Cell Phone Inquiry

Lesson Content

• Lesson Plan Template:

  Model Eliciting Activity (MEA)

• Formative Assessment

  
  

  Prior to the lesson the teacher may want to pose a problem on the board like the one below:

   

  Four runners are entered into a competition. Three runners have had their turns. Their scores are 4 minutes 29 seconds, 4 minutes 30 seconds and 4 minutes 03 seconds. What score must the last runner get in order to win the competition?

  Next, I would have them order the runners in order from 1st, 2nd and 3rd place.

  Throughout this activity, the teacher will circulate around the classroom in order to ascertain the progress of groups and clarify any misunderstandings. The teacher will elicit the following questions:

  • What are some ideas we need to think of in order to find the solution?
  • What are the strengths and weaknesses of this strategy?
  • Is there another situation where we could use this solution?

• Feedback to Students

  
  

  The teacher will utilize communication through group discussions. Some questions might include:

   

  1. How can we tell if a decimal is less than another decimal?
  2. How can we tell if a decimal is greater than another decimal?

• Summative Assessment

  
  

  The teacher will utilize a rubric to assess student task for Language Arts and Math. Rubric can be found at the below link:

   

  Cell_Phone_Inquiry_Rubric.docx

• Learning Objectives

  
  

  Students will:

   

  1. use decimals in real world problems.
  2. compare several decimals and understand that both are part of the same whole.
  3. write a letter explaining their procedure with appropriate examples and support.
  4. write a letter to a specific audience.

• Prior Knowledge

  
  
  • Students will need to know place value through the hundredth.
  • Students will need to know how to compare and order decimals to the hundredth place.

• Instructional Suggestions

  
  

  Part 1 (Days 1 and 2)

   

  1. Ask students the formative assessment questions for math content (see Formative Assessment) and provide a review if needed.
  2. Break students into teams of 3-4, have students decide among themselves or you may chose roles for each team mate: a team captain, 2 writers, and a speaker for the team.
  3. Have a paper that displays each role, so they know what is expected of them.
  4. Students receive client letter 1 (Reading passage 1), data set 1, and additional materials (provided in the Data set 1 section).
  5. The teacher can ask the readiness/comprehension questions (see Readiness questions) to the class or have students complete them individually on paper. After students understand the task, they can begin to work in teams of approximately 3-4.
  6. In teams, students work on the problem and respond to the client with the requested deliverables.
  7. As students are working, the teacher circulates to each team to ask the first set of Guiding/Reflective Questions and address any issues that may arise. Teachers can provide guidance using the reflective questions to help students determine the important factors and start thinking about how they can present their solution.

  Part 2 (Day 3)

  1. Students receive the client letter 2 (Reading Passage 2), data set 2, and additional materials (found in the Data set 2 section), along with their work from part 1.
  2. Teams test, evaluate, and revise their first procedure as necessary with the second data set and provide the requested deliverables as specified in the second letter.
  3. If teams finish early, they can begin preparing their presentations.
  4. After all of the teams have completed their second letters to the client, the teams will present their results to the rest of the class. Peer critique using the Peer Presentation Rubric (see Summative Assessment, Peer Rubric) and classroom discussion follow.

• Guiding/reflective Questions

  
  
  1. How do you know if you have an answer to the problem?
  2. Would your solution work in a different situation?

• Reading Passage 1

  
  

  Cell_Phone_Inquiry_Passage_1.docx

   

  Dear Students,

  Since there are so many cell phones out in the market today it is very difficult for me to make my decision. I need your help in picking out the best cell phone to purchase. I narrowed the search by selecting 4 cell phones. Factors that may be important to consider when choosing a cell phone are: the price, touch screen, camera, voice command, and megapixels.

  I will provide you with a copy of the data from the 4 cell phones. Look over this data and develop a procedure for ranking the cell phones.

  Please have a written response to tell me what cell phone you ranked as the best and why. Also, provide me with a clear and detailed procedure for how your team ranked the cell phones from best to worst. Make sure that your procedure will work just in case we may have to add additional data on other factors for cell phones. Thank you so very much for your help!

  Sincerely,

  Your 4th Grade Teacher

• Readiness Questions

  
  
  1. What is the problem? Who is the client?
  2. What is the client asking your team to do?
  3. What things do you need to include in your solution?
  4. Do you think there is more than one correct answer to what the client is asking? Why or why not?

• Data Set 1

  
  

  Cell_Phone_Chart_1.docx

• Letter Template 1

  
  

  Cell_Phone_Letter_Template.docx

• Comprehension/readiness questions

  
  

  See readiness questions.

• Reading Passage 2

  
  

  Cell_Phone_Inquiry_Passage_2.docx

  Dear Students,

  I want to thank you for all your hard work assisting me with which cell phones are the best and the worst. This past week I spoke with a friend of mine and she told me about two more cell phones that I should consider. They are the Sony Queen and the Sammy Free 5.

  Also, after giving it some thought I really would prefer a display screen that isn't small. I would like you to see if your procedure still works with this new information. Please write a response to tell me what cell phone you ranked as the best and why. Also, provide me with a clear and detailed procedure for how your team ranked the cell phones from best to worst. Also if your team had to make any changes to the first procedure, please explain what was changed and why each change was needed.

  I would like to thank you again in advance for your assistance with helping me purchase the best cell phone for my needs.

  I look forward to hearing the results.

  Sincerely,

  Your 4th Grade Teacher

• Data Set 2

  
  

  Cell_Phone_Chart_2.docx

   

• Letter Template 2

  
  

  Cell_Phone_Letter_Template_2.docx

   

• Additional Instructions or Materials

  
  

  
  
  
  
  

• Reflection question 2

  
  

  Did your team use decimals when coming up with a procedure? If yes, how did you and your team deal with using decimals in your decisions?