2015-2016 Geometry Scope & Sequence

Recently I spent a little more time looking at the Common Core Geometry standards while making these standards posters.  It forced me to rethink how I teach topics, what order I teach them in, and made me realize that I am not targeting the standards the way that I want to.  It also made me realize that I didn't fully understand all of the standards.

Which led to this...

  

I've since redone the web on regular printer paper, one page for each domain (because that poster won't fit into my planning binder).  I then went through and brainstormed ideas for some of the standards that I wanted to improve upon for next year.  I also did some internet searching for any of the standards that I couldn't come up with something for or that needed more.  

This led me to revamping my scope and sequence.  I tried to do this at the beginning of the summer.  I re-sequenced the my units, and then that was it because I got lazy and had no inspiration to really improve anything else.  So ultimately I'm thankful that I decided that I no longer want to write out all of the standards on the board anymore.

2014-2015 Geometry INB Unit 10 (Circles)

Here are the unit 10 pages...

The table of contents...

The unit self-assessment.  We began the unit with all of the circle vocabulary, and equations of circles.  Next year I have to add in changing the equation to standard form using completing the square.  I just know that it is going to be so much fun! (NOT!)

Next we studied the Tangent Theorems.

Then we moved onto the Chord Theorems.

Next we learned about Central and Inscribed Angles and Inscribed Polygons.  I combined these two topics into one lesson.

Then we covered the Angles in Circles and Complex Circles.  I don't know if I will cover complex circles again next year.  I don't think it's necessary.  But it was my favorite thing ever when I was a math student (and I hated math back then).  It doesn't mean my students like it though. 

Next we learned about segments in circles.  The next class we covered arc length and sector area.  Note to self:  Need to include radians in this topic next year.

For our last topic, we learned how to construct inscribed and circumscribed circles given a triangle.  This was a great review of constructions and points of concurrency.  I enjoyed this topic, but my students didn't. 

2014-2015 Geometry INB Unit 9 (Right Triangles)

Here is unit 9...

The table of contents and unit self-assessment.

We started our unit with notes and practice on the Pythagorean Theorem.  The kids already had this down, so I felt a little silly doing this, but they didn't know their triples and some of the examples confused them, so it was worth it in the end.

Then we moved onto Special Right Triangles.  I'm not sure if it was worth teaching to be honest.  I guess I can try again this year and see if it makes a difference.  Following that we covered Similar Right Triangles.

Next we began Trig.  I gave students a foldable and some notes.  Then we moved onto Solving for Missing Sides.

Here is the inside of the foldable.  We kept it simple.

We finished the unit with Solving for Missing Angles and Applications.  Students did well with trig, but they did learn it last year too.  This year I will have to teach trig to students that have never encountered it before.  That's a little scary.  I know it means that I will have go to slower and explain better. 

2014-2105 Geometry INB Unit 8 (Similarity)

Here are my unit 8 pages...

The table of contents and self-assessment, of course.

We began the unit with dilations, and then I used compositions with dilations to review the rigid motions.  Next year I have to do much more with dilations.  I'll be blogging about that this weekend; I hope.

Then we studied the side splitter theorem.

 

The second example down on the blue page was a goof.  It belonged with similar polygons, and not the side splitter theorem.  We moved from side splitter theorem to similar polygons, and at the end of the lesson we previewed finding missing sides using similar polygons.

The next day we did problem solving with similar polygons.

Next we went over proving triangles similar, and then similar triangle proofs.

I made sure to include proofs where students had to prove that sides were proportional and then use the cross products property.  Since we started the year with measurement, the students didn't yet know about similarity, so I held off on teaching similar figures until this unit.

Here are the word problems with similar figures.

#WhyImGratefulForMTBoS

I've been in a funk all summer long.  I know that it's because of the rough year I had.  I had more job stress than normal because of pressure that was placed on me at the very beginning of the year, I had two different state tests to prepare my Geometry students for,  I was co-advising the senior class (which meant that I was preparing and chaperoning their class trip to VA), I was weepy all year about my seniors leaving because I absolutely adore that class, my husband was working 7 days a week for most of the year, and I lost two family members that had been sick for a period of time.  I was mentally, emotionally, and physically drained.

On the other hand, four out of my five classes were amazing.  The class dynamics were awesome, and the kids were just awesome as individuals.  I had one student in particular that would always pick up on my bad days and make sure I knew that I was still making a difference.  I really wish I had been a better teacher for these students this past year because it's what they deserved.

Once summer began I wanted to do as little as absolutely possible.  And I did.  This was a mistake.  One of the things I wanted to accomplish this summer was scrapbooking, and after becoming so sloth-like, I didn't even want to scrapbook.  Eventually I started blogging again, and it helped me to focus on the things that I need to accomplish this summer.   This helped a little.

What helped the most was when the people who write the blogs I follow started posting more and more posts about getting the new year started.  As much as I didn't even want to think about the next school year, I knew I had to, and the people that make up the MTBoS motivated me to do it.

Yesterday started the official countdowns.  Yesterday was one week until I have to return to school for aligning curricula to common core with my department.  Yesterday was two weeks until we begin our staff development days.  Today marks three weeks until the first day of school.

So I'm just posting to thank the people that make up the MTBoS for pulling me out of the funk I'd gotten myself into.  You're all helping me to be a better teacher for next year, and helping me to find the excitement I normally feel for this time of year.

2014-2015 Geometry INB Unit 7 (Polygons)

Here are my unit 7 pages...

Pocket page and table of contents.

Unit self-assessment and a chart that helps students discover the formula for the sum of the interior angles of a polygon.  (It also gives them an alternative method when they can't remember the formula.)

The chart close up.

Practice page for interior angles and exterior angles of polygons.  The next day we covered the theorems about parallelograms.

On the left page there is parallelograms practice, and on the right page flaps for the special parallelograms.

Under the flaps students wrote in a definition for the shape and marked diagrams depicting their special properties.

On the left page, we practiced with special parallelograms.  On the right page we took notes on trapezoids and completed some practice problems.

Every year I give students a copy of the chart on the left and have them check off the property that is true for each quadrilateral.  Every year the majority of them completely botch it up.  I need to find something else for next year.  On the right side we completed notes on coordinate proof.  I tried to get students thinking about how to use distance and slope formula to demonstrate the properties of parallelograms and the special parallelograms.  I think for next year, I'd rather students make some sort of list in their notes while I use reworked versions of the questions on this sheet. 

The other side of the coordinate proof sheet.

2014-2015 Geometry INB Unit 6 (Triangle Properties)

Here is unit 6...

The pocket page and table of contents.

The unit self-assessment and interior angle theorem.  The previous year I made this page a simple activity to discover the triangle sum theorem.  I skipped that this year because my students already knew that the angles sum is 180 degrees.  Instead, I included a proof for the triangle sum theorem.

However, I should have re-done the activity for the exterior angle theorem.  Students struggled with it for the rest of the year.  Not that they had trouble applying it, but they had trouble identifying when they could apply it.  The next day we did isosceles and equilateral triangles.  I purchased the isosceles and equilateral triangles from Lisa Davenport on TPT.  Then we did the proof of the base angles theorem.

Here is the inside of the foldable.

 

Next we learned about triangle inequalities and midsegments.  It was at this point that I decided I waned students to have the problems they were working on in their notebooks.  Without the problems, they are just looking at a bunch of calculations, and they need the context to be able to study.  So I have the notes briefly stated, and then the problems.

Lastly, we learned about medians and the other points of concurrency.  I did medians in the same fashion as the midsegments with the notes and problems.  For next year, I'm going to teach students to just find the two parts of the medians using the 2:1 ratio.  It just gets to be way too much for them when there's the 2:1 ratio, and then sometimes they use 2/3 and other time times they use 1/3 to solve for the missing pieces.  They dread questions about medians because of that.  Never again.

For the other points of concurrency, I just put them all into one lesson because I don't see them having any major importance.  We put together a foldable, and I gave students diagrams of triangles with all of the angle bisectors and all of the perpendicular bisectors drawn.  We wrote out the theorems next to the diagrams.

Here is the inside of the points of concurrency foldable.

When I teach this unit next year, I want to incorporate more proof.  There is just way too much missed opportunity in this unit to further develop proof skills.  Maybe one or two proofs for each topic.  Perhaps I can help the students through a proof proving the theorem, and then have them work on a proof applying the theorem.

School Supplies

For me...
Confession:  I am an absolute office/school supply junkie.  Staples is my happy place.  (My brother used to work there, and he would tell me about what was on sale, when something I wanted was in stock, and he would occasionally stash things that I wanted and that they would run out of.  It was the best!)

Here are the school supplies that I absolutely must have to begin the new school year:

I am selfish about my supplies.  I do not share.  I keep a set of thin line markers and colored pencils at home to plan my notebooks.  I start each new year with new packs, and I take the old packs to school.  I will then share my old old packs with my kids.

I have two new notebooks for INBs this year.  (I couldn't get a purple notebook.  I'm sort of devastated because I always use purple.)

Post-It notes are self-explanatory.  These I do share because I'm a nice person.  :)  Sharpie highlighters are the absolute best.  I separate the pack and keep half of it in my pencil pouch that stays in my bag for on-the-go planning (because it may happen one day).  The other half stays in my desk at work.  This year I bought a pack of Ink Joy pens.  I have some packs from two years ago still, but these are the clicky ones!

I also found those adorable self-inking stamps from the Target dollar spot for $3.  It will save me from using up all of my stickers.  (As if that would ever happen.)

For them...

Every year I go on a pencil shopping spree at WalMart.  Dixon Ticonderoga are the best pencils to buy for your students.  (Aside from the Bic mechanical pencils.)  During Back To School they are only $0.97!  After BTS, they are $1.24.  Still not bad.  I bought 10 boxes, which is 200 pencils total.  (They should last until December.)  I also bought 8 packs of colored pencils.  (Crayola of course.)  Just to freshen my INB supply.

I picked up a few bottles of glue, although I should have enough already, and two pairs of scissors.  I bought two packs of pencil cap erasers.  (My students really love those.)  I bought an adorable mini-stapler.  What's awesome about the stapler is that its bottom is magnetic, and so it sticks to the filing cabinet where my student resource center is kept.

Not pictured, I purchased 34 notebooks at WalMart/Target for $0.50.  I have to have a healthy supply of notebooks ready to go for students at the beginning of the year.  Many of my students cannot afford new school supplies, and when they get to me and I tell them that they need an old school "marble" notebook it throws them for a loop, so I've learned to be prepared.  I still have 17 notebooks leftover from last year.  I hope my notebook supply is enough because this year I have two courses that are using INBs!

Lastly, I picked up a 24 pack of the sparkly mechanical pencils.  I have a non-sparkly pack that I got in my supply order.  I only hand them out in emergencies.  Like when I'm in the middle of a lesson and a student decides that it is then that they need a pencil, or it is then that their pencil breaks, is too short, or their pen died, etc.  The sparkly ones I'm going to save until my end of the year awards.  Or for special students that are routinely unprepared and need me to keep a pencil just for them in my desk. ;)

What school supplies are an absolute must for you?  Is there anything that I am missing out on?

2014-2015 Geometry INB Unit 5 (Congruent Triangles)

Here is unit 5...

The table of contents and unit self-assessment of course.

For the first time, I started the unit with Algebraic Reasoning to help students understand how to reason through proofs.  This unit started off well, so I will definitely repeat this again this year

 Then we moved on to Line and Angle Proofs.  I gave students another set of fill-in notes for Two Column Proof Pointers.

Then we did some practice Line and Angle Proofs on a worksheet.  We then stapled the worksheet into our notebooks.  The move from Algebraic proofs to line and angle proofs was rough.  I even did an in between version that used the postulates and theorems with numbers.  (This was just a worksheet, and not included in the notebooks.)  I need to find a way to smooth out the transition this year.

 Then we moved onto identifying corresponding parts of triangles.  Looking at the page now, it seems strange that there is no pictures on this page.  I'll have to fix that for next year!

I introduced students to all of the triangle congruence postulates/theorems at once.  I used this foldable by Lisa Davenport.  This foldable is available for purchase from her TPT store.

Here is the inside of the foldable.

Then we started doing congruent triangle proofs.  For the first time, I taught flow proofs.  I really liked the flow proofs, but the majority of my students preferred the two-column proofs. 

Congruent triangle proofs continued and CPCTC notes.  One of my students two years ago made up "Country People Cut The Corn" to remember the order of the letters for CPCTC, but throughout this year my students kept asking, "What does CPCTC really stand for?"  I need to do a better job of teaching what CPCTC means.