Area and Perimeter

DAY 1
1. Call students to rug for a review mini-lesson on area and perimeter.
2. Explain to students that area is the amount of unit squares that can “fill” a space. Perimeter the is the distance around a shape.
3. Pass out pieces of paper that contain shapes like:
                Square: Sides of 6in each
                Rectangle: Sides of 8cm and 12 cm
Square: Sides of 5in each
                Rectangle: Sides of 7cm and 15 cm
4. Ask students to turn and talk with a partner about the area and perimeter of each shape. Students must explain their thinking and how they ended up in agreeance with their answers.
5. Next, pose the problem:
(it may work better to give each group different dimensions)
                You and your family are moving to a new neighborhood. Part of the neighborhood rules requires each family to have a fence around their entire yard. Your yard is 12 feet long and 7 feet wide. How many feet of fencing will you need to fence in the entire yard?
                Next, you need to get the inside of your house ready for move-in. You and your family have 4 walls that need to be painted. Each wall is 8 feet tall and 13 feet wide. Each square foot of wall calls for 3 cups of paint. How much paint will be needed for one wall? How much paint will be needed for all 4 walls?
(Hint: Do the math for one wall, then add them together.)

DAY 2
1. Give students the following materials:
                Popsicle sticks – small, medium, large
                Pipe Cleaners
                Scissors
                Notebook paper
                Construction paper
                Glue
                Tape
                Paint (remind them they will not actually need the amount of cups they figured up in the problem)
                Cardboard (to glue painted paper on)
                Hot glue
                Poster board
2. Tell students they are going to build their house and fencing to go around their yard.
3. Set out materials and say “Go.”
4. Give students time to inquire and explore materials to see what might work for each section.
5. Have them work together with their groups to make a plan for how they will build their house and decide how much material they will need for each thing.

DAY 3
1. Revisit the math problem.
2. Explain to students the directions again.
3. Tell them they have 45 minutes the first day. (room for trial and error) They may begin at least painting the fence and/or walls they are using. Tell them to be cautious with materials and remind them to work together to figure out the most effective and efficient way to complete construction.

DAY 4
1. Give students time to build their houses.
2. If finished before time is out, begin a review, if not, wait until DAY 5.

DAY 5 (Review)
1. Give students worksheet found in Lesson Resources. Have them work together to fill in blanks.
2. Give students Contribution sheet. Directions are on the sheet.
3. Lastly, bring students together to talk about area and perimeter. Have a few students talk about what they have learned and what ways they can use this knowledge in the world around them (cutting brownies, building a swimming pool, etc.)

DAY 6
1. Have each group present their houses and how they got the dimensions for each supply needed.
2. Use rubric found in lesson resources.
3. Give the Area and Perimeter test (found in lesson resources)
 

Differentiation: Pull small groups for support as needed. Have students verbalize the difference between area and perimeter. Provide additional opportunities for students to determine which call for area and which call for perimeter.

Extension: Have students calculate the perimeter for a fence to go up around the "neighborhood" made up of classmates' homes. Give students an amount of paint (in area) and have them calculate which walls could be painted using the provided paint. Bump up the rigor by adding classification of quadrilaterals.

There is a rubric found in Lesson Resources along with the Contribution Rubric for students to grade their group members.