Teachers Resources Information

Overview: Tasks Related to Community Activities and Businesses

This set of tasks draws on community and business activities and contexts relevant to students’ daily lives. Students’ experiences with community activities (e.g., selling girl scout cookies) and businesses (e.g., ordering and eating at local restaurants) could be leveraged for learning with these tasks. The tasks engage students in mathematical modeling (Mathematical Practice 4) through activities including:

  • Estimating a reasonable unit amount (e.g., serving size per person), and calculating associated supplies/ingredients.
  • Estimating and planning for inventory.
  • Determining prices to charge and/or selecting items to purchase, with costs and other constraints considered.
  • Communicating final plans and models, material needs, and/or costs to a potential funder.

Specific mathematical content and other mathematical practices connected to tasks are described within the lesson overview of each task.

Additional task suggestions:

  • Analyzing claims that appear in the press/media
  • Estimating, calculating, and planning for needs in a crisis (e.g., water in Flint)t)
  • Determining best routes for delivery given sets of constraints

Overview: Tasks Related to Gardening

This set of tasks draws on the context of gardening. Students might have experiences with family, community, and/or school gardens that could be leveraged for learning with these tasks. The tasks engage students in mathematical modeling (Mathematical Practice 4) through activities including:

  • Designing a garden plot.
  • Deciding what to plant.
  • Selecting and preparing gardening materials (e.g., soil, fencing, garden pockets).
  • Estimating quantities/amounts of materials.
  • Calculating costs of materials.
  • Communicating final plans and models, material needs, and/or costs to a potential funder.

Specific mathematical content and other mathematical practices connected to tasks are described within the lesson overview of each task.

Overview: Tasks Related to Home and Family Activities

This set of tasks draws on activities relevant to students’ homes and families. Students’ experiences with family activities (such as birthday celebrations) and issues in the community (such as conserving water) could be leveraged for learning with these tasks. The tasks engage students in mathematical modeling (Mathematical Practice 4) through activities including:

  • Deciding what a fair share siblings who are splitting the costs of a birthday gift.
  • Calculating and estimating how much water is used in daily activities such as bathing, showering, and brushing teeth.
  • Comparing options (e.g., bathing vs. showering) and using data to persuade.
  • Evaluating claims (e.g., regarding water usage in brushing teeth) with data, calculations, and estimations.
  • Communicating plans, model, and creating a persuasive data-based argument with tables, pictures, numbers, and/or words.

Specific mathematical content and other mathematical practices connected to tasks are described within the lesson overview of each task.

Overview: Tasks Related to Local School Community Activities

This set of tasks draws on activities relevant to the local school community. Students’ experiences with classroom projects, eating in the cafeteria, and planning for parties and fieldtrips provide context that could be leveraged for learning with these tasks. The tasks engage students in mathematical modeling (Mathematical Practice 4) through activities including:

  • Determining how many supplies are needed for a craft project, individually and for a group.
  • Determining the best deal when buying items for school events.
  • Creating recipes that can be scaled to serve various group sizes.
  • Creating spinners for games.
  • Communicating plans, models, and creating a persuasive data-based argument with tables, pictures, numbers, and/or words.

Specific mathematical content and other mathematical practices connected to tasks are described within the lesson overview of each task.

Additional task suggestions:

  • Predicting how many products will be needed for a fundraiser or school store.
  • Planning a route to take while on a field trip.
  • Determining prices and estimating profits for fundraising/sales activities.

Overview: Tasks Related to Selecting Sports Teams

This set of tasks draws on the context of choosing teams for various sporting events. Students might have experiences participating in school or community sporting teams that could be leveraged for learning with these tasks. The tasks engage students in mathematical modeling (Mathematical Practice 4) through activities including:

  • Evaluating various athletic attributes.
  • Prioritizing attributes in choosing teams.
  • Determining how to choose fair teams.
  • Measuring performance over time.
  • Determining whether maximum or minimum measures are advantageous.
  • Communicating plans, models, and creating a persuasive data-based argument with tables, pictures, numbers, and/or words.

Specific mathematical content and other mathematical practices connected to tasks are described within the lesson overview of each task.

Overview: Tasks Related to Sharing Snacks at School

This set of tasks draws on activities relevant to students’ ideas about of sharing food items among many people. Students’ experiences with sharing food at school, with friends and at home could be leveraged for learning with these tasks. The tasks engage students in mathematical modeling (Mathematical Practice 4) through activities including:

  • Estimating a reasonable unit amount needed (e.g., serving size per person), the number of people sharing the food, and the amount in a purchased package.
  • Comparing options for purchasing a large amount of food; especially considering package size and unit rates.
  • Evaluating the fairness of the plan considering ideas of equal and equitable shares.
  • Communicating plans, model, and creating a persuasive data-based argument with tables, pictures, numbers, and/or words.

Specific mathematical content and other mathematical practices connected to tasks are described within the lesson overview of each task.