My fourth grade students have been exploring measurement and geometry during the past week. They started out by learning about perimeter, area, and are now in the midst of discussing volume. Students are working on a project where they’re building rectangular prism models and constructing cities. They document the dimensions, cut out the rectangular prism that matches the measurements and places it on a map.
The groups have been working diligently over the past days. What I found interesting on Friday were the student conversations. As I peered over each group I eavesdropped on what was being said. Students are in groups of 2-3 and there’s plenty of conversation happening. Students are recognizing that the length, width and height all impact the volume of a rectangular prism. Mistakes are also happening. That’s a good thing. Students have had to use multiple grid sheets because they either cut out the faces too large or too small. They just grab another grid sheet and start over again. Their perseverance and being able to “lean into the struggle” is evident and I made sure to remind them of that. Students were even getting creative in adding sunroofs and open decks with their prisms.
Projects like this take time, but they’re often worthwhile in helping students build conceptual understanding. I’m looking forward to adding a question component for the groups on Monday. The questions will relate to cubic units and how the volume is found when combining multiple rectangular prisms.
I believe that this activity helps students apply volume formulas. I want students to come away with a better understanding of why the formula V = b*h is used and have them feel more confident in being able to see geometry/measurement relationships.
After this activity students will take a brief formative checkpoint where they’ll be answering questions similar to the below image. This is also how students will be assessed in a couple weeks.
The projects should be finished by the end of the next week. I’m looking forward to seeing how the cities finish up and the student reflections that follow.