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LESSON TITLE: Dream Home Design
GRADE LEVEL FOR THIS LESSON: 7th/8th/9th Grade
LESSON PLAN
COMPONENT

CRITERIA FOR POINT VALUE

Lesson Introduction

Students have been learning about area and volume as part

of a geometry unit. The students will apply their knowledge to
design a home consisting of 1,500 square feet of living space
with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a family room, and a
kitchen. A playroom and dining room are optional. Students
will create a digital model using floorplanner.com. Once the
house is designed according to the students specifications,
students will use websites to shop for flooring and paint.
Students will write a short paper to explain how they would
calculate the amount of flooring and paint to buy.

Standards

ISTE Standards
1. Creativity and Innovation: Students demonstrate creative
thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and
processes using technology.
a. Apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products or
processes.
b. Create original works as a means of personal or group
expression.
c. Use models and simulations to explore complex systems and
issues.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.7.G.B.6
Solve real-world and mathematical problems involving area,
volume and surface area of two- and three-dimensional objects
composed of triangles, quadrilaterals, polygons, cubes, and right
prisms.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.8.G.C.9
Know the formulas for the volumes of cones, cylinders, and spheres
and use them to solve real-world and mathematical problems.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSG.MG.A.3
Apply geometric methods to solve design problems (e.g., designing
an object or structure to satisfy physical constraints or minimize
cost; working with typographic grid systems based on ratios).

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Learner Outcomes

Students will demonstrate their understanding of area by

designing a 1500 sq. foot home.

Students will write a short paper explaining how they
would calculate the amount of flooring and paint they
would need to buy. They may include sample calculations
to support their explanation.

Essential Questions

1. How would you design a dream home that has 1,500

square feet of living space?
2. Explain how you would calculate the amount of flooring
and paint you would need to complete your house.

Anticipatory Set

Show students a short video of floor plans, 3D models, and

actual homes (found on Youtube or created with Animoto).
Then, tell students that they will get to design their dream
homes.

Procedures

1. Students will be shown how to use floorplanner.com.

2. Point students to the tutorials on the website in case they
need help.
3. Provide students with the directions for the home: The
home should be 1,500 square feet and include three
bedrooms, two bathrooms, a family room, and a kitchen.
A playroom and dining room are optional.
4. Tell students that once they are done with the design, they
should provide the dimensions of each room and show
how they all add up to a total of 1,500 square feet of
living space.
5. Give students time to work on designing their homes.
6. As students finish, give them the second half of the
assignment. Students will research flooring materials and
paint online. Students will then write a paper using
Google Docs and Google Draw explaining how they
would calculate the amount of materials they would need
to buy for their home. They can provide sample equations
and illustrations to further support their explanation.

Differentiation

Students struggling with floorplanner.com will be provided

extra support or the option of creating a floor plan using
centimeter grid paper.
All modifications/accommodations identified on
Individualized Education Plans or 504 Plans are addressed.

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Closure (wrap-up)

Students will present their dream homes to the class.

Assessment(s):

The final floorplanner.com model and paper will serve as

formal assessments of the students understanding of area.
Students performance and understanding will be evaluated
with a rubric.

FORMATIVE/
SUMMATIVE
Legal Modifications

All modifications/accommodations identified on

Individualized Education Plans or 504 Plans are addressed.

Reflective Practice

This lesson and assessment address the CCSS by giving

students the opportunity to model mathematics using their
knowledge of area with the creation of a dream home.
Students also solve real-world problems using area and
volume by explaining how to figure out how much flooring
and paint they would need for the home.

Materials

LCD projector connected to a computer or laptop

Computers or Chromebooks for each student
floorplanner.com and/or centimeter grid paper
Google Docs and Google Draw