101 Questions
Dandy Candies
Package design is an economic necessity. Young scholars assume the role in an interesting inquiry-based lesson. Given 24 cubic shaped candies to package, they must determine the arrangement that uses the least amount of cardboard to...
Illustrative Mathematics
The Lighthouse Problem
Long considered the symbol of safe harbor and steadfast waiting, the lighthouse gets a mathematical treatment. The straightforward question of distance to the horizon is carefully presented, followed by a look into the...
BW Walch
Solving Systems of Linear Equations
Solving systems of equations underpins much of advanced algebra, especially linear algebra. Developing an intuition for the kinds and descriptions of solutions is key for success in those later courses. This intuition is exactly what...
EngageNY
Games of Chance and Expected Value 1
There's a strong chance that class members enjoy learning math through engaging games. Scholars analyze games of chance to determine long-term behavior. They learn to calculate expected value to help with this assessment.
West Contra Costa Unified School District
Introduction to Trigonometric Functions
Scholars first learn the definitions of the sine ratio, the cosine ratio, and the tangent ratio. After mastering these definitions, they use the new information to solve triangles.
Partnership for Educating Colorado Students
Mayan Mathematics and Architecture
Take young scholars on a trip through history with this unit on the mathematics and architecture of the Mayan civilization. Starting with a introduction to their base twenty number system and the symbols they used, this eight-lesson unit...
National Sailing Hall of Fame
How a Sailboat Works: Hull Speed and Buoyancy
How can you determine the maximum speed of a sailboat? A sailing presentation included with a straightforward lesson plan prompts learners to calculate the maximum speed of a sailboat with a displacement hull. The...
Teach Engineering
Bouncing Balls
How high will it bounce? Groups determine the height different balls bounce off of different surfaces. By performing the necessary calculations, they determine the initial and final momentum of the balls. The included worksheet provides...
Yummy Math
US Holiday Candy Sales
Candy is a big business! Calculate the amount of money consumers spent on major holidays—Easter, Halloween, Christmas, Hanukkah, and Valentine's Day—based on the total amount of candy sales from 2011 and the percentage of each holiday's...
Inside Mathematics
Swimming Pool
Swimming is more fun with quantities. The short assessment task encompasses finding the volume of a trapezoidal prism using an understanding of quantities. Individuals make a connection to the rate of which the pool is filled with a...
Teach Engineering
Better By Design
Which modification is the best? Using the scientific method, pairs determine the effects of each control surface on the distance of a glider's flight. The activity, section 16 in a 22-part unit on aviation, allows pupils to gain a better...
EngageNY
Piecewise and Step Functions in Context
Looking for an application for step functions? This activity uses real data to examine piecewise step functions. Groups create a list of data from varying scenarios and create a model to use to make recommendations to increase...
EngageNY
The Converse of the Pythagorean Theorem
Is it a right triangle or not? Introduce scholars to the converse of the Pythagorean Theorem with a lesson that also provides a proof by contradiction of the converse. Pupils use the converse to determine whether triangles with given...
Virginia Department of Education
Radical Equations
Provide students with the skill for how to examine algebraic and graphical approaches to solving radical equations. Learners solve various radical equations involving square root and cube root expressions. They first solve...
Virginia Department of Education
Exponential Modeling
Investigate exponential growth and decay. A set of six activities has pupils collecting and researching data in a variety of situations involving exponential relationships. They model these situations with exponential functions and solve...
EngageNY
Estimating Probabilities by Collecting Data
Take a spin to determine experimental probability. Small groups spin a spinner and keep track of the sums of the spins and calculate the resulting probabilities. Pupils use simulated frequencies to practice finding other probabilities to...
PBL Pathways
Students and Teachers 2
Examine trends in student-to-teacher ratios over time. Building from the first task in the two-part series, classes now explore the pattern of student-to-teacher ratios using a non-linear function. After trying to connect the pattern to...
Virginia Department of Education
Powers of Ten
Investigate negative exponents of-ten. Pupils use the pattern of increasing powers of 10 to determine negative powers of 10. The scholars write the powers in expanded and product forms and make the connection to exponents using a...
Concord Consortium
Spinning an Old Record
Take a trip back in time to examine angular velocity. Using the revolutions per minute, learners calculate the speed of a point on a 33 record. They compare the speed of a point on the edge of the record to the speed of a point closer to...
Bytes Arithmetic
Geometry Pad+
Graphing paper, pencil, ruler, protractor, and compass, all get replaced or supplemented with this dynamic geometry application. Here, you can create, move, and scale many different shapes, as well as, explore and change their properties...
Benjamin Franklin High School
Saxon Math: Algebra 2 (Section 3)
In this third of a twelve-part series, the focus moves from using matrices to solving systems of equations with substitution and elimination, including more than two dimensions and variables in equations, and analyzing statistical data....
Statistics Education Web
What Percent of the Continental US is Within One Mile of a Road?
There are places in the US where a road cannot be found for miles! The lesson asks learners to use random longitude and latitude coordinates within the US to collect data. They then determine the sample proportion and confidence interval...
Statistics Education Web
The Case of the Careless Zookeeper
Herbivores and carnivores just don't get along. Using a box of animal crackers, classes collect data about the injury status of herbivores and carnivores in the box. They complete the process of chi-square testing on the data from...
Mathed Up!
Compound Interest and Depreciation
Discover how to find the value of an interest-bearing account. Individuals watch a video to learn how to use exponential functions to model compound interest. After the video, they complete a instructional activity of problems on...