Fall SAVY 2019: Day 2 – Measurement Matters (Grades 1/2)
It was another fun day of learning this past Saturday in Measurement Matters! Students were able to make connections with measuring and the decisions necessary to obtain meaningful results. The students were presented with multiple tools that could be used to measure objects. We compared centimeters to inches and identified how these units of measure compared to one another in size. The use of proportional reasoning was necessary for students to interpret the measurement of the life-sized Yeti we created as students developed various body parts for the Yeti based upon their own measurements. We discussed the difference between two-dimensional objects versus three-dimensional objects to determine that our life-sized Yeti would be a flat figure which only required them to measure length and width of the body parts assigned to each group.
In the afternoon lesson students worked through a problem solving situation to build a rectangular pen for the Yeti’s pet. I constructed a 8 x 20 pen on the floor with masking tape and students began to make predictions on what pet they thought could fit in the pen constructed. Students quickly determined the animal could not be a large animal such as an elephant because there was not enough space to move around. After much discussion it was determined the Yeti’s pet was a dog. A problem was posed as the students decided the pen did not provide enough space for the pet to explore. Students were introduced to finding the perimeter of an object and, as great mathematicians, students constructed a new pen that would allow Yeti’s pet to run around. Next, students were told that the expedition team only had 56 feet of material to construct a pen that would fit in the school yard. Students worked to create various sized rectangular pens using the same amount of fencing. Students did an excellent job of constructing their pens on graph paper and making sure the dimensions of their design were easily identifiable. I was most impressed on how they were able to construct multiple pens using the same amount of fencing.
I look forward to our last class meeting as we dive even deeper into math and measuring as we discover how to calculate area!
Leave a Response