Understanding Functions Day 1: Representation
OBJECTIVE CONNECTION TO ACHIEVEMENT GOAL
What will your students be able to do?
We will undertand how functions can be
represented as tables, sets of points and lines on a to improve our ability to think abstractly, not just
graph.
I will be able to use f(x) = 2x to create
and convert to
to eventually generate
PREREQUISITE SKILLS
What will your students need to know to master the
PRE-PLANNING
grade-level objective?
Students will need to know how to graph points on
an x,y Cartesian plane, and will need to understand
how to connect points on a curve. Students will
also need to know how to perform basic
substitution, and perform arithmetic. Students will
have to be familiar with how to set up an X, Y table,
and how to read the table in terms of points, and
input and outputs of functions.
NEW VOCABULARY
Function
Coordinate
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Lesson Plan Template
How does the objective connect to your
achievement goal?
Our overarching goal in the study of algebra is
about math problems, but about problems that
we encounter in our everyday lives. By learning
that functions can be represented in several
different forms and learning how to convert
between those forms, students are able to pick
out patterns and determine equalities that they
were previously unable to see. This abstract
thinking is the type of thinking that will help my
students become the critical thinkers they are
going to need to be to be effective in their future
careers.
DIAGNOSTIC
How will you assess students mastery of these
foundational skills?
On the bell ringer I will have students graph a
shape and connect the points. I will be able to
quickly check for their understanding if they
have the correct shape on their paper. I will
also assess their ability to perform substitution
and read an X, Y table on the bell ringer. (see
attached bell ringer)
1
 END OF LESSON ASSESSMENT
How will you know whether your students have made progress toward the objective?
Exit Ticket:
Fill in the missing blanks for each function representation:
f(x) = 2x

( , )
( , ) ( , ) ( , )

( , ) ( , ) ( , )

(-1,-2) (0,0) (1,2)

f(x) = x 2

X Y ( , ) ( , ) ( , )
-1 -2
0 0 ( , ) ( , ) ( , )
1 2
2 0
4 2
5 3

f(x) = x2
(-3, 9) (-2, 4) (0 , 0)

(1, 1) (2, 4) (3, 9)

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Lesson Plan Template 2
 KEY POINTS
What three to five key points will you emphasize?
1. We represent inputs to a function using the variable x.

2. We can say that f(x) (or y) represents the output of a particular function with an input, x.

3. We can represent the input output pairs as points on the Cartesian coordinate plane.

4. When we connect the points from the input output pairs on a graph, the resulting curve
graphically represents the function.

OPENING (10 min.) MATERIALS

(Consider: How will you communicate what is about to happen?
How will you communicate how it will happen? Bell Ringer,
How will you communicate its importance? Pencil,
How will you communicate connections to previous lessons? Highlighter,
How will you engage students and capture their interest?)

1. Pick up bell ringer

2. Pick up calculator
3. Make sure you have a sharpened pencil
4. Begin working on bell ringer silently and independently.

On this particular bell ringer, students are asked to recall skills they should have
mastered in algebra I and geometry. The final bell ringer question evaluates their
ability to recognize a geometric figure, which is a type of question they could possibly
LESSON CYCLE

see on the ACT.

In addition to refreshing previous concepts that could potentially covered on a

standardized test, this bell ringer exposes students to the prerequisite skills necessary
for todays lesson.

I will circulate the room looking specifically for the hexagons that should be appearing
on each students 3rd graph. I will be also checking for students who are struggling to
recall the necessary information, and give them prompts so that they can solve all
three questions.

INTRODUCTION OF NEW MATERIAL / GUIDED PRACTICE (15 min.) Table for

(Consider: How will you clearly state and model behavioral expectations? Exercise,
How will you ensure that all students have multiple opportunities to practice? Pencil,
How will you scaffold practice exercises from easy to hard? How will you monitor and
correct student performance? Why will students be engaged/interested?)
Guided Practice Expectations

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Lesson Plan Template 3
 Eyes should be either tracking the teacher, or on your packet following along with the
guided practice.
Students must raise their hand before they ask or answer questions to show respect to
other students in the class who might also have questions.

For the guided practice, I will first work with students on converting tables to points and
vice-versa. This is the easiest concept to grasp, and both can be used to generate the
graphical representation.

After practicing two example propblems, I will give the class 2 multiple choice
questions that asks them to pick the table that represents a set of points. Students will
look for which table includes all of the given points and choose the correct answer by
holding up their plicker in the correct direction.

The other type of question that I will introduce to students is representing a graph as a
table by picking points from a curve and recording their x and y values.

Students will be engaged in this activity, because the content is not something new for
the students, and it is something that causes them to make new connections.

After the final guided practice problem, I will put 2 more multiple choice questions on
the board, and ask students to raise up their plickers with the correct answer choice
turned in the right direction. Using this data, I will be able to generate heterogeneous
groups to increase the effectiveness of the next exercise.

Formative Assessment for this portion of the lesson: Plickers Plicker

Card
GROUP PRACTICE (15 min.) Blank
function
form
outlines
Scavenger Hunt Rules
This activity is to be worked on with one partner. The goal of this exercise is to find the
answer to a holiday joke by spelling it out. Each individual representation has a letter
corresonding to it. Students will walk around the room matching up the various
representations with what they have on their papers.
After going through all of the stations, you should have the answer to the holiday
puzzle spelled out on your paper. If students are struggling to figure out where a
certain representation matches, they wil be able to ask for help ONLY after they have
attampted all of the other representations.

After this exercise is compete, and students have filled in tables, we will discuss how
this exercise related to the clear learning target.

Teacher-Model Expectations

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Lesson Plan Template 4
 During the scavenger hunt, students are expected to only work with their partner, and
the conversation level should not exceed a 2.
Students must raise their hand before they ask or answer questions to show respect to
other students in the class who might also have questions.

Anticipated Misconceptions
Because this lesson relies heavily on knowledge that is considered prerequisite, I do
not see many students struggling to understand the content. However, the directions
are somewhat specific, and definitely have the potential to confuse students. To
combat this, I will give students a completed example, so they if they are unsure where
they are supposed to start, they have guidance.

Formative Assessment: Completed chart should spell out Holly Davisdon! Table for
Exercise
CLOSING (10 min.) Exit Ticket,
(Consider: How will students summarize what they learned? Pencil
How will students be asked to state the significance of what they learned?
How will you provide all students with opportunities to demonstrate mastery of (or
progress toward) the objective?
Why will students be engaged/interested?)

Students will first be asked to grade their level of understanding of the content covered
in the lesson. This allows students to correlate how well they think they did in class
that day to how well they actually perform on the exit ticket.

The questions on the exit ticket will combine to test every skill covered in todays
lesson, and are accessible to all students. After students finish their exit tickets, I will
summarize the key points of function representation, and cold call students to help
practice vocabulary for the unit.

Notes, Handouts & Materials:

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Lesson Plan Template 5
Guided Notes
f(x) = ________________

( , )

( , )

( , )

( , )

( , )

f(x) = ________________

( , )
X Y
( , )

( , )

( , )

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Lesson Plan Template 6
What type of bike does Santa Clause ride?....

Function Representation Scavenger Hunt

Function Table (x,y) Graph

X Y
(-1,0)
-1 0
EXAMPLE: y = x+1 (0,1)
0 1
(2,3)
1 2

X Y

y = 2x - 2

Letters
X Y

y = -2x2

Letters
X Y

y = -(x+1)2

Letters
X Y

y = x2 - 2

Letters
X Y

y = x2 + 2x - 1

Letters

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Lesson Plan Template 7
Example Plicker Card

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Lesson Plan Template 8
 Works Cited

Jones, K. A., Vermette, P. J., & Jones, J. L. (2009). An integration of backwards

planning unit design with the two-step lesson planning framework. Education, 130(2),
357360.

Teach For America. (2011). Instructional planning & delivery. Retrieved from
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9aKdxaTnscyZmZ4aVh5Wnd4aG8/view?pli=1

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Lesson Plan Template 9