Unit Topic and Rationale

Big Ideas Math is the new mathematics curriculum that Poudre School District has
adopted for the 2016-2017 school year. This curriculum is aligned throughout the grade levels to
the Colorado Common Core Standards; starting in Kindergarten and going all the way through
Algebra 2 (around 10th grade). The book is laid out in 10 chapters as follows:
Chapter 1: Numerical Expressions and Factors (Whole Number Operations, Order of
Operations, Powers and Exponents, Prime Factorization, GCF and LCM)
Chapter 2: Fractions and Decimals (Fraction and Decimal Operations; addition,
subtraction, multiplication and division)
Chapter 3: Algebraic Expressions and Properties (Writing and translating expressions,
Addition and Multiplications Properties)
Chapter 4: Areas of Polygons (Area of Parallelograms, Triangles and Trapezoids &
Polygons in the Coordinate Plane)
Chapter 5: Ratios and Rates
Chapter 6: Integers and the Coordinate Plane
Chapter 7: Equations and Inequalities
Chapter 8: Surface Area and Volume
Chapter 9: Statistical Measures
Chapter 10: Data Displays
I will be breaking down the instruction of Chapter 4 which deals with the areas of certain
shapes. Up to this point in the class, our lessons can be filed under two broad categories; number
sense and expressions. This chapter will focus on building visual-spacial skills, requiring

students to break down what they know about finding area to derive formulas that allow them to
find the area of different shapes that they are already familiar with.
To begin, we will start by drawing upon prior knowledge that the students have about
area of rectangles and plotting on the coordinate plane. The students should have learned about
both topics in both 4th and 5th grade. In our class, we have been refreshing on these two key ideas
throughout the last three chapters so it will not be something we must spend a lot of time
reviewing. We will use the area of a rectangle to derive equations for parallelograms, triangles
and trapezoids; providing formal definitions for these shapes as we go. We will use both
algebraic expression techniques (covered in our last chapter) and the manipulation of shapes to
help us derive these equations. We will conclude the chapter by talking about how to find the
area of composite figures and graphing polygons in the coordinate plane.
This chapter is about much more than just giving students a list of equations to find the
area of polygons and having them memorize said equations. This chapter is focused on
exploratory learning; having students find their own equations for area. Math is all about
problem solving, and this chapter does a great job at modeling some visual problem solving
techniques. For some students who struggle with the numbers behind math, this will be good for
them, giving them something concrete and visual to wrap their heads around. The kids who do
like to work with numbers will also be challenged with this lesson as we will continue to build
upon ideas on expressions and equations that were planted last lesson.
Area is foundation for the rest of geometry, the ability to discover and apply area
principles now will be key when learning about volume and mathematical theorems. For
students constantly seeking real-world application, talking about area is a great way to show
them where math is used. Careers in areas such as architecture, coast guard, construction,

engineering and graphic design use geometry and area on a regular basis. I will be doing
different things throughout the chapter to help stress the importance of geometry and area outside
of our 6th grade math classroom.

6GA.1 Find the area of right triangles, other triangles, special quadrilaterals, and
polygons by composing into rectangles or decomposing into triangles and other
shapes; apply these techniques in the context of solving real-world and
mathematical problems.
6GA.3 Draw polygons in the coordinate plane given coordinates for the vertices; use
coordinates to find the length of a side joining points with the same first coordinate
or the same second coordinate. Apply these techniques in the context of solving realworld and mathematical problems.

These are the two standards that I will be addressing during this chapter. Notice that
neither of these standards talk about plugging numbers into an equation or following some steps
to find area or graph polygons. These lessons will follow the language of the standards,
challenging students to find and discover
techniques to problem solve rather than just
memorizing a list of equations.