File Cabinet

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ACT 1

Have students watch Act 1 at least once to Analyze and Make Sense of the story.

1. Tell students, “List everything you know and are curious about from Act 1.”

2. Ask students, “Does Act 1 remind you of anything? If so, write it down.”

How many sticky notes will cover the file cabinet?

Now that we have a focus question, ask students to:

  1. Write down any new questions they might have.
  2. Write down information they might need to be most precise when solving the task.
  3. Make an estimate using the information from Act 1.

ACT 2

  1. Make an estimate using the information from Act 1.
  2. When revealing Act 2 information, look for opportunities to make additional estimates.
  3. Give students permission to refine previous estimates before making precise calculations.

ESTIMATE the file cabinet dimensions

The dimensions of the file cabinet

Dimensions of the sticky notes

After the information from Act 2 has been revealed, 

  1. Give students individual time to Develop, Execute and Revise their plan for solving the task.
  2. Give students group work time to compare ideas, strategies, and solutions.
  3. Utilize the Checkpoint (if available below) during problem-solving.

CHECKPOINT

The Checkpoint is an opportunity for teachers and students to check for reasonableness during the early-to-mid phases of problem-solving. If a student’s strategy:

  1. Aligns with the checkpoint, encourage them to continue solving.
  2. Does NOT align with the checkpoint, ask assessing questions to reveal how the student is thinking about the task.

ACT 3

Disclosure: the outcome in Act 3 might not align with what students calculate. This might cause frustration among some students that “math doesn’t work.”

  1. Acknowledge the frustration students might feel. It is a natural response.
  2. Celebrate the process; mathematical reasoning, critical thinking, different strategies, perseverance, etc.
  3. Discuss, “Why might there be a difference between what you calculated (theoretical) and what happened (practical)?” 
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