After completing the two Making Algebra Meaningful activities we spent time using algebra tiles to help collect like 
terms and simplify algebraic expressions. Our math department has sets of these tiles, but over the last couple of years I have used the Algebra Tiles app from BrainingCamp. It’s a pretty decent app that allows 3 modes. Continue reading
Author: Jon Orr
Function Matching – Down the Desmos Rabbit Hole!
Before our break I created a set of challenges for students to investigate translations of different functions. I had a few goals in mind:
- Introduce a few basic functions that we will work with in this unit (square root, rational, cubic, quadratic).
- See how certain points on the function are translated.
- How does affecting the values in the equation affect the graph of a variety of functions?
- Use function notation to represent translations.
Dora to the Rescue
Next on Making Algebra Meaningful – Dora to the Rescue!
Our goal is to tackle this beast from our expectations:
add and subtract polynomials involving the same variable up to degree three [e.g., (2x + 1) + (x^2 – 3x + 4)],using a variety of tools
and
multiply a polynomial by a monomial involving the same variable to give results up to degree three [e.g., (2x)(3x), 2x(x + 3)], using a variety of tools
Part 1 (Act 1) Being Curious
Order Up – Making Algebra Meaningful
My first thought when creating my lessons is how can I get students curious! Sometimes curiosity will come out from Act 1 of a 3 Act math task. Or sometimes it’s from a puzzelly type open activity that makes students struggle.
Here is MY new struggle:
How can I make students curious when teaching collecting like terms, and eventually the distributive property?
Last year’s opener to teach collecting like terms:
- Give them a perimeter problem where the sides have an unknown value.
- Ask for an expression for the perimeter in terms of x.
- Now here is x….find the perimeter.
And that’s it! Every time I do this kids are confused and ask “Why didn’t we just have the value of x to begin with?”
I want a task that makes us curious and need to use like terms to simplify an expression.
Task 1: Order Up
Task 2: Dora to the Rescue
