Help me give my students a hands-on experience with Algebra. We would like to have Algebra tiles in order to help students move from a physical to a conceptual understanding of a variable.
FULLY FUNDED! Dr. McClure's classroom raised $190
This project is fully funded
My Students
Our 6th grade students travel from one class to another; a typical middle school experience. In our room, we have only Math classes. Our students come from a variety of backgrounds and life experiences. No matter what mathematical background our students bring with them, learning Algebra is a new challenge!
It's much easier to learn when students have hands-on manipulatives to touch, move, and show their understanding.
Trying to develop an abstract concept such as a "variable" in Algebra can be challenging. But, our 6th graders use chromebook devices for interacting with their Math text online, and on-line math practice sites to help their understanding of a letter that represents any number.
My Project
Our students have experienced Pre-Algebra in earlier years (x - 7 = 10), so variables aren't entirely new. However, when we try to combine like terms (3y + 2y + x), many learners' eyes glaze over and say they have "no idea" what we're talking about. That is not surprising if you understand that a variable is a concept in your mind, it's abstract, you can't really see it. In order to make this jump from an idea to an understanding, we need Algebra Tiles to work with in the classroom.
Algebra Tiles help students represent and analyze algebraic principles by creating concrete models.
Plastic shapes for whole-class demonstrations or hands-on student work will allow us to show our learning in a new way.
Students will be able to build expressions and equations on an Algebra mat under our document camera and explain their thinking with tangible and physical objects to represent coefficients, variables, and terms.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Dr. McClure and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
