Lesson Plan for Implementing
NETS•S
Teacher(s)
Name
Samuel Edwards
Position
Teacher
School/District
Cass Middle School/Bartow County
E-mail
Sam.edwarda@bartow.k12.ga.us
Phone
770-606-5846
Grade Level(s)
6th – 8th
Content Area
8th Grade Math Enrichment
Time line
3 weeks
Standards
Content Standards
8th Grade Mathematics Linear Equations:
MCC8.EE.5; F.3; MCC8.EE.4; MCC8.F.5; and MCC8.SP.1
Students will demonstrate understanding of the connections between proportional
relationships, lines, and linear equations. They will graph linear equations, construct tables that
represent linear equations, and determine functions from lines. They also will determine
slopes, y-intercepts, and distance using formulas. Students will use the linear function equation
y = mx + b, whose graph is a straight line, to determine the line of best fit from a scatter plot of
their travels. Students will also sketch graphs on coordinate plots and determine its slope, the
type of function (increasing, decreasing, linear or non-linear). Finally, students will construct
and interpret a scatter plot from their travel points to investigate patterns of association and
determine if the pattern is clustering, has outliers, is positive or negative, and has linear or
nonlinear association.
NETS*S Standards: ISTE 1, 2, 3, 5.
Students will demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative
products and processes using technology and apply that knowledge to generate new products
and create original works. Students will communicate and collaboration in every phase of the
project. They will also interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, employing a variety of
digital environments and contribute to the project to produce original works and solve
problems. Additionally, students will research and apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and
use information. Finally, students will adhere to and maintain digital citizenship.
Page 1 of 4
Overview
Slope Across the USA
This lesson presents a culminating task where students will demonstrate a thorough
understanding of linear equations using creative thinking and will be assessed on skills taught
in the linear equations unit. Students will work in groups to plan a trip across the USA. They
will choose routes of travel and produce a design that represents all of the places of travel.
Each group will chose 8 locations to travel beginning and ending with one of their places of
birth. They will have specific requirements to meet such as visiting all 4 quadrants of their
coordinate graph that will be imbedded on the map of the USA; calculating total distance of
travel using the distance formula; determining the linear equation of each line plotted; and
using Desmos to produce similar graphs and compare their accuracy.
Each group will be given a budget of $12,500 in which they will use to for travel (including
tickets, hotel costs, food, and entertainment). Students will be encouraged to be creative by
choosing travel themes such as visiting mountains, lakes, sports arenas, capitals, etc. After
graphing lines of travel, students will attempt to produce a line of best fit for all locations visited
using hand calculations then comparing their results to graphs they will produce on Desmos.
Students will be required to produce a class presentation, publish the presentation in our class
Wikispace, and have the option to videotape their presentation for TeacherTube publishing. In
the videotape students will be encouraged to sing a linear equations song. Students will finally
be required to provide a project reflection in the class blog in my course website.
Essential Questions
1. How can the same mathematical idea be represented in a different way? Why would that be useful?
2. How can patterns, relations, and functions be used as tools to best describe real-life relationships?
3. How can I write a function to model a linear relationship?
4. How can I sketch a graph given a verbal description?
5. How can I describe a situation given a graph?
6. How can I analyze a scatter plot?
7. How can I create a linear model given a scatter plot?
8. How can I use a linear model to solve problems?
9. How can I produce a quality presentation of research and mathematical problem solving?
Assessment
A rubric will be provided to guide the students in project completion. Groups will be required to
produce their travels in color code on a poster size graph that contains coordinate graph lines
embedded on a map of the USA. They will be required to complete the project guide that
contains population and scientific data input. They will be required to produce solutions in a
chart that includes research and computations. They will be required to produce a table for
their final line of best-fit data. Additionally, groups will be required to produce a presentation
that includes the state population information and at least 5 interesting facts with pictures of
the states visited.
Page 2 of 4
Resources
Students will use the following online resources to help support mathematical concepts and
computations: ILearnMath, USATestPrep,and MathTV. Students will use Desmos to construct
linear equations from their Slope poster to do accuracy comparisons. Students will have
access to many research websites, but will be encouraged to use Wikipedia for state
population research.
Students will also have access to Flickr to locate and utilize pictures for their presentations
Instructional Plan
Students will complete this project at the end of the 8th grade linear equations unit as a
culminating set of activities to induce critical thinking, collaborative work, and use of
technology. Students will have completed short assessments on ILearnmath, USATestPrep,
and a Unit test to be graded by hand. Students will be grouped heterogeneously to evoke
quality, diversity, and collaboration. I anticipate that students may have a big learning curve
using the Desmos online graphing calculator, as it is a new technology that they have never
seen. From past experiences, students may also have difficulty with the distance formula
because of mile conversion.
Management
Since these students are in remediation, experience has taught me to provide numerous
examples on a continuous basis for most deliverables (poster graph, Slope table, and line of
best fit). However, students seem to thrive on presentations and research. Students will have full
access to individually issued laptop computers, online resources, and materials to complete the
project. They will be able to turn in most items on blackboard collaborative as required by our
county. Students will be working from our main wireless internet services and if approved, I will
have a wireless backup LAN for my classes as the ILearnMath online course is a Title I
requirement.
Instructional Strategies and Learning Activities
I will be providing direct and indirect instruction as an instructional strategy. Direct instruction
will be required in the early phase to explain each area of the project. The remaining
instruction will be indirect, including providing previous students sample work, with the
exception of video and presentations. My role will be facilitator, supporter, and resource
person. Throughout this lesson students will be collaborating and communicating in a
cooperative learning environment. The students shouldn’t need much assistance with the use
of digital tools because they will have used them frequently, with the exception of Desmos.
They will receive peer feedback as well as teacher feedback. Technology will be supporting
learning by enhancing student products. This lesson is authentic as it connects with the travel
agency career and online sites. Critical thinking will be induced through the budgeting,
manipulation of online graphing calculator, and traveling in a manner to produce an
exceptional line-of best fit.
Page 3 of 4
Differentiation
This lesson is differentiated in many ways in process and content. For process, students will
have choices throughout the project for places to visit, presentation styles, research to
complete, and budgets to organize and compute. For content, students will be provided with
strategies to consider that will make their equations simpler, and distances easier to calculate.
Students will only be required to work independently when providing their contributions to the
group visiting sites. Each group member must decide and provide two locations to visit and the
equations and accompanying research.
Reflection
Students will be required to provide a reflection on school website in my course blog. They will
include comments on the following specific items:
Overall project benefits, perceived difficulty level, use of Desmos, and thoughts on
presentation. They will also be asked to provide comments on things they felt went well and
why, things they felt didn’t go as well and why, and make any suggestions for a better or more
useful project.
Closure
I enjoyed working on this project, as it will require much less tweaking prior to implementation.
I have tried several versions of a lesson on this type, but have never required a formal
presentation, allowed videotaping, required publishing, and used an online graphing calculator.
I believe this will be an interesting, challenging, and manageable project that will be available
for future use by all mathematics classes. I would advise teachers to ensure they remain
facilitators and provide individual support as necessary. Make sure that you constantly and
consistently refer the students to the rubric, project guide, and online resources in lieu of direct
instruction after project introduction.
Page 4 of 4