Area Math Unit Plan

ITE 325
May 9, 2017
By: Jamee Humberstone

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 Table of Contents
1. Component 3: Unit Plan Objectives and Rationale (Page 5-7)

2. Component 4: Culminating Assessment (Page 8-9)

3. Component 5: Unit Plan Calendar (Page 9-15)

4. Component 6: Elaborated Lesson (Page 16-24)

5. Component 7: Math Task Debrief (Page 24)

6. Component 8: Commentary (Page 25-27)

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List of concepts, procedures, and practices related to the mathematical terrain
● Exploring Units
○ Counting square inches
○ Counting square centimeters
● Using multiplication to calculate area
○ Identifying length and width
○ Using base ten blocks & pattern blocks
● Solving area through word problems
○ Identifying area through real world applications
○ Recognizing multiplication with a word problem
● Solving area of composite shapes
○ Partitioning irregular shapes into two shapes
○ Measuring rooms of a house to practice partitioning

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 Component 3: Unit plan objectives and rationale
Students prior knowledge and learning opportunities during the unit plan
1. Students prior knowledge includes having practice with multiplication up to their 11 facts
and practice with identifying the characteristics of a shape such as, the amount of sides
and the type of shape. The students have been introduced to real world applications in
previous math topics and are able to develop connections of problems to real world
situations. The students are familiar with using graph paper to display diagrams and can
use the units on the graph to guide them. They are also aware of the basic measuring units
such as, inches, centimeters, and feet and can accurately measure straight and curved
objects. Using this prior knowledge, the students will be able to demonstrate finding the
area of basic shapes, composite shapes and be able to connect these findings to real world
situations. During the first couple of lessons, the students will be grasping the basics of
finding area. As the unit progresses the students will be participating in procedures, such
as building a garden and building their own dream houses, which both include the
awareness of finding dimensions and solving the total area.

2. Central focus of the unit plan

The big idea that the students will be working on in this unit plan is big idea #17:
Measurement. My unit plan connects to the big idea of measurement because the students
will be demonstrating how to accurately find the area of objects. In my unit plan, the
students will be comparing the area of different sized rectangles and identifying the
reasons of different outcomes. By using their prior knowledge of shape characteristics,
the students will be able to conclude that the size of a rectangle affects the total area. As
stated in big idea 17, “The longer the unit of measure, the fewer units it takes to measure
the object”. The students are familiar with measuring straight and curved objects and this
will allow for measurement accuracy when finding the area of the rectangles and
composite shapes in the rooms of their dream houses and their gardens.

Essential question: Why is knowing how to measure area important?

3. Rationale for central focus

It is important for students to learn about area because it is the foundation needed to
move into future mathematical practices such as perimeter, volume, and geometry. Area
is also used in other places other than school. It is essential for many careers today, which
include landscaping, architecture, graphic designing, and engineering. Area is also useful
for simply, building a garden, measuring a room, or house. My goal is for the students to
understand that the knowledge of area can be used in real life situations. My job is to give
them examples through mathematical practices, by capturing their interests and making
connections that will allow them to develop an understanding of the concept of area in
the real world.

4. Prioritized learning objectives

a. Learning Objectives
 Students will identify square inches and square centimeters
 Students will demonstrate counting square units to determine the area of an object
 Students will identify the length and width of a shape

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  Students will demonstrate how to find the area of composite shapes
 Students will develop multiplication sentences to find the area of an object
 Students will create a diagram displaying the dimensions of a garden and calculate the
total area
 Students will recognize and explain the strategies they used to find the area of shapes and
objects
 Students will create a portfolio to demonstrate their understanding of the different aspects
of each lesson in the area unit plan

b. Academic language
The academic language that will be used are terms such as, inches, feet, centimeters, square
inches, square centimeter, composite shapes, accuracy, dimensions, calculations, length, width,
and diagrams. Throughout the lessons in my unit I will be introducing these words in a sequence.
The students will learn about the units of measurements, related to area in the first and second
lesson. They will also be introduced to length and width and the connection it has with
multiplication during the first and second lesson. I will be giving the students definitions to these
words and showing examples using the topic of area. As I teach the third and fourth lesson I will
be introducing more of these words with hopes that the students are able to grasp previous words
learned and the newly introduced words. During each of my lessons I will be using visual aids,
such as PowerPoint to display these words for the students to refer to.

5. Links to the Common Core Content

 CCSSM 3.MD.5
Recognize area as an attribute of plane figures and understand concepts of area
measurement.
a. A square with side length 1 unit, called “a unit square,” is said to have “one square
unit” of area, and can be used to measure area.

 CCSSM 3.MD.6
Measure areas by counting unit squares (square cm, square m, square in, square ft, and
improvised units).

 CCSSM 3.MD.7
Relate area to the operations of multiplication and addition.
a. Find the area of a rectangle with whole-number side lengths by tiling it, and show that
the area is the same as would be found by multiplying the side lengths.
b. Multiply side lengths to find areas of rectangles with whole-number side lengths in the
context of solving real world and mathematical problems, and represent whole-number
products as rectangular areas in mathematical reasoning.
c. Use tiling to show in a concrete case that the area of a rectangle with whole-number
side lengths a and b + c is the sum of a × b and a × c. Use area models to represent the
distributive property in mathematical reasoning.
d. Recognize area as additive. Find areas of rectilinear figures by decomposing them into
non-overlapping rectangles and adding the areas of the non-overlapping parts, applying
this technique to solve real world problems.

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 Practice Standards
1. Attend to precision
Practice standard 6, attend to precision, is related to this specific area unit because the students
will be focusing on the measuring and accuracy. The tasks in this unit plan have a high demand
for precision. The student will need to measure shapes and objects, if they are inaccurate, their
results will need to be justified. During two of the lessons the students will be designing their
own models. They will need to efficiently measure each dimension of their models and pay close
attention to accuracy to have an accurate result. During this unit plan, there will be a consistent
use of discussion between the students and in order to accomplish the demands of the task, they
will need to clearly communicate their reasoning’s of the specific task.
2. Model with mathematics
This unit plan is linked to mathematical practice standard 4, model with mathematics. The
students will create their own dream house using their knowledge of area. By creating their
dream homes the students will be developing a sense of real life problems where calculating the
area is crucial. During the planning for their gardens the students will be creating each part of the
garden using accurate measurements but also thinking about how such measurements may not
always work. The students will demonstrate measuring area and how to adjust needed changes.
Throughout each lesson the students will be modeling their ability to practice mathematics when
finding the area of objects and shapes.

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 Component 4: Culminating assessment and rubric
Formative Assessment
Throughout the unit, I will be formatively assessing the students by using consistent observation.
In each of my lessons, the students will be participating in group discussion and during this time I
will be looking for collaborative discussions that demonstrate their understanding about the
concepts related to area. I will also be formatively assessing the students with the use of reflective
questions. For example, at the end of day 1, I ask the students, “How can you find the
area of a rectangle, what does one pattern block equal to, how does the size of a rectangle affect
the total area?”, based on the responses I get to these questions, I can decide whether I need to
review more before the next lesson or not.
Summative Assessment
The students will create a portfolio that will include the work that they have performed
throughout the unit.

The portfolio will include:

 A cover page
 Diagram of the 3 different rectangles
 Answer to reflections questions for day 1
 Personal area areas created on day 2
 Answers to reflection questions for day 2
 Dream house diagrams, displaying the area of each room, and of the total house
 Garden Diagrams, displaying the area for each plant and the area of the total
garden box
 Answers to reflections questions for day 4
 Reflection on the whole unit
o What did you learn?
o What was most confusing to you about the concept of area?
o Why is knowing how to measure area important?
o Why is it important to know how to find area?

Criteria Proficient (3) Developing Emerging (1)

Proficiency (2)
Calculations Calculations were Calculations were Calculations were
accurate partially accurate attempted
Explanations Student clearly Student provided a Student attempted to
provided a detailed description of their describe their thinking
description of their thinking
thinking

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Group Collaboration Student actively and Student somewhat
effectively collaborated with peers
collaborated with
peers
Participation Student actively Student participated in
participated in all minimal activities.
activities
Portfolio Student completed Student completed at Student completed less
all pages of portfolio least half of the pages in than half the pages in
portfolio portfolio

Component 5: Unit Plan Calendar

Teaching Days Lesson Length Topics Addressed

Day One 60 Minutes Exploring units

Day Two 60 Minutes Using multiplication to

calculate area

Day Three 60 Minutes Solving the area of composite

shapes

Day Four 60 Minutes Solving word problems using

area

Day 1: Exploring Units, 60 min

Topics/Learning Goals:

- Students can identify square centimeters and square inches

- Students explore the connection between counting square units and finding area
- Students can demonstrate counting the area of a 2-dimensional shape
- Students can use pattern blocks to find the area of a rectangle

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 Activities:

Introduction/Discussion:
PowerPoint will be used for opening discussion
I will start the lesson displaying and discussing the learning objectives.
I will then open with small discussion of square centimeters and square inches.
I will introduce area as the space that fills a boundary. Then demonstrate the concept of
counting square units using pattern blocks.

Group Exploration:
As a group, students will be given 3 rectangles represented as an array, that all differ in
size. The students will be asked to find the area of the shape using pattern blocks to cover
the whole rectangle. Students will identify the number of pattern blocks needed to cover
each triangle to equal to the total area. After the group has discovered the area of each
rectangle, they will independently, create a drawing to display the process they took to
find the area of each rectangle using the pattern blocks. They will also write a brief
explanation of their thinking.

Whole class discussion:

Students will present their drawings followed with an explanation.
They will be able to identify that each pattern block is equal to one square unit.
The students will explain how they got different answers for the different rectangles.

Exit Slip/Pre-assessment:
All students will give written and verbal explanations
- How can you find the area of a rectangle?
- What is one pattern block equal to?
- How does the size of a rectangle affect the total area?

Homework:

N/A

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 Day 2: Using Multiplication to Find Area, 60 min

Topics/Learning Goals:
- Students can identify the length and width of a shape
- Students will develop a multiplication sentences by analyzing an array
- Students will explore the area of a rectangle using base ten blocks

Activities:
PowerPoint will be used for opening discussion
Introduction/Discussion
I will start by displaying and discussing the objectives for the lesson.
I will put a 5x4 array up on the PowerPoint.
Like this:

The array will not have units in the middle, so the students won’t be able to just count it.
I will ask the students, “how could we find the area of this square with what is given?”
We will continue to discuss this concept and I will put a few more examples on the board. The
teacher will explain the concept of length and width in comparison to rows and columns.

Group Exploration:
The students will work together on a couple of different array examples.
Students will present their findings and processes with the class for further discussion.
To give the students time to have independent practice, I will ask them to create their own
arrays and their own multiplications problems to go with the array. They will also provide an
explanation of their process for each array.

Whole class discussion:

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Students will switch papers and practice finding area using the array made by their classmate.
We will discuss any misconceptions or mistakes after they have all attempted one another’s
problems.
We will also have a discussion of the possibilities that only the multiplication sentence was
given. Ask: Can we create an array to match the multiplication sentence?

Exit Slip/Pre-assessment:
All students will give written and verbal explanations
- How do you find the area using the length and the width?
- What type of problems did you run into when creating your own array?
- Where will we need to find the area of something in our lives?

Homework:

Go home and using graph paper(provided), create an array with the given measurements. (5x7,
3x2, 4x6). What is the area for each array?

Day 3: Finding the Area of Composite Shapes, 60 min

See Component 6: Elaborated Lesson Plan

Homework:

N/A

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 Day 4: Solving Word Problems Using Area , 60 min

Topics/Learning Goals:
PowerPoint will be used for opening discussion
Students can identify multiplication as a part of area
Students can create a diagram displaying the dimensions of their garden
Students can analyze word problem involving area

Activities:
Whole-Class Launch:
I will start by displaying and discussing the objectives for the lesson.
I would open by saying, today class, I need your help making gardens for the school. I would
like to make 5 gardens around our school. Every garden will have different dimensions
because of the space available and they will also have different plants.

Group Exploration:
Each group will get a different garden to work on.
1. Building A’s garden will have the dimensions 10x8 square feet. The plants needed for
this garden are lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers

The students will be asked to separate the space of the whole garden to include sections for the
plants needed. Their job is to notice that some plants will have more space than the others,
than ask themselves. Why does this happen?
PURPLE 8x3=Tomatoes (24 sq ft)
BLUE 8x4=Lettuce (32 sq ft)
ORANGE 8x3=Cucumbers (24 sq ft)

The total area of the garden is 80 sq ft.

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 2. The dimensions of building B’s garden is 14x3. The plants needed are sunflowers,
dandelions, and sweet peas.
PURPLE 3x4= Sunflowers (12 sq ft)
BLUE 3x5=Dandelions (15 sq ft)
ORANGE 3x5=Sweet Pea (15 sq ft)

The total area of the garden is 42 sq ft.

3. The dimensions of building C’s garden is 9x7 square feet. The plants needed are
spinach, green peppers, and beets.
PURPLE 9x3=27 sq ft (Spinach)
BLUE 9x2=18 sq ft (Grn Pepper)
ORANGE 9x2=18 sq ft (beets)

The total area of the garden is 63 sq ft.

4. The dimensions of building D’s garden is 10x4 square feet. The plants needed are
basil, oregano, and parsley.
PURPLE 4x4=16 sq ft (Basil)
BLUE 3x4=12 sq ft (Oregano)
ORANGE 3x4=12 (Parsley)

The total area of the garden is 40 sq ft.

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 5. The dimensions of building E’s garden is 6x10 square feet. The plants needed are
marigold, sage, and daisies.
PURPLE 6x3=18 sq. ft. (Marigold)
BLUE 6x3=18 sq. ft. (Sage)
ORANGE 6x4=24 sq. ft. (Daisies)

The total area of the garden is 60 sq ft.

Each group will get one of these gardens to work on. The students will build the garden based
on its dimensions and fill each garden based on the given plants. The students will need to
demonstrate how each plant will fit in each garden.
They will label the dimensions and the area of each plant section as well as the area of the
whole garden.
On large chart paper, they will create a plan for how the garden will look.

Whole class discussion:

Students will present their plans with the class and we will discuss the misconception or
mistakes.

Exit Slip/Pre-assessment:
Verbal and written explanations.
- How did your group figure out the area of the whole garden?
- What issues did your group have when finding the dimensions of the garden?
- Did each plant have an equal amount of space in the garden? Why or why not?

Homework:
Go home and think about the issues you may run into when creating the actual garden (the
dimensions aren’t fitting, the total area changes). What can you do to solve these issues?

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 Component 6: Elaborated Lesson Plan
First Name Last Name Email Date
Jamee Humberstone Jamee3@hawaii.edu 3/16/17
Semester Year Grade Level/Subject Lesson Duration
2 2017 3/Mathematics 1 hour
Title
Measuring Area using Common Shapes

Central Focus (Enduring Understandings)

A description of the important understandings(s) and concept(s)

Area will be determined using common shapes

Big Idea #17: Some attributes of objects are measurable and can be quantified using unit
amounts.
Throughout the lesson the students will be identifying specific attribute to a specific shape such as
length and width. The students will use what they know of the length and width and multiply those
results together to develop the area of that shape. When measuring the shapes the students will be
introduced to the importance of accurate measurements. They will notice what happens when
accuracy is not present and when it is. As I continue through my lesson the students will have
practice in these areas during multiple sections of the lesson.
Essential Questions: Why is it important to accurately know how to find the area of a structure?

Content Standard(s)
The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) or Hawaii Content & Performance Standards III (HCPS III) that align with the central focus and
address essential understandings, concepts, and skills
CCSSM 3.MD.6
Measure areas by counting unit squares (square cm, square m, square in, square ft, and
improvised units).

Benchmark MA.3.4.6: Estimate and measure perimeter and area of common shapes and
irregular shapes.
Practice Standard): This task is linked to mathematical practice standard 4, model with
mathematics. The students will create their own dream house using their knowledge of area. By
creating their dream homes the students will be developing a sense of real life problems where
calculating the area is a necessity. This task is also linked to mathematical standard 6, attend to

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precision. The students will be developing exact measurements of area using centimeter square
graph paper. They will accurately find the area of squares and rectangles used in their dream
house drawings by identifying the multiplication sentence using the squares provided on the graph
paper. After developing their answers students will be asked to explain, in detail, to their
classmates how they found the area of the different parts of their dream house as well as their
house as a whole.

Student Learning Objectives

Outcomes to be achieved by the students by the end of the lesson or by the end of the multi-lesson learning segment
● Students will recognize and explain the strategies they used to find the area of rectangles
and squares.
● Students will compute the area by finding the length and width of a rectangle and square.
● Students will apply what they learned through the activity by sharing their results with the
class and develop a response to any contradicting responses

Assessments
The procedures to gather evidence of students’ learning of learning objective(s) to include formative (informal) assessments applied throughout
the lesson and a summative assessment (formal) of what students’ learned by the end of the lesson (include any assessment tools)

I will be formatively assessing the students by using teacher observation during their independent
work time. I will be walking around the class and looking for clear explanations from the students, of
how they are finding the area of their houses. I will be observing the steps that the students are
taking and whether they are identifying the length and width first or if they are just counting the
boxes. Using my observation, I will assess my students using a teacher-made rubric to identify the
ability of each student’s performance.
Rubric:

Dream House Rubric

Criteria Well Below Developing Meets Meets with
Average Proficiency Proficiency Excellence
Calculations Student only Student only Student can Student could
& Accuracy identified and identified and identify and identify and
calculated 1 calculated the area calculated the area calculate the area of
room of 2 rooms of 4 of their rooms each room and the
whole house.
Explanation Student does N/A Student explains Student thoroughly
& Process not explain the some of the steps explained the steps
steps they used they used in they made when
to find area finding the area finding the area of
their house

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 Participation Student did not N/A Student actively Students actively
participate in participated in participated in group
discussion group discussion discussion,
justifying their
answers as needed
I will use my observations from my formative assessment to fill out a teacher made rubric that I will
create for my summative assessment. I will be asking students to justify their answers during the
time they will be sharing with the class. I will also be summatively assessing the students by having
a collection of their work at the end of the lesson, where I will be able to identify how they found
their answers of each rectangle and square.

Students’ Prior Academic Knowledge and Assets

The students’ content knowledge, skills, prior academic experiences, and personal/cultural/community assets to draw upon to support learning

The students have already been introduced to area and have minimal knowledge of the topic. The
students are able to solve basic multiplication sentences as well as develop their own. Students are
able to use graph paper to display mathematical models such as shapes. Lastly, the students are
familiar with the we do and you do process.

Academic Language and Language Supports

Oral and written language that the students need to learn and use to participate and engage in the content. The planned instructional supports to
help students understand, develop, and use academic language.

The students will be using academic language such as: measuring, area, common shapes,
composite shapes, rectangles, squares, result, square units, architect, blueprint. In my lesson I will
include a PowerPoint where all academic language will be identified and defined. The students will
become familiar with the words before participating in the core of the lesson.

Instructional Strategies and Learning Tasks

A description of what the teacher will do and say and what the students will do during the lesson that 1) uses clear steps that convey the use of
multiple strategies, supports, and resources and 2) list opportunities offered for multiple modes of participation

Warm-up/Introduction 10 min
● Turn on PowerPoint
○ Tell students, Today, we will be focusing on finding area.
○ Display on PowerPoint, “We will be architects”
○ Display on PowerPoint, “Do you know what an architect does”
■ Tell students, “cross your arms when you have a thought”.
● Allow students to develop an answer and share to the class their definition of an architect
● Display definition of Architect
○ Definition: A person who designs buildings and houses.
● I will display on PowerPoint, “What Will We Be Creating”

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 ○ Tell students, Today we will be designing our own blueprints of our dream houses
and finding the area of each room we create.
○ Ask students, By looking at the picture, what do you think a blueprint is?
○ Ask students, What view is this picture taken from?
■ A blueprint is a design plan of a house or building. We will be designing a plan
of our dreamhouse.
● Display, benchmark
○ Estimate and measure the area and perimeter of common shapes and irregular
shapes
■ Tell students, I will read the standard first and then we will read it together.
■ Tell students, Our goal for our math lesson today is to be able to measure
common shapes such as squares and rectangles that we use in our blueprints
■ Ask students, Why do you think I circled area?
■ Tell students, During our math lesson we will only be focusing on the area of
common shapes, such as rectangles and squares.
● Display the definition of area
○ Tell students: Area is the number of unit squares that can be found within a specific
shape.
● Allow students to explain how they would find the area of a shape.
○ Display question on PowerPoint: Can you share with the class one way you can find
the area of a shape?
Dream House Activity (We do) 10 minutes
● In the PowerPoint I will display a teacher made dream house example
○ Tell students, This is what the finished product will look like
○ Tell students, Everyone’s blueprint will be different depending on where everyone
decides to draw their squares and rectangles
○ Ask students, why is it important to measure each of the room accurately?
■ Tell students, Discuss with your table. Ready, go!
○ Allow students to share their answers to the class
○ Ask students, what could we do to make sure we are measuring the area correctly?
■ Tell students, Discuss with your table. Ready go!
○ Allow students to share their answers with the class
○ Tell students, Let’s do one as a class
● Display blank template on the Elmo
● Give students directions
○ Tell students: First let’s fill in the template with rectangles and squares
● Fill in the template until it is completely filled with squares and rectangles
○ Write on the board and tell students: Everyone should have at least
■ One bedroom
■ One bathroom
○ Tell students: So, in our class example we will do the bedroom and bathroom
together.
○ Ask students, First let’s label the bathroom
○ Ask students, What is the length of the bathroom?
○ Ask students, What is the width of the bathroom?
○ Ask students, What is the area of the bathroom?

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 ● Continue by solving the multiplication sentence
○ Ask students, Okay, now let’s label the bedroom
○ Ask students, What is the length of the bedroom?
○ Ask students, What is the width of the bedroom?
○ Ask students, What is the area of the bedroom?
● Continue by solving the multiplication sentence
○ Tell students, After you finish labeling and finding the area of the bedroom and the
bathroom, then you can add more rooms.
■ For example: Video games room, Pool room, Movie room
● After we find the area of each room
○ Ask students: How can we find the area of the whole house
○ Tell students: Discuss with your table, ready, go!
● Allow students to share their answers with the class
● I will be looking for clear explanations and use this to assess their understanding so far.
● I will inform them that in order to find the area of the whole house you would need to add the
area of each of the rooms or find the length and width of the whole house.
○ Tell students, in order to find the area of the whole house you would need to add the
areas of all the rooms together and that would give you the area of the whole house.
● Display our class blueprint
● Explain to the students that this is how they will create their own blue prints
● Tell students: Okay class, now that we have created a blueprint of our dreamhouse as a
class, you will be creating your own dream house and finding the area of each room
Dream house Activity (You do) 35 minutes
● Tell students, on your tables you have the dream house templates. Material managers,
please give one to each of your classmates on your table and one for yourself.
● I will explain to the student that they will be filling in their templates and recording their
results on the same paper
● Tell students: Okay class before you find the area of your dream houses, I will be going over
what I expect to see in your models.
● Go over the instructions once more and display them on the powerpoint for the students to
refer back to
○ Instructions:
■ First, fill in your template with squares and rectangles
■ Label each room and find the length and width of each room
■ Find the area using the length and width
■ If you are able to find the area in a different way, you can but I will be asking
you to share with the class how you got your answer
■ If you finish early
● Find the area of the whole house
● Figure out which room is the smallest
● Figure out which room is the largest
● Color each room different colors. Be creative!
● Find the difference between the two rooms
● Check for understanding
○ Ask student: What are the directions we just went over?
● I will include the formula of area on the board

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 ● Tell students:
○ Okey dokey! Artichoke! (classroom management skill)
○ Okay, class I will be walking around and making sure you are staying on task
○ If you are having trouble, use what you know.
○ If you absolutely don’t know how to do it ask a friend.
○ If they don’t know then I will be around to help you
○ I will give you 20 minutes to work on this and then we will go into a group discussion
on our findings
■ Display the timer so they are aware of how much time they have
● Tell students, I will display the timer so you are able to use your time
wisely.
Group Discussion/Reflection 10 minutes
● Use classroom management skill
○ Conversations come to a close in 3,2,1 zero
● Inform students that they will be presenting their houses with with their table in a group and
sharing which room was their favorite and how they found the area of that room.
● I will give them specific instructions of what I expect to hear in their discussions
○ Tell students, Okay class in your groups I would like each person to have the
opportunity to share
○ Tell students, I want each of you to share about your favorite room and what steps
you took to find the area of that room.
■ Display, sentence starter on board: My favorite room is _______. I found the
area by ______.
● Give example using the model I created
■ Tell students: Remember to be respectful to your classmates
■ Ask students: So if your classmate is talking, should you be talking?
■ Ask students: When your classmate is sharing, where should your eyes be?
■ Tell students: I will give you 5 minutes to share with your group, and I will
display the timer on the Elmo, so use your time wisely
■ Classroom Management:Okey Dokey! Artichokee!
○ Put on the timer
■ Tell students: Okay, you can begin
Share/Cleanup 10 minutes
● After their group discussion I will give the students the option to share with the class, their
favorite room and the process they took to find the area of that room
● I will be validating their work as well as redirecting their process if necessary
● I will let the class know when it's the last person to share and I will have the students read
together the I can statement that I provide for them.
○ Display I can statement with PowerPoint:
■ I can identify and measure the area of common shapes, such as squares and
rectangles.
● Tell students, Okay class, please make sure your name is on your papers and make one
stack on the round table.
● Tell students, clean up and start getting ready for recess.

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Differentiation
Adaptations to instructional strategies, the learning environment, content, and/or assessments to meet the needs of students who require further
support (e.g., ELL/MLL, struggling, accelerated, 50/IEP, etc.)

I will be using differentiation throughout my lesson to accommodate for the advanced learners as
well as the struggling learners. For the students who have difficulty grasping verbal explanations, I
will be using an example using the elmo and working with the class as a whole before they work
independently. In order to accommodate the advanced learners (and anyone who finishes early) I
will provide the option of answering a few more questions about their models comparing the
different area measurements.

Instructional Resources and Materials

Books, texts, and other materials needed for the lesson

Elmo
Timer
Area model example
Pen or Pencil
PowerPoint
Crayons or colored pencils

Lesson Plan Reflection (if lesson is carried out)

An analysis of what worked, what could be changed, and the next steps for teaching
● What changes would you make to your instruction—for the whole class and/or for students who needed greater support or
challenge—to better support student learning?
o Why do you think these changes would improve student learning? Support your explanation with evidence of student
learning AND principles from theory, recommended practices, and/or research.
● Based on your reflection and your analysis of student learning, describe the next steps for instruction to support students’ learning.

Reflection:
As I planned my lesson, my focus was allowing the students to learn the concept and importance of area by participating
in an engaging activity. I wanted the students to be motivated to find the area instead of forced to find the area. In my first
draft of my lesson plan, it was not until after my teacher and peer comments that I noticed I was too focused on the
activity part of my lesson. Some of the suggestions, included: Having a rubric, adding more description to my big idea,
and asking why questions.
To develop a lesson that would grasp my student’s attention and understanding, I incorporated these needed changes.
Big idea #17 states, “Some attributes of objects are measurable and can be quantified using unit amounts”. Before I
made the changes, this statement was all I included in the enduring understanding section. I was told to explain how I
would be doing this in my lesson. Being given this suggestion it was helpful because I could think about where and when
I would see this big idea being displayed throughout my teaching. After some brainstorming
I could develop an explanation that justified big idea #17. I added specific details that pertained to the instruction of my
lesson by identifying what the students would be measuring (length and width), what they would use the length
and width for (multiply together to get area), and what they would be noticing when finding these specific measurements.

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Another change that I incorporated into my lesson plan was a teacher made rubric. I was given a suggestion to create a
rubric that I could use to assess the progress of my students. After teaching my lesson, I could go back
and look at the rubric and students individual finished work. I used this to assess how much they understood through the
lesson. I also used the knowledge I gained through my observations to assess each student on their ability to thoroughly
explain their thinking of finding area.
The last big suggestion was to make sure the students knew why area was important and how building a dream house
was not just for fun but it was also used to display that area is used in real life situations. The two questions I
added to my lesson were, “why is it important to measure each of the room accurately?” and “what could we do to make
sure we are measuring the area correctly?”. Although, during my lesson I didn’t get the chance to ask these questions my
intent was to do so. When I teach my lessons, I have a hard time pausing to look at the hard copy of my lesson plan for
my next steps, so unfortunately, I missed these questions.
In regards to the Charlotte Danielson Framework, Domain 1a: Demonstrates knowledge of content and pedagogy, I
would rate myself as proficient because I could develop the math concepts during my lesson and display this knowledge
to the students. During the lesson, I explained the meaning of all the academic vocabulary, such as measuring, area,
common shapes, rectangles, squares, result, square units, architect, and blueprint. Some of the terms stated were
already familiar vocabulary for the students but when mentioning unknown words such as square units, architect, and
blueprint, I allowed the students to first develop their own definitions using their prior knowledge and then I explained the
meanings.
In Domain 2b: Demonstrates knowledge of students. I also rate myself at the proficient level because I used my prior
knowledge of the students and incorporated this information into my lesson. I noticed that many of the students have the
tendency to ask the famous questions, “I’m done, what do I do now”, I made sure that there was enough for the students
to do if they finished early. I also took the students who take longer to finish into consideration. I didn’t want
them to feel like they were incompetent of performing the task, so I only required the students to have created and
measured the area of at least one bedroom and one bathroom in their dream house. This was a success and I was
surprised to see that all the students had at least 5 rooms in their dream houses with their measurements of area.
In domain 3c: Sets instructional outcome. I would rate myself as proficient because I could effectively instruct the
students through my PowerPoint. During my lesson my PowerPoint backed up everything I was verbally saying. Anything
that I gave an explanation on, I made sure to also include on the PowerPoint so the students could
hear it verbally and see it visually. During their activity and independent work, I provided the instructions on the board for
the students to see and to refer to when they had questions.
In domain 4d: Demonstrates knowledge of resources. I would rate myself distinguished because in my lesson I used a
variety of resources to support my teaching. I used a PowerPoint, Elmo, dream house template, and a timer. These
resources supported my students in effectively performing the task they were given. As I walked the students through the
instructions I used the PowerPoint as a visual and a second reminder. The Elmo was used to show the students how to
effectively fill in their template and display to the students what I expected of them. I also made a dream house template
so the students wouldn’t focus so much on making the template but instead their focus was to be making the rooms and
finding the area of those rooms. Lastly, I used a timer that gave the students the ability to track their own time
management and demonstrate productivity throughout their independent work time.
In domain 5e: Designs coherent instruction. I would rate myself as proficient because through the we do and you do
process I could verbally explain my instructions as well as visually demonstrate what I expected. After verbally explaining
and modeling the task, I was also able to display the instructions through my PowerPoint. After I went over the listed
instructions on the PowerPoint, I reminded the students that if they didn’t know what to do or they missed my explanation,
it would be provided on the board through the PowerPoint, for them.

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In domain 6f: Designs student assessment. I would rate myself proficient because I created a rubric that I used for my
formative and summative assessment. During my observations while the students had independent work time, I could
listen in on conversations and assess individual student knowledge. After my lesson, I also used their dream house
activity as a summative assessment and referred to the rubric I created.
Although I believe I was proficient in most areas, there is always room for improvement. Some of the changes I would
make would be with my assessment and the template I created. During my lesson, I wish that I displayed the rubric for
the students to see so they were aware of what they were being graded on. I would have created a simpler template for
the students because I noticed that it got challenging to fill in and most of the students were not only making squares and
rectangles. Lastly, I would have liked to be able to include more “why” questions. The students knew how to measure
area but I was not able to effectively assess whether they knew why we measure area or why it is important.
I think incorporating these changes would have made my lesson much richer. I do think it was a successful lesson but
adding these different aspects could have given the students more background knowledge of area and presented exactly
I was looking for by the end of the lesson. For example, if I could ask more why questions, the students who knew why
we measured area would be getting a refresher and the students who didn’t know would have the chance to think about it
in terms of measuring area in their own lives. In the article, Adding it Up, it states that productive dispositions refers to the
tendency to see sense in mathematics to perceive it as both useful and worthwhile to believe that steady effort in learning
mathematics pays off and to see oneself as an effective learner and doer of mathematics” (Adding it Up, Pg. 131). I
believe that if the students understood that they are participating in this activity because it’s a real life situation, they
would have a better interpretation on the concept of area. During my lesson, I noticed that most of the students had
trouble making just squares and rectangles. So, if I just made a simple rectangle template then maybe they would have
just made squares and rectangles.
For my future lessons, I will make sure to tune into my assessment of the students. I would like them to know exactly
what I am looking for by the end of the lesson and I want them to be able to assess themselves based on the rubric I
present to them. When planning my next lesson, I will make sure that the students will be challenged. My goal would be
to challenge the students enough. I would also like to set them up to effectively perform the given tasks. This way the
students will be using deeper thinking and they will efficiently be able to execute the assignment.

Patrick, Jeremy, and Jane Swafford, eds. "Adding It Up." NRC 2001. N.p., n.d. Web.

Component 7: Math task debriefs

Math Task Debrief

N/A

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 Component 8: Commentary
How do key learning tasks in your unit plan build on each other to support student
procedural fluency, conceptual understanding, mathematical reasoning, positive
dispositions toward mathematics, and the development of related academic language?
Describe specific strategies that you will use to build student learning across the unit plan.
Reference the instructional materials you have included, as needed.
The learning tasks in my unit plan support student’s procedural fluency, conceptual
understanding, mathematical reasoning, positive dispositions, and the development of related
academic language because I have based my lessons on these ideas.
In the beginning of my unit I started simple but also complex. The students are introduced to the
basic terms of area such as square units, square feet, square centimeters, and area. In the opening
discussion, the students are learning that one square unit is equal to one square whose sides have
a length of 1. I demonstrate how to find the area by first defining what it is. During the first
lesson the students are practicing procedural fluency as well as conceptual understanding
because they are comprehending that area is the space that fills an object. By understanding this
concept, they can carry out the procedure of counting the unit squares to develop the area.
During the second lesson the students are making a connection of area and multiplication and are
introduced to more academic language such as length and width in comparison to rows and
columns. During this lesson, the students are building on their conceptual understanding of area
because they can associate length and width with multiplication. The students can use this
understanding of multiplication, when finding the area of an object as oppose to counting units.
By using their conceptual understanding with multiplication, they are building on their
procedural fluency by accurately using the length and width of an object to find the area. Later in
the second lesson the students are asked to create their own problems. They participate in the
procedures of finding area by attempting to solve the arrays that their classmates have created.
During this process, the students can present their outcomes to build on their mathematical
reasoning of reflecting, justifying, and explaining when concluding the results, they eventually
formulate.
As the third lesson of composite shapes is presented the students have already built on their
conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, mathematical reasoning, and developed academic
language related to area. During this lesson, the students will be introduced to more of the
academic language such as composite shapes and partitioning. The students will be able to use
the knowledge developed in the previous lessons to expand their conceptual understanding of
area. In this lesson, the students will be needing to accurately partition the template to create
their dream house. Now they will be connecting simple rectangles to complex rectangles in
comparison to area. They will need to justify and explain how they have measured the rooms of

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their houses. In this lesson students will form a positive disposition toward mathematics,
specifically area because they are seeing mathematics as useful and needed in real life situations.
In the final lesson of the unit plan I introduce the students to word problems that are related to
area and again allow them to make connections of the mathematics to daily life. At this time in
the units, students will continue to build on their procedural fluency, conceptual understanding,
mathematical reasoning, positive dispositions toward mathematics and their academic language
related to area. The students perform the task of creating a plan for gardens in their school.
During this process, they are using their conceptual understanding of the area and displaying
accurate dimensions of their gardens. They are seeing area as not just plain mathematics but also
its connection to real world situations. The students are planning with their groups and making
justifications of their results as well as giving explanations to the class on how they have
effectively measured the area of their gardens.
Throughout my unit plan I have included tasks for the students to participate in that will support
their procedural fluency, conceptual understanding, mathematical reasoning, positive
dispositions toward mathematics, and the development of related academic language by
providing lessons that build off each other. I have carefully thought out my plan for each of my
lessons to ensure the proper support of student growth in the mathematical concept of area.

Discuss how you will draw out and address anticipated misconceptions and common errors
through your unit plan.
In my unit plan, I will encourage misconception and common errors because I believe it will
create space for growth and students will better grasp the concept of area. During my unit plan, I
will address misconceptions and common errors with whole class discussions. If a student
develops a misconception, I will kindly ask the students if I can display their work for the class
to see and learn from. I will assure them that they are helping the class by having an error or
misconception. My plan to address errors, is not to tell the students they are wrong but instead,
allow the students to fix their mistakes and recognize where they may have gone wrong. I will
also listen for students who may be getting overwhelmed and confused with a specific activity
and ask what it is they are confused about. I will also address their concern with the whole class
because I think if one student is having concerns than multiple students may be having the same
concern.
For example, when I taught the lesson where the students measured the area of their dream
house, I noticed that many of them had struggled to equally partition the template that I provided
for them. During this time, I could have addressed this common error and displayed one of the
student’s mistakes to the whole class. If I could have done it over I would have showed the class
an example of this specific error and asked them what they could have done differently in this
situation. I would have allowed the students to give me their input and ask them if there was a
way to avoid this issue. Based on the feedback from the students I would continue to discuss this
topic until the students understood how to accurately partition the template.
As for the whole concept of area, I can see the students coming across misconceptions such as
area being the space that fills a shape or an object, the connection between multiplication and
area, and making sense of the word problems that involve area. For these specific concepts, I will
provide detailed descriptions and model everything. Before the students can develop their own

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understanding, I will make sure that the opening discussion covers any misconceptions of these
ideas. In a case where the students still run into errors during their independent and group work
activities, I will immediately address the misconceptions and allow the students to discuss why
these things happen. My goal is for the students to be able to understand every aspect of area and
one way of doing this is to constantly watch for errors and misconceptions and encourage
discussion. I will lead the discussion but I will encourage the students to explain their thinking
and redirect them when necessary.
Explain how the collection of assessments (both formative and summative) from your plan
allows you to evaluate your students’ learning of specific student standards/objectives and
provide feedback to students on their learning. Be specific about the connections between
the assessment, the type of data you hope to attain, and what the data can tell you about
student learning.
For each of the lessons I am teaching, I will be asking the students to answer specific questions
related to each of the lessons. The questions that I have included as a formative assessment
connect to my learning objectives, which connect to the state standards for measurement. As a
class, we will be discussing these questions and the students will be turning in a written
description of their thinking. I will be using both methods as a formative assessment for each of
the lessons. During the discussion, I will be looking to see if the students are grasping the
concepts taught in that specific lesson. I will also be connecting their responses to the learning
objectives of that lesson to see if they are meeting the goals I presented to them before the
lesson. From my assessments, I will be able to track where my students are based on how much
they understood from the lesson. If the students are meeting each of the learning objectives, then
I’ll be able to get them prepared for the next lesson of area. If I observe, during my formative
assessment that the students are still not grasping the concepts taught in the lesson, then I know
that I need to go back and give them more practice in that specific area. To provide feedback to
the students, I have included a written report that each of the students would need to turn in by
the end of each lesson. This way, I can individually assess the students and give each of them
their own feedback. I will also use this to alter the upcoming lessons to address differentiation
that may occur.
As a summative assessment, the students will be creating a portfolio that includes all the work
they have done during the unit. On the last page of their portfolio they will include a reflection
answering the essential question as well as other questions, which include, what did you learn,
what was most confusing to you about the concepts of area, why is it important to know how to
find area, how did the lessons help you understand area, include examples. My goal is for the
students to answer these questions by using the knowledge they have built from the lessons I’ve
taught. The purpose of this summative assessment is to see how much the students have learned
about area and if they are able to identify examples from the unit that have helped them develop
these ideas. I will also use this summative assessment to give the students specific feedback
about their learning and to assess my teaching for future references. It is important to get the
feedback to improve the unit for future students, as well as for the current students. I would use
this summative assessment to help myself and the students grow mathematically.

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