Just got through my Surface Area lesson for Math (which spanned a few days). I
used the Heroic Qualities of Wisdom and Teamwork as a basis. Here's how it
went...
To teach the surface area of prisms and cylinders, I split the class into 4 tribes
(Circle Tribe, Rectangle Tribe, Cylinder, and Triangle). Then they got their first
task: To design a totem and a headband or armband that would represent their
shape. (the cylinder group made cylindrical headbands, the triangle group made
triangular 'cat ears', etc). Oh, and all of this was presented to the blaring Survivor
theme song : )
After their preparations, each group received their first challenge, which was a
simple shape according to their tribe, and they had to measure and calculate the
surface area. Of course, they didn't know how to do that yet, so each group then
got a TOP SECRET envelope with "tribal wisdom" that they needed to learn to be
an expert surface area calculator for their shape. Then the groups got a short
worksheet of shapes to calculate. All the while, I was free to move around and do
formative assessment - which was great for me to have time to do that! If groups
finished early, they drew their own shapes and had other members of their tribe
calculate the surface area.
For their next challenge, each group got a 3D shape to figure out. Because 3D
shapes are an assemblage of different 2D shapes, they had to work together with
another shape tribe - they had to split their groups in half and trade with half the
members of another group. For example, to figure out a Triangular Prism, the
Triangle tribe needed the expertise of the Rectangle tribe.
Then I had a talk/reflection with the class about the lesson - how they thought it
compared to working out of the Math textbook to learn these concepts. I told them
it took me more time to prep lessons like these, but I'd be willing to do more
lessons like this if it was worth it. They passionately explained why the
imaginative lesson was better: "It was way more fun" "I actually was looking
forward to Math today!" "We had to teach others, so we remember it better." are
some of the feedback comments I got.
I told them I wanted to see proof that they learned something, so each group came
up and explained their concepts to the class, who worked on their calculators on
the equations they taught. The students were excited to show their expertise especially the ones who are usually disengaged and unruly.
I couldn’t help but notice how one student—someone who is normally one of the
most disengaged students in my class—was, for this lesson, actively engaged in
explaining how to calculate the surface area of a right triangle.