Teacher notes

This task, intended for 7th grade students studying rational numbers (adding fractions), provided much mathematical discussion. When giving this task, be prepared for some unexpected problem solving strategies. For example one group of students immediately asked for scissors to cut out the shapes in order to determine which company owned the most land. That strategy worked for answering questions 1 and 2; however it would not have been the most effective strategy or efficient approach for answering question #3. When moving to the extensions, determining fractional or percentage is necessary for the students to successfully complete the task. Differentiation: Students are encouraged to explore the task in their small groups. If they are stuck provide Resource Cards 1 and 2 and continue to ask probing questions. For students who require a challenge, the directions for question #3 in this task can be modified to read: If the parcel of land is considered one whole unit instead of four separate quadrants, how much of the total land is owned by Company A? Company B? Company C? Company D? Making the above modification requires the student
to label this red rectangle as 1/8. The unmodified task asks the student to think of this as because it represents of one of the quadrants.

Extensions 1 and 2 are available for students who want to continue exploring the task.

City Lots Task

Name _________________________________Period __________Date __________ Lot Task Group Accountability: Each group must determine the solution, assumptions, computations, and other justifications to support your findings. Individual Accountability: Each group member must describe in writing and in detail their groups strategy while providing a sound mathematical rationale. Write your mathematical thinking in part C. The attached shows who owns land in the downtown section of a nearby city. Each lot (parcel of land) is color coded. Red is owned by Company A Yellow is owned by Company B Green is owned by Company C Blue is owned by Company D 1. Who owns the most land?

2. Order the companies in order from least to greatest on the amount of land they own.

3. Based on four quadrants, how much of the total land is owned by Company A? Company B? Company C? Company D?

4. In the space below, describe your mathematical thinking.

Resource card 1

What lines define each quadrant?

Resource card 1

What lines define each quadrant?

Resource card 2

How is each quadrant divided?

Resource card 2

How is each quadrant divided?

Extension 1:
Company B is thinking about selling their lot in the northeast part of the city. If Company C buys this lot, will they now have more land than Company D? Prove with calculations and a written explanation.

Extension 2:
The lots in the northwest quadrant sell for $20,000 each. Lots in the southeast quadrant sell for $50,000 each. Lots in the southwest quadrant sell for $27,000 each. If Company B wants to buy land from Company C, getting the most land for the price, should they buy the one lot in the southeast corner or the two lots in the northwest corner? Explain your reasoning with both calculations and words.