Activity Overview
Students explore the use of manipulatives to conduct simple geometry and measurement activities.
Before the Activity
See the attached PDF file for detailed instructions for this activity
Print student activity sheets for each separate section: Map It! pg 75, Only Half There? pg 79, No More Peas, Please! pg 83, Do Centimeters make Me Taller? pg 88, What's My Ratio? pg 92-93, Ratios in Regular Polygons pg 97-98, Predicting & pi; pg 102.
During the Activity
Distribute the page to the class.
Follow the activity procedures:
Map It!:
Read a story, identify the locations of different places in the story, decide the distance between each set of places in the story, and create a map with a legend.
Only Half There?:
Use measuring tools and calculators to make half-sized drawings
No More Peas, Please!:
Use nonstandard units of volume and calculators to estimate the number of peas it would take to fill a room
Do Centimeters Make Me Taller?:
Use measuring tools and calculators to find pairs of measurements and form ratios
Compare the ratios and make conclusions about using different units to measure lengths
What's My Ratio?:
Use linear measurement and calculators to investigate proportionality and determine the constant ratio between similar figures
Ratios in Regular Polygons:
Use linear measurement and calculators to investigate the ratios between corresponding parts of
regular polygons
Predicting & pi;:
Use linear measurement and calculators to discover the existence of & pi;, the constant ratio between
the circumference and the diameter of a circle
After the Activity
Review student results
As a class, discuss questions that appeared to be more challenging
Re-teach concepts as necessary