Sharing Good Practice
MODELING MATHEMATICS INDOORS AND
OUTDOORS
BY MAARIT ROSSI
the Sun, Mercury, Venus, the Earth,
Mars etc. while other students work
as measuring men. The pairs will get
the readymade models of the planets.
Depending on the grade, you can
share with them information on how
to scale or ask them to count it or not
to scale at all, this depends on their
readiness. Students from 9th grade
can calculate the size of the Sun using
a given scale. One pair will cut the Sun
from yellow cardboard, because it is a
star unlike the others! Secondly they
count the distance of their planet from
the Sun using this scale.
M
odelling helps to bring
abstract concepts alive to
students. In lower grades,
students are introduced
to the concept of modeling in
Mathematics, for the first time, when
learning to use the scale. Later, students
understand some problems better,
if they are able to make a model of it,
for example by drawing mathematical
diagrams. Some problems can be
more easily solved if the students make
a table, form an equation or develop a
function which describes the problem.
My experience and research, have
shown, that hands-on experiences -
with a challenge that doesn’t have only
one right answer, really gets students
excited and engaged. The question
is, which model do students need to
build, to answer specific questions or
solve problems?
to discuss whether or not a square is
a rectangle. This discussion is usually
very beneficial in helping the students
to concretise their knowledge. Asking
them to form a new rectangle gets
them excited - and in the end they
always say, regardless of their this is a
good time to teach them how it is used
in mathematics.
The second example is, modeling
our solar system. There is no book or
tablet where you can build a model
of the solar system so that the sizes
of the planets and their distances
are on the same scale! By Modeling,
students get a deeper understanding
of big numbers, how to calculate and
understand different types of scales.
Give student pairs their own planet,
When the model is moved outdoors;
students get a feeling of the scale
they have used in their calculations.
Measuring men will help groups to
find their place in the model. They are
normally really excited when going to
their place in the model of solar system.
The model can be improved so that all
the planets will move. To extend the
learning the following questions can
be asked, how much time will it take,
to travel from the Earth to Saturn at the
speed of light? The pupils’ responses
will give the teacher an insight into
the level of their understanding. This
work can be integrated with physics,
in which case the student’s task is to
clarify the conditions on their own
planet. Modeling the solar system
can be an adventure for the whole
class showing them the power of
Mathematics.
The following example is one that I
have used with my 5th grade students
as well as with teachers during their
in-service training courses. I use a
rope that is tied into a loop. I ask four
students to come to the front of the
class, each one has to hold the rope so
that they are forming a rectangle. At
the same time, we talk about what the
qualities of a rectangle are. Then I ask
them to form another rectangle and
then a third one! What is the perimeter
of these rectangles? Students easily
say – they have the same length.
When asked to form a new rectangle
students begin to wonder if there can
be more. Someone from the class may
shout out that they need t o form a
square! At this point they may begin
Mrs. Rossi is a Math teacher, principal and CEO of Paths to Math Ltd. She was
one of the top 10 finalists in Global Teacher Prize 2016. She is one of the Top
Teacher Bloggers in The Global Search for Education by C M Rubin. Twitter: @
pathstomath & www.pathstomath.com
Class Time
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Mar - Apr 2018
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