Constructing in Three Dimensions: Sentence Starters and Frames

Some ideas for sentence frames/starters that could be incorporated into your lesson are listed below. If you think a sentence frame/starter will be helpful, consider how will it support students’ mathematical learning and/or development of academic language, and decide which sentence frame/starter (from the list below or that you create) would best support students’ learning.

Starters

One relationship I noticed between the number of faces on a pyramid and the number of toothpicks I needed was 

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One relationship I noticed between the number of faces on a pyramid and the number of marshmallows I needed was 

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Frames

For every ____________ that I added to a pyramid, I needed 

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The cube is a ______________________ with 

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Academic Language

Students should have opportunities to see, hear, and write key mathematical ideas during this activity. There are some specific terms that students need to understand in order to engage in this task, and there are some additional terms and phrases that may surface as the students engage with the task. You may think of additional words or phrases that are key to this activity.  As the task is introduced, solved by the students, and discussed, ensure that students have opportunities to experience (i.e., through discussion, pictures, and the use of gestures) and to build understanding for key words and phrases. Examples of words and phrases that may be involved in work on this problem include:

·      3-dimensional; Polyhedron; Prism

·      Pyramid; Cube

·      Base; Faces

·      Pentagon

·      Construct