Instructional

Software
Lesson Idea Name: Researching Rates
Content Area: Mathematics
Grade Level(s): 6th

Content Standard Addressed:
Georgia Standards of Excellence for Mathematics – Grade 6 – Ratios and Proportional Relationships –
Standard 2: “MGSE6.RP.2 Understand the concept of a unit rate a / b associated with a ratio a: b with b ≠ 0 (b
not equal to zero), and use rate language in the context of a ratio relationship.” – Georgia Department of
Education

Technology Standard Addressed:
ISTE-Standard 3 – Knowledge Constructor: “Students critically curate a variety of resources using digital tools
to construct knowledge, produce creative artifacts and make meaningful learning experiences for themselves
and others.” – International Society for Technology in Education

Selected Technology Tool: Khan Academy

URL(s) to support the lesson (if applicable):
English:
https://www.khanacademy.org/math/cc-sixth-grade-math/cc-6th-ratios-prop-topic/cc-6th-rates/v/introduction-to-rates

Spanish:
https://es.khanacademy.org/math/cc-sixth-grade-math/cc-6th-ratios-prop-topic/cc-6th-rates/v/introduction-to-rates

*Many other language translations available

Type of Instructional Software:

☐ Drill and Practice ☒ Tutorial ☐ Simulation ☐ Instructional Game ☐ e-books/e-references

Features of this software (check all that apply):

☒ Assessment Monitoring/Reporting
☐ Allows teacher to create customized lessons for students
☐ Multi-user or collaborative functions with others in the class
☐ Multi-user or collaborative with others outside the class
☒ Accessible to students beyond the school day
☒ Accessible via mobile devices
☒ Multiple languages
☒ Safety, security and/or privacy features

Bloom’s Taxonomy Level(s):

☒ Remembering ☒ Understanding ☒ Applying ☒ Analyzing ☒ Evaluating ☒ Creating

Levels of Technology Integration (LoTi Level):

☐ Level 1: Awareness ☐ Level 2: Exploration ☐ Level 3: Infusion ☒ Level 4: Integration

☐ Level 5: Expansion ☐ Level 6: Refinement

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Universal Design for Learning (UDL):

This lesson is designed to accommodate diverse learners by presenting students with lesson content in
multiple formats and by providing them options for engagement. The use of the Khan Academy educational
tutorials prior to class gives students time to think about and process the material. Students with various
learning styles may benefit from the viewing the visuals in the videos, listening to the verbal description of
the content, and reading subtitles. English language learners can also view the tutorials in their home
language. Students who are slower learners can rewatch the videos multiple times or read the transcripts to
better prepare themselves for applying the content in class. Students’ motivation may be improved by
allowing them to choose the topic they will research for their rate study. Kinesthetic learners may be more
engaged by being given the option to move around while performing their research. Students are also given
options for how they may choose to present what they have learned.

Lesson idea implementation:

At the beginning of the year, students will receive a demonstration in class on how to access Khan Academy
tutorials and written, translated, directions. Students will be assigned to view the Khan Academy video
entitled “Intro to rates” prior to this Researching Rates lesson. Students will also be instructed to view the
two subsequent videos that model solving unit rate problems and complete the 7 unit rate practice problems
online, which will provide them with immediate feedback.

When students come to class, they will immediately begin a warm up problem to check their ability to
transform a ratio relationship from a word problem into a rate. After completing the warm-up problem to
check for understanding and discussing the solution as a class, students will be asked if they have any
questions about the videos or practice problems. Student questions and concerns would be addressed at this
time. Students would also be invited to discuss common instances in which rates are used and whether they
prefer to use ratios or rates to describe relationships.

Students will then be invited to begin an activity on the school’s computers in which they will use NetTrekker
to search online for descriptions of three ratios that are interesting to them. I would clarify that a ratio can be
discovered from text even if it is not written out in a traditional form [e.g. given that the average litter size of
a bulldog is 10, I can determine the average ratio of puppies to litters is 10:1 (A-Z Animals, 2018)]. Students
with impairments that affect reading ability may choose to use a text reader, in addition to their headphones,
to improve access to these sites. Students who prefer to move around within the classroom will be given the
option of discovering their own rates (e.g. heart rates after different types of movement). Students that are
unable to locate rates online that are interesting to them would be allowed to write down rates that they can
think of from their own lives (e.g. number times they took a walk the past week). Students will be told that
they will need to record the ratios that they select, information about their contexts, website addresses for
their sources, and calculations for unit rate. They will be informed that they should be prepared to explain the
meanings of their rates. I will remind them of the criteria for what constitutes a rate and provide examples of
different types of rates. They should be encouraged to be creative, as ratios and rates can be found in a lot of
different contents. I will monitor students during completion of this activity and ask questions to assess their
understanding. For any students that still remained confused, I would draw and explain additional examples
that show the relationship between ratios and rates.

When the majority of students have had a chance to record their data, I will invite students to get in pairs and
use the data that they have collected to come up with two word problems for their partners that involve
interpreting a unit rate. I will model how this could be done (if the rate of bulldog births is 8 puppies/litter,
how many puppies may we expect after 3 litters?). Students will be instructed to solve each other’s word
problems and discuss the solutions with their partners to make sure that they agree on the interpretation of

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the rates. Pairs of students will be asked to explain to the class the meaning of one of the rates that they
discovered and its relationship to the original ratio. These explanations should include a drawn or digital
figure, and a verbal or written explanation.

Students will be encouraged to discuss the work of others, evaluate their methods, and pose questions. In this
lesson, students would be receiving feedback from their peers, but I would also ask some facilitating
questions when needed to aid in productive classroom discourse. Students will be assessed on their
participation in and completion of classroom activities.

At the end of the lesson, I would summarize what we have learned about unit rates. As an introduction to the
next lesson, I would choose an example ratio to highlight for the students and then ask them to consider what
it would mean if both sides of it were doubled. How would we explain the meaning? Would the relationship
be changed? Students should come to class the next day prepared to discuss those questions.

Reflective Practice:

I believe that students would benefit from having a chance to study the content of the lesson through
tutorials and practice problems prior to class. After having time to process this information, they would be
better prepared to convert ratios to rates in class without the pressure of learning the new material on the
spot. I believe they would also enjoy being given the opportunity to choose topics to work with that are more
relevant to them, rather than standard textbook problems. If a topic is interesting to them, it might also be
interesting to other students, and they might feel like they are learning and teaching others something of
value. The data that they collect from this research would also be used in subsequent lessons in which
students are asked to create tables of equivalent ratios and plot the pairs of values on a coordinate plane to
display a linear relationship. This plotting may be done on virtual graphing calculators, screen shots could be
taken of these graphs for insertion into a class book created using Book Creator (along with descriptions of
the relationships between variables and meaning of the unit rates), and this book could be shared with other
students and parents on a classroom webpage.

Reference:

A-Z Animals. (2018). Bulldog. Retrieved from https://a-z-animals.com/animals/bulldog/

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