Lesson Plan

Danielle Robinson
Subject: Mathematics
Grade: 4th
Unit: Geometry
Lesson: Identifying different types of triangles
Materials Needed: Students will need a pencil, notebook, ruler, a handout with the different types of
triangles.
 
Stage 1: Identify Desired Results
Learning Goals/Standards 
Idaho Content Standard 
“4.G.A.2 Classify two-dimensional figures based on the presence or absence of parallel or perpendicular
lines, or the presence or absence of angles of a specified size. Recognize right angles as a category, and
identify right angles.”
Student Version 
Be able to identify all right angles as triangles and classify to which group, they belong. Examine all other
two- dimensional figures, and be able to classify them. 

Learning Targets: Objective/Content

After viewing a PowerPoint presentation, they will identify equiangular, acute, right, and obtuse triangles
by the size of their angles on a worksheet. They will also identify the difference between equilateral,
isosceles, and scalene triangles by observing the length of their sides. 
 
Stage 2: Determine Acceptable Evidence
Pre-Assessment 
The first ten minutes of class we ask them what they already know. Based on a previous lesson they
should already know that triangles have 3 sides, that all the angles in a triangle add up to 180 degrees, and
that a right angle is 90 degrees. The students should also have completed a lesson about the difference
between acute, obtuse, and right angles. Thus, the pre-assessment is just to review types of angles to
prepare them for identifying triangles in the upcoming lesson.
 How many sides does a triangle have? A: Three
 What defines an acute angle? A: Any angle less than 90 degrees.
 What defines an obtuse angle? A: Any angle more than 90 degrees.
 What defines a right angle? A: An angle that is exactly 90 degrees
 What are some ways to identify triangles? A: By the measurement of their sides; by the angles
they contain.
 Does a triangle always have equal sides? A: Not always
 Does a triangle always have equal angles? A: Not always
Ongoing/Formative Assessment 
Since this is being taught to 4th graders, making sure there are tricks for remembering the different types
will be helpful. These tricks need to be two the point, and the catchier the better. Some basic rules the
class needs to know is:
 All triangles have 3 sides.
 For sides to be equal, they need to be the same measurement.
 All triangles have 180 degree total when added up.
 There are 4 triangles based off of angles.
 There are 3 based off of sides.
Some tricks that might help them are:
 Both angle triangles and side triangles have an “equi” triangle.
o The “equi” means that all the (angles/sides) are equal.

 “Equi” sounds like equal.

 If it is not equi” angular” (like angle), then it is equal in sides.
 Acute triangles have angles that are all less than 90 degrees.
o That is what makes them acute”.

 Right triangles have 1 right angle.

 Right angles are 90 degrees.
o Not too big (obtuse), not too small (acute), just right.
  Obtuse triangles have 1 obtuse angle.
o It’s an “Obvious “Obtuse angle.

 Isosceles triangles have two matching sides.

 Scalene triangles have no matching sides.
o I wouldn’t “scale” a scalene triangle, there’s no balance. 

It would be important not to layer all of these tricks on all at once. The best way to do it would be to
introduce them as needed when one of the triangles is hard to remember. The students can then use these
tricks as needed and not be overwhelmed and confusing all the tricks with one another. The good thing is,
there is a trick for every triangle! 
When going throughout the class, the teacher should be scanning the faces and body language of the
students at all times. Even if a student seems to understand and isn’t raising their hand, they may show
their confusion through excessive fidgeting or raised eyebrows. This, especially body language, will be
important for the activity. The time will hopefully be short enough that they have to react quick. Heading
toward the wrong triangle or watching/following other students is a sign they may not have understood.
You should be taking notes of what you are seeing and marking the students that made it to the correct
triangle.
Post-assessment/ Check for Understanding
In order to make sure the students have successfully mastered classifying each triangle they will take a
quiz. Each student will be given a blank sheet of paper in which they are required to write their name and
number one through nine.
As a final take home assignment students will have the opportunity to earn points back points that they
may have lost on the quiz or gain extra credit by completing the above worksheet. This reinforces
students’ knowledge of different triangles as they have to explain why they are labeling each triangle as in
each classification.
 
Stage 3: Planning Learning Experiences and Instruction
Preparing Students for Learning and Knowing Its Purposes
  How do we classify triangles and distinguish one from one another? I can use the degree of each
angle and terms to analyze the similarities and differences between each triangle. Look at what
characteristics match with each triangle.
  When students explore more complicated math problems and other two-dimensional shapes in the
future, they will have a basic foundation for triangles.
 
Lesson Sequence and Delivery
First 5 minutes: This time allows the students to get out their notebooks, pencils, and rulers. It also allows
the teacher time to introduce the lesson and get the PowerPoint presentation ready. During this time the
teacher could ask a few start up questions such as, “Why would knowing different triangles be useful?” or
“When would we use this in real life?”
The lecture ≈ 30 minutes
“There are different types of triangles and ways to tell them apart.”
Time Line
The teacher gives an overview of the PowerPoint: First, the class will cover matching sides in classifying
triangles. This relates to isosceles and equilateral triangles which have the same length. Next, we will
look at the scalene triangle which all angles and lengths are different. Lastly, we will talk about the
identifying triangles based on their angles. 
 5 minutes: The first slide says, “There are 3 different ways to categorize triangles by their sides.”
Then, the second slide depicts a triangle where the sides are all 4 feet in length. It explains this is
an equilateral triangle, where “equi” means equal and “lateral” means side/line. (Short pause for
questions and discussion)
 5 minutes: The third slide is a picture of a triangle where there are two sides with equal lengths of
5 feet, but one side is 3 feet. It explains this is an isosceles triangle. (Short pause for questions
and discussion) The teacher may communicate the trick for remembering isosceles triangle from
the ongoing formative assessment.
 5 minutes: The fourth slide has a picture of a triangle with sides of different measurements. It
explains why this is a scalene triangle. (Short pause for questions or discussion; including ways to
remember the difference of needed.) 
  5 minutes: The fifth slide says, “There are 4 different ways to categorize triangles by their
angles.” Then, the sixth slide begins with a picture of an equiangular triangle where all the angles
are labeled 60 degrees. (Short pause for questions and discussion)
 5 minutes: The seventh slide depicts an acute triangle where all the angles are less than 90
degrees; it also depicts an obtuse angle where one angle in the triangle is over 90 degrees. (Short
pause)
 5 minutes: The eighth slide depicts a triangle with a right angle which is always 90 degrees.
(Short pause)
 15 or 20 minutes: After the lecture the students jump into an activity where the seven different
triangles are printed and taped around the room. Before they start the activity, the teacher will go
over some ground rules like no pushing, screaming, or any other rough or hostile behavior. The
students will gather in the middle of the classroom and have the instructions explained to them.
The teacher will callout the name of one of the triangles, and count to ten aloud. The students will
hurry to the triangle they think is called. When the teacher says ten everyone will freeze, and the
class will quickly discuss which was the correct triangle and why. This will go on for about ten
rounds.
 Final 5 or 10 minutes of class: The class discusses how well they absorbed the information. They
are asked to show a thumbs up, thumbs down, or in between gesture to demonstrate how
confident they are in knowing the difference between the many triangles. Finally, they can use
this time is used to clarify any confusion or ask further questions.
Total Time = 60 minutes
 
Differentiated Instructions 
The Gifted & Talented
The teacher will start the advanced students on solving for missing angles. If they understand all
the angles add up to 180 degrees, they should be able to solve for one missing angle by using this rule and
having any two known angles. Also, they should be able to solve for sides using the “matching sides”
rule. This could be given to students by a worksheet at the beginning of class. Then they can match what
they do with the slides when they need help.
 
English Language Learners (ELL) 
The teacher will incorporate cooperative group learning as well as visuals with labels to help these
individuals. This will help produce a learning environment that is non-threatening and promotes active
learning. The spoken language will not be these children's only means of learning. They will also be able
to develop new friends to translate information and practice their English-speaking skills. The
information included in the pre assessment and ongoing formative as well as the classification of triangles
will be given to these students a day prior to the lesson for their preparation of the assignment and
knowledge of English words. Spanish speaking students who are just learning English will be given a
Spanish copy of the lecture (slides) prior to the lesson. 
 
Physically Disabled
In the case of a student being physically disabled, such as having a broken bone, cerebral palsy, or being
confined to a wheelchair, the activity where they find the correct triangle in the room poses a problem. It
is important to try to include physically disabled students in as many class activities as possible. Instead
of changing the lesson the teacher should try to find a solution where the child can have a role in the
activity. If the child cannot walk, then the teacher may pair up the child up with another classmate and
they can work together. Another solution may be to have the child yell out the type of triangle and count
to ten.
 
Closure/Refocusing Students on Learning Targets
What to ask students
 What are the different methods you can use to classify a triangle?
 What are some tricks that help us remember triangle differences?
 What remains the same in all different kinds of triangles?
 
References
Gonzalez, J. (2018, September 21). 12 Ways to Support English Learners in the Mainstream  
     Classroom. Retrieved October 22, 2019, from 
     https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/supporting-esl-students-mainstream-classroom/.
Image share hosting lugezi.com. (2019). Retrieved October 18, 2019, from 
http://lugezi.com/imgs/.
Veerendra. (2017). What are the Different Types of Triangles - A Plus Topper. Retrieved October 
20, 2019, from https://www.aplustopper.com/classification-of-triangles/.