Day 115: Finding a Rule

6th Grade Math Standards: 6.NS.9 Use variables to represent two quantities in a real-world problem that change in relationship to one another; write an equation to express one quantity, thought of as the dependent variable, in terms of the other quantity, thought of as the independent variable. Analyze the relationship between the dependent and independent variables using graphs and tables, and relate these to the equation. For example, in a problem involving motion at constant speed, list and graph ordered pairs of distances and times, and write the equation d = 65t to represent the relationship between distance and time.

6.EE.6 Use variables to represent numbers and write expressions when solving a real-world or mathematical problem; understand that a variable can represent an unknown number, or, depending on the purpose at hand, any number in a specified set.

The Learning Objective: Discover a function rule based on a chart or picture

Agenda:

1. Page 587 match the vocab with an example
2. Notes on functions and practice
3. Distribute and start homework
4. Visual Patterns 
5. Visual Patterns Challenge (finding a triangular number)

The Assessment: Today in class students had time to finish homework, but we also had time to try some visual patterns. Students worked in partners on these two parts of class and seemed to understand the learning objective. It was difficult at first for students with the two step rules, but soon they began to crave these problems as they discovered the rules.

Homework: Finding the rule practice practice (done in class).

My Glass Half-Full Take: I loved giving the challenge question. One class in particular really took to it. Nobody got it, but obviously that was not the point. Interestingly, giving the challenge enabled me to work with students that are attention seekers or need more wait time to accomplish tasks, so it served as a nice way to manage the classroom.

One Thing I Wish I had Done Differently: This is not a topic that I even need to utter the term homework with. I want students to learn to love math for its own sake. I wish today students did not feel compelled to rush through something just to get it done. I visited an eighth grade classroom today and confronted a former student who was averse to math in my classroom, but today he simply was resistant to my help. I don't want students to ever feel this way, so I need to occasionally have days where the students are solving problems for its own sake. There are enough tricks out there to motivate students beyond grades and I need to utilize them better.