Dream Vacation
Prezi Presentation
Center #2
Developed by: Kevin R. Clark
DeQuincy High School
GLEs:
9th Grade
7. Use proportional reasoning to model and solve real-life problems involving direct and inverse variation (N-6-H).
Introduction:
You have been studying ratios and proportions in this class. Recall that a ratio called a scale is used when making a
model or drawing of something that is too large or too small to be conveniently drawn at actual size. Maps and
blueprints are two commonly used scale drawings. Today, you will plan a dream vacation for a family and create a scale
drawing of the trip.
The Big Question: How are proportions used in creating scale drawings?
Task:
You are an entrepreneur vacation planner who has been contacted by a family of four. They are thinking about taking a
coast-to-coast dream vacation from their home in San Diego, California to Washington, D.C. They want to visit three
popular or historical vacation spots between these two locations during their trip. To assist in the planning process, you
are to select three sites for the family to visit and design a scale map of their travels.
The final product will involve the creation of a Prezi presentation in which you will share your planning work with the
family. Ultimately, your presentation should help the family make an informed decision about their dream vacation.
Process:
To accomplish this task, you and your team will complete the following step-by-step instructions:
1. Before starting this project, your team should brainstorm and discuss various vacation spots that may be of
interest to a family of four. Your team may wish to visit this site for some ideas. Remember to consider the
family’s location and destination for this trip.
2. Create a new folder on your computer’s desktop. Name the folder: yourgroupnumber_classhour. This is where
your team should save all files related to this project, including the final presentation.
3. Once the three vacation sites have been agreed upon by all members of your group, assign individual team
members the following roles:
 Member 1: Your role is to search the Internet and locate pictures of the three historical or popular
vacation sites agreed upon by your team. You may find it useful to visit this site and search for pictures
of family vacations at your teams’ various locations. Save the pictures in your group’s folder on the
desktop. Regardless of where you find the pictures, be certain to cite your sources in your final
presentation.
 Member 2: Your role is to find and record the actual distances between the various locations within the
trip using this site. Also, depending on your team’s plan, you may need to find the distance round trip to
include in your final presentation. Record the distances on this handout. Note: You may find it useful to
use the Snipping Tool to take screenshots of the various distances to include in your final presentation. If
you choose this option, you will need to e-mail your pictures to another team member so that they can
save the pictures in your group’s desktop folder.
 Member 3: Your role is to decide upon an appropriate scale factor and apply it to the various distances
obtained by Member 2. Record the scale factor and scaled distances on this handout. Note: The other

group members are responsible for double-checking your calculations.
Member 4: Your role is to create the scale drawing. The route you choose to complete this task is your
choice. You may want to use the grid feature and create in Microsoft Word or PowerPoint using shapes
and lines. Save the completed drawing as a picture file. E-mail the picture file to another member of the
group so that it can be saved in your group’s desktop folder. If you prefer, you may hand draw your scale
drawing. You will need to take a picture of the completed drawing using the digital camera and upload
the picture file to your group’s desktop folder.
4. Now, your team is ready to create the Prezi presentation. If you need to refresh your Prezi skills, please review
this handout.
5. The design and layout of your Prezi presentation is your choice; however, be certain to include the scale drawing
and all other related information that will help the family make an informed decision about their dream
vacation. Do not forget to cite your resources for this project.
6. As a team, review the final presentation for accuracy. Be certain all team members are acknowledged for their
work.
7. If time permits, each group will present their trip to the class.
8. E-mail the link of your Prezi presentation to kevin.clark@cpsb.org.
Evaluation:
See checklist for project evaluation.
Reflective Question or Constructive Response:
Upon completion of this learning center, you should have learned how proportions are used in creating scale factors.
Suppose you were asked to create a drawing of your favorite cartoon character scaled to your height. Explain step by
step how you would complete this task, documenting all computations.
Share your response to the constructed response question in the blog section, titled Scale Factors Constructed
Response, within the class Blackboard site.
Adapted from resources found at the following website
http://webquest.sdsu.edu/templates/lesson-template1.htm
Based on a template from The WebQuest Page