Getting the math off the page

This is a detailed description (with future links to resources) of how our informal professional learning community engaged students in applying the concept of percent to creating a circle graph that depicted the distribution of colors in a sample of m&ms. For an introduction to our plc, read Education's Professional Learning Communities, Through Private Sector Eyes, in this blog.

Early in the second semester, our students tackled a unit on Percent. Student participation in daily group work, scaffolded by the text, was dropping, there was an increase in distractive behavior, and as teachers we were worn out trying to inject enthusiasm into the artificial and intangible projects offered by the text.

In our meeting to coordinate pacing and assessments for the next unit for our six sections of Pre-algebra, we brainstormed a multi-day process-based project to apply ratios and proportions (Unit 5) to the idea of percents (Unit 6).

Kate: Give them m&ms - have them graph the distribution of colors -
Joy (rummaging in her supplies): Sure, I have these circle rulers [link] ....
Abigail: We'll have to scaffold the work ...
K: - make sure they understand why they are doing each step -
J: and we can give them a rubric ...
A: ...have them revise until it meets standards.
K: - I've got lots of markers -
J: ...see how the graph changes if we combine samples.
A: ...I can buy the m&ms...
K: - worksheets - give me your notes -
J: ...let's be sure to use consistent terminology...

It was a rapidly tumbling conversation, with each of us contributing from our own strengths: creativity, organization and connecting to other math concepts. The worksheets were ready in draft the next day [link to lesson plan], and materials were available and prepared for each section by the following Monday.

As we implemented the unit, we discovered and shared with each other various bits of teaching that were required:

• vocabulary for fractions
• relating the situation to the ratios and proportions we had just studied
• rounding calculations to the nearest thousandth and then to the nearest degree
• vocabulary for the tool
• how to check for errors at each step, rather than at the end when the colored segments didn't add up to 360 degrees or when there wasn't enough room left for the last segment. [photo of circle graph student work]

There were in-course corrections and exchanges of information. Some went by email, some in hallway conversations, or as post-its on a handout left on our desks.

• Be sure to tell them to check their counts before they start eating the m&ms!
• What happens if one color has so few that you can't make the mark in the ruler within the circle?
• Robert was absent/Kelli lost her first page, so I gave them a data set to work with – here it is in case you need to do the same thing.
• Here's an excel spreadsheet I made - you can plug in their raw data and it will calculate all the conversions we're asking for, so you can check the results without having to work them all out yourself.
• Did your kids finish today? I'm having them finish during lab time.
  
• I didn't have them fill out this column, it seems redundant.
  
• Did they realize they could just copy this column from the previous page?
  
• I'm making them use the % and [degree] symbols, not just the numbers.

As we went through the activity, we saved student work and worksheet originals, and emailed observations and ideas for “next time”. These have been compiled into a notebook in our curriculum room so we can use it again with a clear memory of our experience

I was interested to observe that, although we were excited about this lesson and eager to share information about it among ourselves, we didn't really communicate it to others in our department or to our administrative leader. We seemed to think it would be “making too much of it” to put it out there as an example of collaboration or of our performing as a Professional Learning Community.