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Rebecca Whitney
Numeracy Tech Lesson
Dr. Drook
11/21/14
Part I Summary of the Textbooks Lesson
Textbook Citation:
Bell, M. (2007). Everyday Mathematics. Chicago, IL.
Grade Level: 4
Objectives:
Use letter notation to name angles
Construct angles, triangles, and quadrangles
Describe properties of and compare quadrangles
Identify types of quadrangles
Materials Needed:
Everyday Math Journal
Straightedge; slate
Straws and twist-ties
Description of the Lesson:
This lesson is very hands on. The students will be asked to construct angles using straws and
twist-ties. To open up the lesson, allow the students a few minutes to play with the straws and
twist-ties and to familiarize themselves with the materials that will be used in todays lesson.
After this is over, ask the students to take two straws and one twist-tie. Have the students insert
the twist-tie into each end of the straws and join them together. Now, the teacher will lead a class
discussion about various angles. The teacher should emphasize certain key points such as:
The straw forms the angle and they meet at a point we call the vertex
A right angle is a square corner (have the students make a right angle using their straws)
Next, ask students to join three straws of different lengths and lay their constructions flat on their
desks. What is this shape called? Students should answer triangle.
Next, have the students make a straw construction out of four straws and lay their constructions
flat on their desks. What is a four-sided shape called? Students should answer quadrangle or
quadrilateral. Teachers may have to clarify misconceptions that this shape is not necessarily a
square.
Have the students follow the directions below and make and name a variety of quadrilaterals.
Give students specific directions such as:
Make a quadrilateral with all four sides equal in length and all right angles. What is this
shape called? Square

Pull two opposite corners of the square in opposite directions (the teacher should model
this action). The teacher should ask some of the following questions: Are the angles still
right angles? Are the pairs of opposite side still the same length? What is this new shape
called?

Next, the students should try to make other shapes such as rectangles, parallelograms, and
trapezoids. Each of these shapes only are made up of four sides but have different side lengths
and angles. Try to find similarities and differences between these shapes.
Key terms that should be written on the board and given detail description of are underlined. The
teacher should take time stressing what each of these key math terms mean.
Assessment:
Use an Exit Slip (on a post-it note) to assess students ability to compare and contrast plane
figures. Have the students select two of the quadrilaterals they made in the lesson and explain
how they are alike and how they are different. Students are making adequate progress if their
explanations include information about the lengths of the sides and the measures of the angles.
Look for key math terms such as angle, length, etc.
Part II Summary of Your Lesson
Objectives:
Use letter notation to name angles
Construct angles, triangles, and quadrangles
Describe properties of and compare quadrangles
Identify types of quadrangles
Use online geoboard application properly
Materials Needed:
iPads or computers
Geoboard NCTM application
Everyday Math Journal
Description of the Lesson:
Using straws and twist-ties is a great hands on activity to help students better understand angles
and shapes, however, it can be a hassle because the teacher will have to provide these resources
and take the time out of their lesson to distribute the many materials that this lesson involves.
Rather than using straws and twist-ties, the lesson will now use iPads or computers. The students
will utilize the Geoboard on the NCTM website and learn about angles, triangles, and
quadrilaterals using technology. Technology is a great alternate to the straw activity because it
utilizes much less materials and would be a lot easier to distribute and clean up. Therefore, more
time can be used for learning and less time can be used passing out materials and cleaning up.

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Using the Geoboard, ask students to create an angle using two rubber bands on their virtual
geoboard. Model this task on the SmartBoard so the students are able to see what you want them
to create. Similar to the last lesson, explain what an angle is and all other key terms that will be
learned throughout the lesson.
Next, ask the students to create a three-sided shape on the geoboard. Ask the students, what do
we call this shape? Triangle
Next, ask them to create a four-sided figure. Is their shape a square or another four-sided shape?
Have the students follow the directions below and make and name a variety of quadrilaterals.
Give students specific directions such as:
Make a quadrilateral with all four sides equal in length and all right angles. What is this
shape called? Square
Pull two opposite corners of the square in opposite directions (the teacher should model
this action). The teacher should ask some of the following questions: Are the angles still
right angles? Are the pairs of opposite side still the same length? What is this new shape
called?
Next, the students should try to make other shapes such as rectangles, parallelograms, and
trapezoids. Each of these shapes only are made up of four sides but have different side lengths
and angles. Try to find similarities and differences between these shapes.
Key terms that should be written on the board and given detail description of are underlined. The
teacher should take time stressing what each of these key math terms mean.
Assessment:
Use an Exit Slip to assess students ability to compare and contrast plane figures. Have the
students select two of the quadrilaterals they made in the lesson and explain how they are alike
and how they are different. Students are making adequate progress if their explanations include
information about the lengths of the sides and the measures of the angles. Look for key math
terms such as angle, length, etc.
Part III Reflection
In what ways will your revisions to the textbook lesson improve student outcomes?
The adaptations will improve student outcomes because the students will have more learning
time. Passing out straws and twist-ties would take away from the students precious learning time
so the technology adaptations is a great way for the students to still participate in hands on
learning without the use of many materials. Cleaning up after this activity would take much
longer if using straws and twist-ties than using iPads or computers. The students are learning the
same material so it is not taking away anything from the lesson but rather improving it by giving
the students more work time to explore angles, triangles, and quadrilaterals.