1. Attributes & Analysis
Unit of Study: Strengthening Critical Area: Describing and analyzing shapes
Global Concept Guide: 1 of 1

2. Content Development
It is imperative that students engage in many SMP 3 focused tasks to strengthen this critical area and deepen understanding.
Students should be required to justify thinking with accurate vocabulary in both conversation and written responses.
“During the discussions of students’ solutions is a good time to introduce the vocabulary of fractional parts. This can be quite casual and, at least for younger children, should not involve fraction symbolism. When a brownie or other region has been broken into equal shares, simply say, “We call these fourths. The whole is cut into four parts. All of the parts are the same size- fourths.”
-Van de Walle and Lovin
Teaching Student-Centered Mathematics:Grades K-3

3. Content Development
“Children need to be aware of two aspects or components of fractional parts:
(1) the number of parts and
(2) the equality of the parts (in size, not necessarily in shape).
Emphasize that the number of equal parts or fair shares that make up a whole determines the name of the fractional parts or shares. They will be familiar with halves but should quickly learn to describe thirds, fourths, fifths, and so on.”
-Van de Walle and Lovin
Teaching Student-Centered Mathematics: Grades K-3

4. Day 1
The focus of Day 1 is to provide students additional opportunity to apply knowledge of known geometric shapes and their attributes
Under lesson ideas: Shape of Things, Shape Up, What’s My Rule, & Guess my Rule are all options for designing Day 1 learning depending on needs of students
To enhance “Shape of Things” have students identify the various shapes within your school environment and journal the location and attributes of the shape

5. Day 2
Making a Rectangle (under lesson ideas) would be a great engage for Day 2
It is important students understand rows are horizontal and columns are vertical
Snap cubes or color tiles placed right next to each other will likely aid student’s conceptual understanding. Allow student to decompose large rectangle to see how many rows and how many in each row.
MA.CC.2.G.1.2 creates the foundation for arrays and understanding of multiplication.

6. Day 3
During Day 3 students need multiple opportunities to demonstrate understanding of how to partition rectangles to model halves, thirds, and fourths.
Under lesson ideas, Sharing Equally, Making Fourths, and portions of Making Cake will provide some of the exploration needed.
Additional problems should be created like the tasks provided in order to meet the student’s needs

7. Day 4
The focus of Day 4 is similar to Day 3 except now students are partitioning circles.
Many students have difficulty dividing a circle into thirds.
Consider connecting learning to the clock. If a student draws a line from the center out to the 12, 8, & 4 respectively, thirds will result.
HOT : If we know each part is equal, how many minutes in each third? (20 minutes)
Connections can be continued to be made for halves (12 & 6) and fourths. (12, 3,6, & 9)
Fraction Cookie & portions of Making Cake can be used to give students problem solving tasks

8. Enrich/Reteach/Intervention
Enrich: How many squares? Challenges students to identify how many total squares can be created with on geoboard.
Tangrams could also be used to enrich students who have a strong command of this critical area. Tasks requiring students to create a square using all the pieces would be particularly challenging.
Reteach: What is a Quadrilateral? is one example of an ETA lesson to support students still growing within this standard. When a need is identified, check the Math icon, Classroom Resources, ETA Super source Lessons.