Lesson Plan for Implementing

NETS•S—Template I
(More Directed Learning Activities)
Template with guiding questions
Teacher(s)
Name Kimberly Hoy

Position Secondary Math Instructional Coach

School/District Hart County Charter System

E-mail
Phone

Grade Level(s) 8th Grade

Content Area Mathematics

Time line 8-10 school days

Standards: What do you want students to know and be able to do? What knowledge, skills, and strategies do you expect
students to gain? Are there connections to other curriculum areas and subject area benchmarks? Please put a summary of the
standards you will be addressing rather than abbreviations and numbers that indicate which standards were addressed.
During this section of a larger unit on exponent applications, students will be focusing in on
three volume formulas: cylinders, cones, and spheres. The Georgia Standards of
Excellence for this topic simply states that students must apply the formulas for the volume
of cones, cylinders, and spheres and use them to solve real-world and mathematical
problems. To master this standard students must also be able to use exponents correctly,
know basic characteristics of 2D and 3D shapes, and evaluate literal equations with
multiple variables. One of the essential embedded skills in this standard is the ability for
students to correctly substitute values into equations to arrive at an appropriate answer for
the situation or context. This skill is officially started in late elementary school
mathematics, but many students have had experience with this skill before that time. The
formulas are provided for students while taking standardized tests, but the expectation is
that students know the formulas well enough to manipulate them in a variety of contexts.
This is critical for the transfer of knowledge to other situations that use formulas, such as
Content Standards science, business applications, and finances.
To master the content standards above, students will use technology to seek feedback that
informs and improves their practice and to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways
(ISTE 1c), using iXL, Jeopardylabs, and Desmos.com. Students will have multiple
opportunities to work in technology programs that give immediate feedback and
scaffolding. They will also be given choices in what technology tools they use to show
content mastery, which develops their ability to use technology programs simultaneously
with content standards. Students will build knowledge by actively exploring real-world
issues and problems, developing ideas and theories and pursuing answers and solutions
(ISTE 3d), using 3-Act Tasks, Google Slides to explain tasks, and numerous videoing
websites (Flipgrid, cam-recorder.com). Students will have various real-world situations that
they can investigate over the course of the unit. Finally, students will create original works
or responsibly repurpose or remix digital resources into new creations (ISTE 6b), using
presentation software (Slides or Prezi, Drawing, Storybird.com). The end product of many
of the unit’s activities will give students the chance to explore many digital tools as a means
for demonstrating content and technology mastery.
NETS*S Standards:

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Overview: a short summary of the lesson or unit including assignment or expected or possible products

This three-part lesson is designed to give 8th grade students appropriate instruction and practice in evaluating
volume formulas for cylinders, cones, and spheres. In the first part, students will create their own graphic
organizer in Google Drawing by pairing formulas to shapes and finding a YouTube tutorial video for finding
volume of each shape. In part two of the lesson, students will take several days to work on a choice board that
has a range of activities from skill practice to open-ended tasks, to writing activities. In the choice board,
students will have the opportunity to explore the following tools:
 Google Drawing
 Virtual Manipulatives
 iXL online practice
 Jeopardy Labs (online gaming)
 Desmos.com (math simulation software)
 Google Slides
 Storybird.com
 https://www.cam-recorder.com/, https://www.screencastify.com/, or https://info.flipgrid.com/
 Quizlet.com
 Presentation software of choice (prezi.com or others)
The final part of the lesson will include using a 3-Act task to determine the number of paper trashketballs that fit
into a cylindrical trash can. The final product for that part of the lesson will be a video re-enacting the
experiment and explaining the mathematical concepts that support their final answer.

Essential Questions: What essential question or learning are you addressing? What would students care or
want to know about the topic? What are some questions to get students thinking about the topic or generate
interest about the topic? Additionally, what questions can you ask students to help them focus on important
aspects of the topic? (Guiding questions) What background or prior knowledge will you expect students to bring
to this topic and build on? Remember, essential questions are meant to guide the lesson by provoking inquiry.
They should not be answered with a simple “yes” or “no” and should have many acceptable answers.

 Where can I find examples of two and three-dimensional objects in the real-world? [activating background
knowledge]
 How do I use the volume formulas to answer questions about real-world three-dimensional objects?
 How can the volume formulas help solve problems related to real-world businesses (like agriculture, floristry,
glassware design, etc)?

 How does the volume of a cylinder, cone, and sphere with the same radius change if it is doubled?
 In what ways can Web 2.0 tools help discover the relationships between volumes when a radius is doubled?

 How can you use Web 2.0 tools to create a graphic organizer of volume formulas?
 How can you use Web 2.0 tools to write creatively about volume formulas?
 In what ways can video be used to explore volume formulas or demonstrate mastery of volume formulas?

 How do I use the formulas for volume to determine how many paper balls it takes to fill a cylindrical trashcan?

Assessment: What will students do or produce to illustrate their learning? What can students do to generate
new knowledge? How will you assess how students are progressing (formative assessment)? How will you
assess what they produce or do? How will you differentiate products? You must attach copies of your assessment
and/or rubrics. Include these in your presentation as well.

This lesson is divided into three major sections with a summative assessment at the end. First, students will
create a graphic organizer with Google Drawing. They will research each shape and volume formula to create
a flowchart or mindmap of connections between shapes and formulas. They will be given class time to find a
tutorial video to link into their graphic organizer as well. The teacher will monitor the creation of the graphic
organizer using Google Classroom and individual student conferencing. The final version of the graphic
organizer will be evaluated using the rubric embedded into section two of the lesson.

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 Section two of the volume lesson is the most intensive part, where students are investigating, practicing, and
creating using volume formulas. For approximately three to four one-hour class periods, students will be
working to earn points on a differentiated choice board [see attached]. Students will have the option to choose
activities ranging from skill practice to real-world tasks to creating books and videos to interact with the content
and demonstrate their learning. The classroom teacher will have the option to assign some students to small
group study on the choice board based on results from a Google Form short assessment that is given after the
initial graphic organizer is made and some basic instruction has occurred. Also, the classroom teacher can
require certain activities based on assessment results. For example, some students may need to complete
practice puzzles first, while others may need to be directed toward the more complex tasks instead of just
picking lower level activities from the choice board. The choice board is also designed to have a mix of options
for student collaboration. Some tasks are individual, while others are pairs or teams. The teacher will review
each completed activity against the provided rubric and then initial the activity to award the points. As students
work, the teacher will monitor and conduct interviews with students to check their progression. If some
students are falling behind, the teacher will intervene with more guided and directed instruction for those
students only. The teacher can also choose to require written updates submitted at the end of class each day
to check student progress.

The final part of the lesson involves exploring volume of cylinders and spheres in one of Andrew Stadel’s 3-Act
tasks. Students will work in teams (either by choice or strategically differentiated by the teacher) to determine
how many paper balls fit into a given cylindrical trash can. Students will watch a short video of paper balls
being thrown into a trash can, but only filling it halfway. They will then break into teams to determine how many
balls it takes to fill the trashcan completely. As students need measurements and information, the teacher will
uncover selected images revealing the needed values. The teacher will observe conversations and ask
clarifying or targeted questions to each group. Ultimately, the students will produce a video recreating the task,
while also explaining the math that supports how many paper balls fill a trash can. The final video production
will be evaluated and scored with a given rubric [see attached].

Ultimately, a summative assessment given in Study Island will measure students’ understanding of volume
formulas [see attached].

Resources: How does technology support student learning? What digital tools, and resources—online student
tools, research sites, student handouts, tools, tutorials, templates, assessment rubrics, etc—help elucidate or
explain the content or allow students to interact with the content? What previous technology skills should students
have to complete this project?

Technology plays a key role throughout this lesson, from getting instant feedback on practice to creating
various products to demonstrate content mastery.

Section 1 tools and resources: The teacher will demonstrate creating a graphic organizer using Google
Drawings, but a student could choose to use another tool if approved by the teacher. To complete this task,
students will need their Chromebook, Google Classroom, the Google Drawing program, and access to the
internet to search for 3D shapes and YouTube tutorial videos. The teacher will create and distribute a Google
Drawing template that includes the three volume formulas for cylinder, cone, and sphere, along with suggested
steps in the margin. Providing the formulas in this case is intended to speed up the process and ensure that
the formula format matches the formula sheet on the standardized test. The teacher will also provide a rubric
for evaluating the graphic organizer as a part of the choice board in section 2. To complete this section of the
project, students need little to no prior knowledge, with the exception of knowing their Chromebook login
information.

Section 2 tools and resources: The choice board is where the students will do most of their practice involving
volume formulas. It is also the place that connects to real-world applications of volume and allows students to
create original products to show mastery. Students will use virtual manipulatives in small groups with the
teacher to explore volume with worked out examples of the formula. Students have a choice to use iXL
mathematics as a web-based practice tool that gives immediate feedback with scaffolded solutions. Next,
students can use a Jeopardy game website to practice using the formula as a skill and in word problems.

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 Students can then choose between two application tasks. One involves looking at volumes of various vases at
a flower shop and the other investigates volume of various drinking glasses. In the flower vase task, students
must create an advertisement for a new vase for the flower company and communicate the ad using some form
of technology (video, Google Drawing, Google Slides, etc). To get credit for the drinking glass task, students
need to fully explain the process in a video or in person with their teacher. The next choice board activity has
students using a free online graphing calculator website, Desmos, to complete an investigation on what
happens to the volume of a cylinder, cone, or sphere when the radius is doubled.

To begin the creation section of the choice board, students can create a Google Slides tutorial that includes
original word problems of each 3D shape. Next, students could choose to write a story involving the shape, its
formulas, and a real-world application using https://storybird.com/. For those students wanting to make a
tutorial video, they can use the following options: https://www.cam-recorder.com/,
https://www.screencastify.com/, or https://info.flipgrid.com/. Students could also choose to create a Quizlet
activity that includes matching formulas to shapes, but also matching a problem to the correct answer. The
choice that will earn the most points is an intense task involving how the volume formulas help in determining
cost and expenses of producing an Easter lily crop. The task is designed to challenge students in using their
knowledge in a real-world scenario that involves using mathematical concepts from previous years. Students
will need to prepare a presentation (Google Slides, Prezi, or other presentation software) explaining to the
greenhouse manager the cost analysis of raising the crop.

Many of the tools listed in the section are user-friendly and require no logins. All of the Google products being
used (Drawing, Forms, Slides) are a part of the county’s G Suite for Edu license. Flipgrid is offers both paid
and free accounts, with the free account allowing students to record up to 90 seconds of video explanations.
Currently our county is using a free trial of iXL, but may look to purchase the full program in the future. The
Jeopardy game site, Desmos, Storybird, video recording sites and Quizlet are all free for student use. Students
may need short tutorials from the teacher or peers when using some of the sites, but most students will be able
to progress with the technology on their own.

Section 3 tools and resources: The last section of the lesson involves students watching a 3-Act Task by
Andrew Stadel called Trashketball. The teacher can show the Act 1 video in a whole group to set the hook for
the task. Students can then work in teams to investigate how many paper basketballs it takes to fill the
cylindrical trash can. The teacher would use a computer and projector to display images of required
information as teams need those values. For example, a team might decide that they need to know the
diameter of the trash can, so the teacher can show just that team or the whole class a provided image with that
number. Ultimately, students should use https://www.cam-recorder.com/, https://www.screencastify.com/, or
https://info.flipgrid.com/ to recreate the 3-Act task, explaining their reasoning for how many paper basketballs
can be in a given trash can. Again, students need little to no prior knowledge working with these video tools.
Cam-recorder is the most user-friendly, but the other options can be easily used as well. The teacher can also
post or provide tutorial videos for those technology tools if the class needs them.

Instructional Plan
Preparation: What student needs, interests, and prior learning provide a foundation for this lesson? How can
you find out if students have this foundation? What difficulties might students have?

Most students come into 8th grade having had years of experience with 3D shapes. Specifically, students
begin working with the concept of volume in 5th and 6th grades. They skip the concept in 7th grade math, but
do look at cross-sections of 3D objects instead. One of the key foundational pieces for these students in 8th
grade is the background knowledge on circles that they get in 7th grade. Students also begin working on
substituting into formulas in 6th grade. Traditionally, students feel comfortable with this topic because 3D
shapes are familiar to them. If teachers make the appropriate connections, students can associate what they
are learning with ice cream cones, canned foods, and sports balls. If a teacher has working knowledge about
student interests through an interest inventory, then the material can be tailored to fit each class.

To determine students’ ability to substitute into formulas correctly, a pre-test can be conducted. Some counties
also have diagnostic and growth tests that may also have this information. Our county has access to Measures

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 of Academic Progress (MAP) testing which will give detailed information on a wide range of math topics for
each student. Students typically will struggle with both putting values into the formula and evaluating for
volume once the values are in place.

Management: Describe the classroom management strategies will you use to manage your students and the
use of digital tools and resources. How and where will your students work? (Small groups, whole group,
individuals, classroom, lab, etc.) What strategies will you use to achieve equitable access to the Internet while
completing this lesson? Describe what technical issues might arise during the Internet lesson and explain how
you will resolve or trouble-shoot them? Please note: Trouble-shooting should occur prior to implementing the
lesson as well as throughout the process. Be sure to indicate how you prepared for problems and work through
the issues that occurred as you implemented and even after the lesson was completed.

The class will be set up into different learning environments depending on the section of the lesson that is
being addressed on a given day. Sometimes, the class will be structured with direct instruction in mind, so all
students may be facing the front of the room. In this case, Chromebook screens need to be closed during
instruction or when opened, the teacher needs to be monitoring by walking through the room. During the
choice board section of the lesson, students may be working as individuals, in pairs, or in teams. Again, the
teacher monitoring the process will be critical to the management of the technology tools. Also, the teacher
can choose to have students sitting with screens facing where small group instruction is taking place so the
teacher can monitor from one location if needed. Because I am coaching a teacher through this lesson, there
will be two adults in the room making management easier. Students in this school are provided with their own
Chromebook to carry throughout the day, so all students should have a device to use and internet access.
Unfortunately, a few students have either damaged or lost their Chromebooks and the school will not allow
them to have another one until payment is made. With that in mind, a few iPads were checked out from the
media center to use during this lesson so that every student did actually have a device. This project is
designed to be completed in class, eliminating the digital barrier for students that do not have internet at home.
Also, the computer science elective class will be working on some of the G Suite for Edu tools. If a student
needs specific help with any tool, an in-class tutorial can be given by the teacher or a proficient peer.

Troubleshooting with technology was more of a challenge when the school was under a BYOT plan. Now that
almost all students are using the same Chromebook, fixing problems is much easier. Before the lesson, the
teacher and I checked all the links that are included on the choice board and in Google Classroom. We also
made sure to have a mix of activities in the choice board so that if the internet was down on a particular day
(which rarely happens anymore), we could still continue with the lesson. We did not think ahead of time to do
this, but a very short Google Form survey to locate experts within the room that can help with certain
technology tools would have been helpful. During the graphic organizer section of the lesson, we had to
troubleshoot a few issues that occurred with Google Drawing on the iPad. For some reason, one iPad in the
room would complete the task, but the other iPad did not. We ended up pairing that student up to complete the
task, but now that the lesson is over, I need to determine why the one iPad did not work. Students in this
school have been using Chromebooks since they arrived in sixth grade, so many of them know how to switch
the wifi on and off to get it to reset, or sometimes switch wifi networks altogether. They also know how to do a
hard restart of the device, which seems to fix some errors as well. The bandwidth in the school has also
drastically improved over the last several years, so students can all be online or recording and posting videos
simultaneously. Lastly, if a particular website or technology tool becomes unavailable during the project, the
teacher and I will make a switch to an alternative option. For example, Book Creator could be used in place of
Storybird. Screencast-o-matic could be the alternative to any of the other video recording sites.

Instructional Strategies and Learning Activities: Describe the research-based instructional strategies you will
use with this lesson. How will your learning environment support these activities? What is your role? What are the
students' roles in the lesson? How can you ensure higher order thinking at the analysis, evaluation, or
creativity levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy? How can the technology support your teaching? What authentic,
relevant, and meaningful learning activities and tasks will your students complete? How will they build knowledge
and skills? How will students use digital tools and resources to communicate and collaborate with each other
and others? How will you facilitate the collaboration?

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 Because this lesson is partitioned into three major sections, many different instructional strategies will be
evident. As a leading researcher in effective instructional strategies, Marzano (2001) gives a list of best
practices that should be used as often as possible in classrooms. Several of his suggestions are utilized in this
lesson: practice; cooperative learning; setting objectives and providing feedback; and advance organizers.
The opening section allows students to create their own graphic organizer, which fits with Marzano’s strategies
along with being on the upper end of Bloom’s Taxonomy. Cooperative learning is a staple throughout sections
2 and 3 of the lesson, as students work in pairs or teams to apply their knowledge in tasks or create products to
demonstrate learning. This strategy also incorporates Bloom’s higher-levels of thinking by having students
carry-out a non-routine task that has multiple right answers. Many of the technology tools provide instant
feedback as students work on problems. The Jeopardy lab game, iXL practice, and Desmos activity let
students know if they are on the right track, while the printable self-checking puzzle options give students
guidance as well. Nearly all of the options, including the 3-Act Task in section 3, allow students to continuously
use their knowledge and skills with volume formulas to complete problems.

During sections two and three of the lesson, students will be engaged in numerous authentic and meaningful
tasks. Some students may be working on volume in a flower shop, while others are determining the most cost
efficient way to grow Easter lilies. Students have several opportunities to publish their work for a global
audience as they create a story or book on Storybird or produce tutorial videos or advertisements. In the 3-Act
task, students will be investigating paper basketballs. I am sure they will think of that task every time they ball
up a piece of paper!

For most of this 3-part lesson, students will be the driving force behind which activities they complete and how
they choose to digest the information on volume formulas. This lesson will be student-focused with the teacher
acting as the facilitator in many of the sessions. There are some direct instruction components needed, but
after the initial section, most of the teacher interaction can be done in small group instruction or individual
student conferencing. Because many of the activities are designed for pairs or teams, students will be
collaborating on many of the tasks. They can choose to utilize the comment and chat features built into the G
Suite for Edu programs or use traditional face-to-face discussions. If some teams are struggling with
collaboration, the teacher can intervene with suggested roles and tasks for each group member. Once
students start posting videos to Flipgrid, other students can watch and reply via video to start a discussion
about the topic. Students who publish to Storybird can choose to share their story with a global audience. The
teacher can also choose to use Google Classroom or Backchannelchat.com to have a running discussion for
any questions or issues that may arise in terms of collaboration.

Differentiation: How will you differentiate content and process to accommodate various learning styles and
abilities? How will you help students learn independently and with others? How will you provide extensions and
opportunities for enrichment? What assistive technologies will you need to provide?

Vanderbilt’s Peabody College Iris Center produced a module on differentiation, which gives great ideas on
differentiating content, process, and product. One of the suggestions made in the module is to use learning
contracts to differentiate instruction. In this lesson, the choice board can act as a learning contract if the
teacher chooses to conference with the student and require specific parts of the board to be done. The choice
board has a mix of skill level activities in addition to more complex and higher-order tasks so that students can
experience the content in a variety of ways. This lesson also incorporates a mix of media choices so that
students can hear the material from the teacher, watch a YouTube video, and read graphic organizers and
worked examples. To differentiate the process, the teacher can use the results of the Google Form to scaffold
content for some students, as they work in a small group with the teacher using virtual manipluatives and direct
instruction. These students will still be working with the same standard relating to volume, but will experience a
varied process.

Throughout the three sections of this lesson, students will have the opportunity to work alone, in pairs, or in
teams. For the various student arrangements to work, the classroom teacher needs to have established norms
for group work and a culture that is supportive of students working on different activities. It would be ideal if the
class reviewed this norms prior to starting the lesson so that students understand the expectations. When
implementing a choice board, students can be working on a number of different activities simultaneously, so
clear directions and expectations must be in place.

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 The choice board provides at least one extension activity for students wishing to complete the Greenhouse
Management task. That task also includes embedded extensions that have students designing a cylindrical
tank to dispense fertilizer and working with conversion factors. The beauty of a choice board is that any of the
other tasks listed (flower vase, drinking glass, Desmos, etc) could act as extensions for different students
depending on their level of understanding. Outside of the choice board, students could reach out to any
business member represented in one of the tasks or send out a Twitter challenge to some basketball players to
see if they would know how to find how many paper basketballs fit into a cylinder trash can. You could also ask
students to change the shape of the trash can which gives another level of enrichment.

To help students with diverse learning needs, assistive technology can easily be incorporated in multiple ways.
Students using YouTube can view the transcript if provided. The teacher can use timing devices or calendars
to help some students pace themselves through the choice board activity. Students needing assistance in
reading can have Google Read&Write installed as a Chrome extension. Some students may need to use
speech to text software if they choose to write a children’s book or produce a Google Slide tutorial.

Reflection: Will there be a closing event? Will students be asked to reflect upon their work? Will students be
asked to provide feedback on the assignment itself? What will be your process for answering the following
questions?
• Did students find the lesson meaningful and worth completing?
• In what ways was this lesson effective?
• What went well and why?
• What did not go well and why?
• How would you teach this lesson differently?

The choice board has many activities that have their own closing events. For example, the Flower Vase task
has students creating an advertisement that should be shared with the entire class. The Drinking Glass task
requires that students explain the task in a video or to their teacher. If videos were made, those should be
shared with the class for feedback so other students can grow from the experience. The Google Slides tutorial
could be peer reviewed as well to look for ways the tutorials could be improved for future use. It would be
extremely powerful to find a way for students that wrote stories on Storybird to share their work with the class
or on the morning news show. Students can use each other’s Quizlets and provide constructive criticism to
make that study tool more effective for the future. Any group completing the Greenhouse Management task
could present their findings to the agriculture class and teacher, or to a local greenhouse company! The
closing activities can be as involved as the classroom teacher wants them to be.

My process for determining what parts of the lesson went well or did not, along with which parts were
meaningful and effective will include student observations, surveys or padlet, and student conferences. I
specifically will be looking for how the students reacted to the use of a choice board, along with how much
content and technology knowledge they gained throughout the three part lesson. I will design the survey to get
feedback on which Web 2.0 tools were easy to use and met the intended objective for that part of the choice
board. I will also survey to determine the actual level of complexity of the tasks and which tasks were most
beneficial to student learning. Hopefully, students will be honest with which parts of the lesson did not go well
either. I will be able to determine parts to improve for the future based on my observations as they are working
too. I would like to include a prompt to see what the students would change if they had to do this lesson again.
I will be able to determine many of the areas needing troubleshooting as I work through class with the students
and see what questions continually come up. Finally, I will be coaching a teacher through the use of this
lesson. After we have completed each component, I will debrief with him to determine what is going well and
what needs improvement. Once the lesson is refined, the teacher and I will share the lesson and our results
with the rest of the math teachers on the 8th grade team. (This is my process for determining feedback. My
actual feedback is in the Closure section below.)

Closure: Anything else you would like to reflect upon regarding lessons learned and/or your experience with
implementing this lesson. What advice would you give others if they were to implement the lesson? Please
provide a quality reflection on your experience with this lesson and its implementation.

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I thoroughly enjoyed putting all of the pieces of this lesson together and coaching an 8 th grade teacher in using
the lesson. I was able to grow by using tools I had not previously used as a classroom teacher. The opening
section of the lesson on using Google Drawings to create a custom graphic organizer was the part of the
lesson design that made me most nervous. I spent a good bit of time learning the features of Google Drawing
and creating a basic template for the students to work from. I knew that if this opening part did not go well, that
the students would be frustrated, and ultimately turning the teacher off from the entire lesson. The only
problem we encountered that day was that two students were not allowed to use the Chromebooks because
they had not paid for damage to their school-issued device. We were allowed to give them iPads, but one of
the iPads did not work correctly. On the flip side, the students were able to take the directions in the pre-made
template and create graphic organizers with little to no help from me or the teacher. They were able to pick
their own fonts, shapes, and even self-select which YouTube tutorial to include that helped them the most. I
anticipated needing to give more direct instruction, but even though most of the class had not worked with
Google Drawing before, many used their skills from other software and transferred it to this project. Because of
other work-related conflicts, I was not able to be with the classroom teacher on the second day of the lesson. I
choose to allow the classroom teacher to select their own method of practicing the volume formulas and to give
the Google Form Quick Check at the end of class that day. The data from that allowed us to pull some
students to work on specific parts of the choice board in a small group setting. On days three through five, the
students worked on their choice boards as individuals, pairs, or teams. I was really excited to see that nearly
all of them managed their own behaviors and stayed on task all three days. Some students did need to be
redirected because of the unstructured environment when working on the board. In those cases, students
would bring their Chromebooks and work near the classroom teacher. After the first day of choice board
implementation, the classroom teacher was happy to see the level of engagement, even though there was
some amount of buzz about the room. As expected, students chose to work on the skill level assignments first,
but quickly wanted to move to the tasks that would earn them a higher point value. To my knowledge, no one
chose to work on Storybird, which was disappointing to me.

For future implementation, I think I would take class time to feature some of the newer Web 2.0 tools to entice
students to step out of their comfort zones. I did have one team attempt the Greenhouse Management task,
but unfortunately time was not on their side. In all honesty, the Google Form Quick Check did not show that
any one student had already mastered the standard, which is truly who the Greenhouse Management task was
designed for. Going forward, it would be beneficial to at least do a whole group investigation of what that task
is asking for, so that students are at least exposed to higher-level processing with these formulas. There were
several students that worked on the Flower Vase and Drinking Glass tasks. The classroom teacher did require
that all students work to mastery in iXL. Many students chose to either do the Jeopardy game or do the Google
Slides tutorial. The next time I implement this lesson, I will remove the Desmos activity from the choice board
and complete it with the whole class. It is important that students learn to analyze what happens to formulas
when any one factor is manipulated. As expected, a few students did more than required by the choice board
and a few students struggled to complete enough points for a passing grade. If a teacher choses to implement
something like this in the future, be aware that some students will need more structure. For those students,
having required checkpoints might be necessary.

Because of state testing and an upcoming spring break, the last section of the lesson did not get fully
implemented as intended. The idea was to show the opening video to the 3-Act task on trashketball to the
whole class and then break them into teams to do the rest of the investigation. The ultimate product from the
task was supposed to be a student created video re-enacting the trashketball experiment and explain the
mathematics behind finding the number of balls that end up in the trashcan. The classroom teacher only
wanted to devote one more class period to this lesson, so I ended up teaching the 3-Act task as a whole group
investigation. I will say that the students were absolutely hooked from the opening video and very interested in
finding the number of balls in the trashcan, which was more than I thought would happen. As they determined
that they needed certain pieces of information (like the diameter of the trashcan), I would uncover that image
from the task. The best part of the lesson was the class discussion that occurred when they realized that their
calculated answer did not match the experiment answer in the third act of the task. Many students started to
realize that we had not accounted for the empty space between paper basketballs and therefore our calculation
was off. I would highly suggest that students be allowed to have productive struggle with this task in future
implementations.

I also want to take a little space to reflect on coaching a classroom teacher using this lesson. One important

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 key to the success of this lesson was that I have been meeting with this teacher in 8 th grade math meetings for
the entire year. There have been several occasions where I have been asked by the teacher to observe in the
classroom, but this was the first chance I had to actually design a lesson and work together with the teacher to
implement the lesson. I could definitely tell that the idea of a choice board was outside of his comfort zone, but
because the choice board can be tailored to fit almost any needs, he played along. I did include some basic
skill practice to show him that he did not need to abandon skill practice, but he could use it in conjunction with
some other, more rigorous tasks. It was extremely rewarding to get his vote of approval once he saw that his
students were actually taking to the choice board. It was even more exciting when the assessment results
came back and this one class outperformed the other classes that had just been doing his normal routine.
Also, after the trashketball lesson, he ended up changing his plans for the rest of the day and redoing the 3-Act
task with the rest of his classes! During our debriefing session, he showed interest in doing a few more choice
boards over the course of next school year. He realizes that they can be very time intensive and is cautious
not to overuse the concept. He is also open to incorporating more 3-Act tasks in his classes in the future.

Marzano, R. J., Pickering, D., & Pollock, J. E. (2001). Classroom instruction that works: Research-based
strategies for increasing student achievement. ASCD.

The IRIS Center. (2010). Differentiated instruction: Maximizing the learning of all students. Retrieved
from https://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/module/di/

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 8th Grade Math
Volume of Cylinders, Cones, & Spheres
Choice Board
Final Date Due: ______________________

Unit Content: Essential Questions:

 Volume of Cylinders
 Volume of Cones
 Volume of Spheres
 Real-world applications
 Where can I find examples of two and three-dimensional objects in
the real-world?
 How do I use the volume formulas to answer questions about real-
world three-dimensional objects?
 How does the volume of a cylinder, cone, and sphere with the same
radius change if it is doubled?

Content & Technology Standards Addressed:

 Throughout unit: All Mathematical Process Standards
 MGSE8.G.9 Apply the formulas for the volume of cones, cylinders, and spheres and use them to solve
real-world and mathematical problems.
 ISTE 1c Students use technology to seek feedback that informs and improves their practice and to
demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways.
 ISTE 3d Students build knowledge by actively exploring real-world issues and problems, developing
ideas and theories and pursuing answers and solutions.
 ISTE 6b Students create original works or responsibly repurpose or remix digital resources into new
creations.

Your goal is to earn a minimum of 100 points from the items on this choice board. Your
teacher will grade each activity for completeness, accuracy, and effort. You may not earn
full points for an activity if you do not follow the directions listed in that box.

Points Type of Points

Possible Activity Activity Descriptions 
Earned
INDIVIDUAL: Create a Volume Graphic Organizer using
Create
Google Drawing. Include a title, formula, graphic, and
10 (Graphic
YouTube tutorial link for each shape (cylinder, cone,
Organizer)
sphere).
PAIRS: Volume Practice #1 – You must show the formula
10 Skill
and substitution on each problem to receive full credit.
PAIRS: Pizzazz Self-Checking Puzzle - You must show the
10 Skill formula and substitution on each problem to receive full
credit.
SMALL GROUPS: Explore volumes of cylinders and cones
20 Skill
using virtual manipulatives and whiteboards.
INDIVIDUAL: iXL Practice – You must earn a certain score
20 Skill on iXL to receive credit for this task. Your teacher will let
you know the acceptable score.
Skill & INDIVIDUAL, PAIRS, OR TEAM: Play Jeopardy at
20
Application https://jeopardylabs.com/play/volume-of-cylinders-cones-

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 and-spheres. You must write down all problems that you
complete and turn them in to your teacher.
PAIRS: Flower Vase Advertisement Task – Get task from
Google Classroom or get a paper version from your teacher.
30 Application This task will only get credit by completing step E in the
directions. Challenge: Find a way to share your ad using
technology.
TEAM ACTIVITY: Shape of Glasses Task – You will be given
pictures of four different glasses. You must determine the
30 Application volume of each glass. To get credit for this task, you must
explain the process in a video or in person with your
teacher.
PAIRS: Desmos Volume of a Sphere Activity – Complete this
activity to explore how the three formulas are connected.
Also answer, what happens when the radius is doubled? Use
30 Application
paper to show the work for each of the sample problems. Go
to https://student.desmos.com and use this class code
338ZY.
TEAM ACTIVITY: Use Google Slides to create a tutorial
Slideshow. You must include the following: a Title Page, a
Create
Formula page (maybe you can figure out how to insert your
30 (Application
Drawing map), a cylinder word problem, a cone word
Problems)
problem, and a sphere word problem. **All word problems
should be original and made up by your team.
INDIVIDUAL: Write an original story that includes one of
the shapes. Go to https://storybird.com/ and register for a
Create
free account using your school login. Then search for
30 (Application
artwork that would describe one of your shapes. Include
Problems)
text that would explain your shape, formula, and real-world
word problem.
TEAM ACTIVITY: Use https://www.cam-recorder.com/,
Create (Skill
https://www.screencastify.com/, or
and
30 https://info.flipgrid.com/ to create a tutorial video on
Application
finding the volume of all three shapes. You must include
Problems)
word problems for each shape.
Create (Skill INDIVIDUAL: Create a Quizlet to share with the world!
and Include matching formulas to shapes, but also matching a
30
Application problem to the correct answer. You must have at least one
Problems) problem of each shape.
PAIRS: Greenhouse Task – Complete the Greenhouse Task
70 Application problem with a partner. Create a Google Slide presentation
to assist you as you explain this problem to the class.

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 RUBRIC for all Choice Board Activities:

CATEGORY 4 3 2 1
Effectiveness Project includes all Project includes most Project is missing more Project is lacking several key
material needed to gain a material needed to gain than two key elements. elements and has
comfortable a comfortable inaccuracies.
understanding of the understanding of the
topic. material but is lacking
one or two key
elements.
Sequencing of Information is organized Most information is Some information is There is no clear plan for the
Information in a clear, logical way. It is organized in a clear, logically sequenced. An organization of information.
easy to anticipate the logical way. One slide or occasional slide or item of
type of material that item of information information seems out of
might be coming up. seems out of place. place.

Originality Presentation shows
considerable originality
and inventiveness. The
content and ideas are
presented in a unique and
interesting way.
Presentation shows some Presentation shows an Presentation is a rehash of
originality and attempt at originality and other people's ideas and/or
inventiveness. The inventiveness in a few graphics and shows very
content and ideas are places. little attempt at original
presented in an thought.
interesting way.

Spelling and Presentation has no Presentation has 1-2 Presentation has 1-2 Presentation has more than 2
Grammar misspellings or misspellings, but no grammatical errors but grammatical and/or spelling
grammatical errors. grammatical errors. no misspellings. errors.

Use of Graphics All graphics are attractive
(size and colors) and
support the
theme/content of the
presentation.
A few graphics are not All graphics are attractive
attractive but all support but a few do not seem to
the theme/content of the support the
presentation. theme/content of the
presentation.
Several graphics are
unattractive AND detract
from the content of the
presentation.

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Google Form Quick Check (Formative Assessment – End Day 2):
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1S03SqMkUlua4YR8cwilAD_VLEHVvhmfy

Study Island (Summative Assessment):

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gM4xi-68-ZZ6yvownsbKLeZMstvD2XlM/view?usp=sharing

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