Allan Hendershot
EDE4942
4/24/15
The purpose of the lesson was to review the following three-dimensional shapes: cubes, cylinders, pyramids, spheres, rectangular prisms, and cones. Further, I wanted the students to use appropriate vocabulary to compare shapes according to attributes and properties such as number of edges, faces, and vertices. I chose iPads as the means to convey these ideas.
My goal was to use technology to enhance their learning. I did not want to simply shoehorn technology into my lesson. With that end in mind, I chose to use the iPad app Shapes – 3D Geometry Learning by Setapp Sp. Z O. O which I will briefly describe. With this application the students can manipulate a wide variety of three-dimensional shapes. Each shape can be rotated in all directions, and enlarged or reduced in size. Further, with the press of a button students can highlight the edges, fill in faces one at a time with different colors, place dots on each vertex, and render each face transparent. The most elegant feature is the ability to literally unfold each shape and display it in two dimensions.
I was able to use this application during every phase of my lesson. First, during planning I was able to take screenshots of each shape, both three-dimensional and two-dimensional, and use them to make a graphic organizer. Next, during the opening discussion I used the iPad, the application, and the elmo to demonstrate my purpose and set expectations. Also, during the lesson, every student was able to use the app to explore the concepts being taught and enhance their thinking. Finally, I was able to use the iPad to wrap up the lesson and review the concepts we covered.
This was perhaps the most successful lesson I have taught thus far. For my opening discussion I announced that we would be working on and reviewing geometry in preparation for an upcoming test. As expected I received several groans from the students. These concepts had been covered in the past and they were expecting a worksheet or practice test. They were therefore quite surprised when I placed my iPad under the elmo and announced that we would be doing things a little differently today. They were immediately engaged. I noticed that most of the students were paying attention. After a brief turn and talk session focusing on how and why geometry is important in and out of school, I demonstrated how the app worked and explained that they would each have a chance to use it. At this point every student was watching intently. Below is an example of student work. The idea was to have students match the three-dimensional objects with their two-dimensional counterparts. I demonstrated what was to be done by folding and unfolding a pyramid. I told them I would give them a few minutes to match the 3-D and 2-D shapes. Once done they would each use the iPad to see if their assumptions were correct. Below is an example of student work.
As expected many students mismatched the sphere and the cone. Several students matched the cylinder with the sphere as well. I had them use pencil first, then after they used the app, correct their answers with crayon or marker. The advantage to using the iPad instead of traditional worksheets or models is that it provides dynamic models of the objects. For this lesson I had three devices. I divided the class into groups of three or four students. Two groups were allowed a few minutes to play with the app while I worked with the other group. The students who did not have iPads were told to work on the next page of their graphic organizers. They were to label each shape with the correct number of faces, edges, and vertices, then check their answer when they had access to the tablet.
This strategy worked quite well at first. The students were all engaged either learning the app or working with me. As I worked with each group, I showed them how to fold and unfold each shape, and how to highlight the vertices, edges, and faces. I was able to easily spot patterns and misconceptions that the students had about the vocabulary and the relationship between two-dimensional and three-dimensional shapes. There were a great many a-ha moments during this lesson and behavior management was virtually a non-issue, at least for a time.
There are elements to this lesson that I would change if had I the opportunity to teach it again to the same students. Aside from the obvious, such as having access to additional devices, I would have prepared extension activities for students who finished their work early. In this case, there were several students who finished quickly and had nothing to do. As a result the classroom became quite noisy and I had to quiet them down several times with attention cues.
Because this lesson was administered on Earth Day my CT suggested that I use this as the bases for my extension activity. For example, I might have students draw pictures showing how they can keep the environment clean. They could then label the shapes they see. For instance, soda cans are cylinders, and recycle bins are rectangular prisms.
There is also room for growth. Although all students were engaged, there were some who struggled with the content. Using the iPad enabled each student to match the 2-D and 3-D shapes correctly, but several still had trouble identifying the correct number of faces. For example, several students believed that the face of an object had to be flat. This was especially apparent when they were evaluating the cylinder. Even after unfolding it they were unable to make the connection. They had no issues with the cube, rectangular prism, or the pyramid. One function of the app is the ability to print out a foldable version of each object. This would be of great benefit to the students who are struggling. Although a dynamic computer model is very useful and engaging, some students require a physical tactile experience to make connections.
To conclude my lesson, I had students return the iPad, so they would not be distracted, while I reviewed what we learned using my device and the elmo. In future I would like to provide further opportunities for the students to share their work and thinking. In this case, I quickly covered the main points covered during the lesson and asked a few direct questions. I should have called on students to come up and share their answers and use the iPad on the elmo to demonstrate their thinking. Further, I could have encouraged them to ask each other questions and compare their answers which would have helped in avoiding excessive teacher talk.
I do plan on using this strategy in the future as it was quite effective. Initially I was worried that the students would spend more time playing with the devices rather than using them for their intended purpose, however, this was not the case. This lesson enabled the students to think about geometry in a different way because the modes used were not static. A traditional physical model cannot be easily unfolded and manipulated in real time and can even be unwieldy. Technology should only be used if it enhances the learning experience. In that regard, I believe this lesson was largely successful.