Establishing Grade Level Benchmarks for Activity Goals
The teacher can use this lesson to convert student steps to a mile
distance or just use my conversion chart provided in the activity poster
folder.
Lesson Objectives:
1. To expose students to the mathematical processes of estimation,
multiplication and addition.
2. To individually calculate how many miles we traveled using our step
counter information.
3. To establish individual and grade level benchmarks for the number of
steps it takes to walk one mile; and then use these benchmarks to
estimate student distances.
Learning Activities Planned to Reach Objectives.
I will present the class with a problem and collectively we will try to solve
it. I have a problem; I know that walking 5 miles a day helps us live a longer
and fuller life. But how many actual miles do we walk in our P.E. classes to
help us reach that 5 miles a day?
Set up an indoor track in the gymnasium. 20 times around the gym equal one
mile (this is for my school, yours will be different) You could use a ¼ mile
or whatever works with your space.
1. Have the students estimate how many steps it takes to go around the gym
10 times or the equivalent of 1/2 of a mile. Have them write it down.
2. Put your stepper on and track the actual steps it takes, using your
handout.
3. Now you have the step count for 10 times around the gym. Multiply this
number by 2 and you have the step total for one mile for a third grader.
4. Students will be required to do the math themselves on a handout
provided at the beginning of class. (This handout is in the folder)
5. With this information a bench mark number will be determined to enable
students to estimate their daily mileage.
6. Teachers now can construct their own class step to mile chart by
collecting the student’s sheets and figuring out the averages.
At the conclusion of the class we will estimate our individual and squad
mileage total to the nearest 14 mile and chart the miles on our Map of
Illinois. You can now have students convert their steps to miles and add
them up as a team. The teacher adds up each team and can chart the miles on
a map.
Prior Learning
Students will only have the experience of tracking steps on their steppers.
This will be the first time they will be required to do individual math
estimations.