as their rates of change. 

Somewhat of a puzzle, this problem gets pre-algebra preteens to write an expression representing a seating chart using triangle-shaped tables. This single task is an applicable lesson for meeting sixth grade Common Core math standards....

Your algebra learners work to address the order of operations applied to an expression's input variable and the limitations that may be created because of it. This simple task of a few very well-chosen exercises is elegant in it's way of...

The balance in an account continuously compounding interest is the context of this engaging task. Your young accountants will investigate the ending balance in an account as they compound the interest more and more. Learners write the...

Teach your class how to apply their knowledge of geometry as they explore the unknown. In order to find an unknown angle, students must understand that rectangles have four interior right angles, that right angles have 90 degrees, and...

Here is a multiple choice question that would make a good assessment question. Algebra young scholars are to look at the structure of the formula for a given radius of a cylinder and find the resulting radius when the height of...