I think that too often math becomes a subject in which students repeatedly complete computational problems out of a textbook, take notes from the whiteboard, and then take an exam. Although there is a time and place for these sorts of exercises, there is a big need for teachers to incorporate activities that require their students to take the knowledge that they have been building and apply it to a task or problem. Allowing students to explore in mathematics and come up with ideas on their own is critical in developing their problem solving skills and it may also give them more confidence in this subject area.
The rich activity that my group decided would have worthwhile content as well as being enjoyable to middle school-aged students involved using ratios, proportions, and geometry to find the relationship between objects and their shadows. I was very disappointed that we were not able to complete the activity with the class due to bad weather, but I think that granting students the ability to go outside to complete a hands-on assignment is ideal. This type of activity also shows the students that what they are learning in the classroom relates directly to real life.
Thanks Shelby:)
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