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circle. Who thinks that they might have a shape that goes inside the circle? One by one, I will call on students
who think they have a shape that fits my rule. I will collect the shapes from them and place them in my circle as
I call on them.
If the shape does not fit my rule, I will place it outside of the circle. Your shape does not belong in the circle,
but it is important that we look at it because it tells us something about what does not belong in the circle.
After 12-15 shapes accumulate in the circle, I will ask the students to think about what the rule is and turn and
share with their partners. We now have many shapes in our circle and I think some of you may know what the
rule is. Turn and share with your partner about what you think the rule is [Turn and share- 30 seconds]
Then, I will ask a student to share what s/he thinks my rule is [straight sides]. When the students get it right, we
will then check each shape inside the circle to make sure that they fit my rule. Do all of our shapes have
straight sides? Lets check them. We will also look at the attributes of the shapes outside of our circle to see
how they are different (round, curved edges, etc.)
We will play another round of the game, with the secret rule that our shape must be a triangle. I will again
collect shapes to put in the circle, have the students turn/share about what they think it is, and then discuss why
the shapes in the circle (triangles) share the same attributes (3 corners, 3 sides). I will then collect the shape I
gave to each student.
We will then transition into the next part of the activity: sorting shapes in groups of four. [10 minutes] Now
you and your partners will sort your shape cards into groups of shapes that go together. You can arrange your
shapes into groups of 2,3,4, or 5 groups and you must use all shapes. Refer to the smartboard for the directions
if you need to (prepare in advance).
I will be pre-selecting groups of 4-5 students with mixed ability levels and creating 1-2 groups of students that
may need scaffolding to get started. I will then focus my attention initially on these groups when we break out
for group work.
I will ask a student to repeat the directions and then I will then model the activity for them with a few shapes
I will put these shapes together because they have at least one straight side or I will group these shapes
because they have round sides. I will then ask them to sit with their partners and set the timer for +-7 minutes
(depending on how we are doing on time) The students will sit on the floor and group their shapes. I will
circulate and ask them questions as they sort: Why are these shapes grouped together? What do they have in
common? Could I put XYZ shape in another group? Why or why not?
After the timer goes off, I will call the class back to order and ask a few pairs to share one of their groups with
the class. I will then ask them to go back to their seats, put their individual set of shapes away and wait for
further directions.
Differentiated Instruction
2/3 of the students in this class are English Language Learners. I will differentiate for them by having the
students work cooperatively in pairs and talk to each other about what they think the rule is. I will also have
students repeat the directions for the game and the shape sorting activity in pairs to make sure that all students
hear the directions at least once and know what to do.
Assessment
I will conduct ongoing assessment during Guess My Rule to see whether the students are recognizing
different names and attributes of shapes (straight sides, curved sides, number of corners, curved sides, triangles,
rectangles, etc) and during the shape sorting activity when I walk around and ask the students about how/why
they are sorting their shapes.