Virtual Field Trip!

Fasten your seat belts!  As a fun activity for this lesson I am taking you on a Virtual Field Trip.  You will get a chance to explore the world of Architectural Engineering to see how geometry plays a key role in the life of an architect.  Here are some of the concepts we will be exploring...

California Mathematics Content Standard:

8.0 - Students know, derive, and solve problems involving the perimeter, circumference, area, volume, lateral area, and surface area of common geometric figures.

9.0 - Students compute the volumes and surface areas of prisms, pyramids, cylinders, cones, and spheres; and students commit to memory the formulas for prisms, pyramids, and cylinders.

10.0 - Students compute areas of polygons, including rectangles, scalene triangles, equilateral triangles, rhombi, parallelograms, and trapezoids.

Before you leave I would like you to watch this short recording I made.  It is just under 16 minutes and it covers the specific concepts and topics mentioned above as well as gives you an idea of what to expect on your field trip.  Make sure you use the pause and rewind functions if you need to.  When you are done, come back here to begin your field trip!

Now, I want you to spend a few minutes with Mr. Erik Beck.  He explains in this video how he uses geometry and some basic math in his job every day!  You will want to make sure you have this worksheet handy as you go through the video so that you can answer the questions.  Just click on the link to open the worksheet.  Please give me some detail in your answers.  Not only does this show me that you watched the video but that you are giving some serious thought to the questions presented about the video you watched.  Be creative and use your imagination.  This worksheet is worth 25 points.



Now that you have completed the video worksheet and answered those questions there is another part to this lesson.  Please click here to access another worksheet with 3 practice problems.  These problems are based on the concepts we have covered on your field trip.  After you complete this worksheet please turn it in.  In order to receive full credit you must show all of your work where applicable.  On the last question, be creative.  That is the point of this field trip.  The worksheet is worth 30 points.

 Careers using Math!

The Bureau of Labor Statistics put together this handy resource for people who are interested in knowing which careers use math and are in high demand.

As I mentioned in my recording, students always ask about when they are going to use math in their lives.  We Use Math is a fun and interesting answer to this question.  Check it out!

Helpful Resources

If you ever need additional help in math (not just in Geometry), here are a couple of my favorite resources I share with my students and their families.

Yay Math was put together by a math teacher in the Los Angeles area.  His videos are quite funny and he provides practice worksheets which go along with his lessons.  My favorite is the one where he is dressed as a Chicken!

Khan Academy is a helpful website for nearly any subject you will find from Kindergarten all the way through college.  In addition to video lessons on all of those topics, you can create a free account, complete practice problems right there on the website, and track your progress as you move through the different levels of math.  I have used this resource many times and it is a personal favorite.

Cool Math is a great resource for help with a wide variety of math lessons.  Besides lessons and practice problems there are also fun math games you can play.  Math can be fun too you know!

AAA Math categorizes the lessons in alphabetical order.  They are very interactive and you can find help on a wide range of topics.

The Math Forum is a different way to get help when you need it.  Look at it like a community discussion board.  You can post your math question and receive a response from an actual person.  So if there is a specific math problem you are stuck on, this is a great resource to not only find the answer, but find out why it is the right answer.

Continuing the field trip

The video and worksheets you went through on your virtual field trip today were just a small part of what is offered at Math By Design.  There are 4 other videos you can watch along with practice worksheets to help you with the concepts discussed by those professionals.  In addition, you can become a Junior Architectural Engineer and pick 1 of 2 engineering projects to work on and test your geometry and math skills.  Take a look around and give a couple of the tasks a try.  I might just be using one of them for a final exam project.

Now that our field trip is done I hope you are starting to think about all of the different ways math is used in life.  Thank you for joining me today.

Mr. Betz