Slope stops being a workbook page when it is the uphill trek someone takes every day to fetch water. The class meets Manjula through her wordless film, and then the question arrives in her voice: when I think of slope, I think of the uphill trek I need to take every day to get water. What do you think of?
Learners turn and talk: which direction is uphill, which is downhill, and why? Then graph paper comes out. Quadrant one, freehand. Her home at one point, the water source at another, and the line between them suddenly worth finding because someone real walks it.
The educator closes with the part that makes this page worth watching: learners with an emotional connection to the lesson stay engaged, and they remember how they did the math because they remember why it mattered. For the lesson library behind this approach, see math with reweave.
"If you connect to it on an emotional level, you are probably going to remember how you did it."
A learner, reflecting after the lessonLightly cleaned for readability. Bracketed lines describe what is on screen.
I liked using the videos to learn math because it showed, in other people's perspective, how they use math.
I think it's important to actually bring these type of lessons into the math context because while academics are really important, and learning math is truly important in order for them to become successful students and citizens in the future, it's also very important that they become aware of what's happening in the world.
We're actually going to begin with a video, so I want everyone to make sure that their eyes are on the screen.
[the class watches Manjula's wordless film]
So when I think of slope, I think of the uphill trek I need to take every day to get water. What do you think of when you hear the term slope? I want you to turn and talk to your partner right now. If you had to choose a way to the water source and back, which one would be uphill and which one would be downhill, and why?
Choose uphill to go up to get the water, and downhill to go down, because the water is going to be easier to go down. I think it's the opposite.
You have labeled your x and your y axis. Here's your model on the board, so you know exactly where she is. I'm going down how much, guys? Four. Am I moving left? Don't call out. Am I going right? Imagine the path I take to fetch water was represented on a graph. Imagine I passed through the point zero, seventy six to reach the water source. I want you, right now, on your coordinate grid, to find that point.
I want us to grab the graph paper right now, and I want you to draw a coordinate grid with just quadrant number one. I'm going to model it for you on the board, but I want you to go ahead and freehand draw one large quadrant number one. Go ahead and label her point where she starts at home, and I want you to label the point at which she actually gets to the water source. Brian, can you remind me what point represents her home? Five and two. Five and two. There will be another point on that line. I want you to try it. That's the only clue I'm giving you. Simplify.
The student has a more emotional connection to the lesson, and they would be able to be more engaged, rather than not having any connection at all and just doing it because we were told to. If we have a personal connection and an emotional connection toward the lesson, I think we would be more engaged. If you connect to it on an emotional level, you're probably going to remember how you did it.
Many of our students, at the moment, can only see what is happening in their neighborhood. Bringing in these type of lessons can create these experiences where they can connect with something outside of just a textbook.
It was a great way to learn math because it relates to people, and it's a good connection that you can make between math and your own world. Bring them together.