The guiding question for this lesson is "Do computers and their contents shape who we are?" Open with a selection of Apple's commercials to introduce stereotypes and people's relationships with their computers. Then, read the attached...

Some items keep their shape no matter what happens! Have your kindergarten class choose which items would stay the same if they were bent, stretched, or squashed. The last activity prompts kids to see what happens when they stretch a...

Drama and movement are wonderful ways to cover story elements such as setting, character, and descriptive writing. Little ones listen to a poem about imaginary creatures. As they listen, they shape their bodies into what they think the...

Learners explore color, shape, line, balance, radial symmetry, unity, repetition, and pattern as they make a peace quilt inspired by those made by Hawaiian women in the 1800s. After learning a bit about the history or peace quilts, the...

Acting as journalists on a team to determine the most influential city-state of Renaissance Italy, your young historians will research, discuss, and compare the rise of Venice, Florence, and Genoa, and their influence in shaping a...

Young writers develop their fine motor skills one stroke at a time with this simple tracing worksheet. Looking at pictures of eight basic figures ranging from horizontal and vertical lines to circles and triangles, children practice...

Few things frustrate teachers as much as illegible handwriting. Help nip this problem in the bud with this primary grade penmanship worksheet that focuses children on the shape and size of their printing.

So the mean is not always the best center? By working through this exploratory activity, the class comes to realize that depending upon the shape of a distribution, different centers should be chosen. Learners continue to explore...

Obesity is a worldwide concern. Using survey results, learners compare local BMI statistics to celebrity BMI statistics. Scholars create box plots of the data, make observations about the shape and spread of the data, and examine the...

Examine the power of technology while modeling with polynomial functions. Using the website wolfram alpha, learners develop a polynomial function to model the shape of a riverbed. Ultimately, they determine the flow rate through the river.

Double, toil ,and double linear dimensions. Learners first complete an assessment investigating how doubling linear dimensions affects the area of pizzas and the volume of popcorn containers. They then complete an activity investigating...

The class braids irrational numbers, Pythagoras, and perimeter together. The mini-assessment requires scholars to use irrational numbers and the Pythagorean Theorem to find perimeters of rugs. The rugs are rectangular, triangular,...

Not all structures take the shape of a polygon. The 21st lesson in a series of 29 shows young mathematicians they can create polygons out of composite shapes. Once they deconstruct the structures, they find the area of the composite figure.

The shape of the histogram is also relative. Learners calculate relative frequencies from frequency tables and create relative frequency histograms. The scholars compare the histograms made from frequencies to those made from relative...

Identify shapes based on their attributes. Second graders are tasked to color triangles, quadrilaterals, pentagons, and hexagons specific colors. The one thing these shapes have in common? They are all polygons.

What does it take to be considered a smart material? Learners investigate the properties of Nitinol, a smart material, through a hands-on lab activity. They examine the crystal lattice structure and the conditions required for Nitinol to...

Scholars crave practical application. Let them use the different models of a quadratic function to plan the size and shape of a school playground. They convert between the different forms and maximize area.

Here's a task that is out of this world! Given a description of a fictional cube-shaped planet, scholars answer a set of questions about the planet. They create a two-dimensional map and consider the distances between locations on the map.

You'd be surprised what you can do with a string! The constraint is the length of string, and the task is to maximize area. Given a series of composite shapes, learners must create a formula for the maximum area for a specified...

Students use leaves to make model of a carbonized plant and classify leaves by shape and margin type.

Middle schoolers study a commercial art form and explore its historic and social meaning. They apply linear color to a shape, bending and forming the lines in much the same way a sign artist would form glass tubing. They design their own...

Students apply abstract concepts, such as stress, fulcrums, the law of gravity, and the strength of different geometric shapes. Groups of student contractors operate simulated architectural firms to create strong, economical bridges.

Compare sizes of student footprints with those of elephants and sauropod dinosaurs! Upper graders make estimations of the areas of irregular shapes; learners use grids to make and explain estimates within low and high ranges.

Students explore a variety of colors and shapes after reading the story, "Planting A Rainbow," by Lois Ehlert. The tracking and reading of labels attached to diagrams form an experience in vocabulary development in this lesson plan.