Transformations and Proving Congruency

A personally designed unit implemented at High Tech High

Melanie Hasty Brian Lawler

Table of contents
Page 1.Cover Letter Page 2.Lesson Script Observing Congruency Page 3-4...Lesson Script Translations Page 5.....Student Discourse Observation Tool Observing Congruency Page 6.....Student Discourse Observation Tool Translations Page 7.Reflections on Lesson Observations Congruency Page 8.Reflections on Lesson Observations Translations Page 9-10..Revised Lesson Script Observing Congruency and Reflection Page 11-13..Revised Lesson Script Translations and Reflection

Cover Letter: The development of this part of the Transformations and Proving Congruency Unit served provided great insight into the Discovery Based Learning style that is developed at High Tech High. Working with Andrew Vernon as a Cooperating teacher was a great experience. Together we derived our intentions for the development of the unit. We defined our Mathematical content goals, practices and overall learning goals. The first lesson of the unit included using a Memory-board of geometric figures. This Memory-board contains sixteen square units. Each unit is covered by a piece of paper. Under the piece of paper are geometric objects. Only four of the geometric objects have some kind of a matching pair. Groups of four will work in rotation. Upon their turn, each student will uncover two geometric objects. This will allow everyone to see the object that has been uncovered. The goal is for the students to find as many congruent matching pairs as possible. After the class has had some time to discover the congruent matching pairs, the teacher will solicit a discussion. The discussion will be to distinguish how they were able to recognize that objects were similar or congruent. The second lesson of the unit included a discussion about congruent figures. This discussion was meant to formalize students findings from the memory board. First students looked at two congruent squares, rectangles, and triangles. The goal was for students to formally classify the components of congruent objects. Then, students looked at two congruent arbitrary objects. The goal was for students to discuss the transformation needed to translate an object. This translation requires students understand the idea of rigid motion on a plane. Once movements have been restricted to a plane, the teacher proposes a formal definition of a translation. The second lesson included working with a translations worksheet, Going-for-a-Glide .This worksheet asked students to name objects before and after a translation. Upon naming translated geometric objects, students began to develop the relationships that existed between two congruent objects. Students developed rules to move objects from one place to another. The implementations of the lessons went well. My Cooperating teacher made minor adjustments to each of the lesson plan. After the first lesson, we did decided that the memory board might be less fragile if the memory objects were on the back of cards opposed to tapped to a poster. For the second lesson plan, my Cooperating teacher extended my PowerPoint to include a more formal introduction to translations. These slides solicited more discussion. He edited the worksheet I had designed to condense the information it addressed. The edits placed many objects on one plane, opposed to separate planes with one object. This adjustment optimized our use of the students time and energy. In addition, my Cooperating teacher adjusted how to name objects before and after a movement. Traditionally, objects are defined clockwise by assigning a letter to each vertex. This worksheet only required students name objects once by their center or a vertex. This worksheet formalized the direction an object moves after a translation, using vector notation. Lastly, my Cooperating teacher made magnitude an extension for students who completed the worksheet before the end of class.

Observing Congruency Lesson Script Learning Goals Mathematical Materials Memory Boards PowerPoint Slide

Other

1. Represent transformations in the plane using, e.g., transparencies and geometry software; describe transformations as functions that take points in the plane as inputs and give other points as outputs. Compare transformations that preserve distance and angle to those that do not (e.g., translation versus horizontal stretch). 2. Develop definitions of rotations, reflections, and translations in terms of angles, circles, perpendicular lines, parallel lines, and line segments. Mathematical Practices 1. Constructing viable arguments and critiquing the reasoning of others 2. Using Appropriate Tools Strategically Learning Goals(Beyond Mathematics) 1. Working with others
Teacher Action Teacher will play Look-A-Like video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jY563iIyDZ0 Teacher walks around room and observes student conversations. Teacher participates in conversations correcting student misconceptions. If students are struggling to identify congruent figures, teacher will hand out measuring tools(ruler, protractor, ect.) for students to analysis. Write two categories on the board; congruent and similar. Have students compare the two by writing a clear definition. Write congruent on the board in a way that allows students to contribute elements that make objects congruent. Teacher provides exit ticket question and shows students a PowerPoint slide.

Prior to Class

Background Experience 1. Knowledge of Shapes 2. Constructions

1.

Time 10 mins 20 mins

2.

Student Thinking Students begin to think about how they recognize similarity around them in their day to day lives. As students begin to work with memory puzzle, they discuss in groups how they know objects or are not alike.

Why Im doing what Im doing This video will solicit a discussion about how people recognize similarity daily. Talking with the students will allow the teacher to observe student development and tendencies.

3.

10 mins

Ask students the question: How do you know when two objects are similar or congruent? Ask students to define the elements that make objects congruent. What is the ball in this picture representing?

4.

10 mins 5 mins

5.

To get students to recognize that objects can be similar, but not congruent. This will allow students to distinguish the difference between the two vocabulary words. To get students to think about the elements that makes up congruent objects. This exit ticket will provide a starting place for the next days lessons.

Translations Lesson Script Learning Goals Mathematical

Other

1. Represent transformations in the plane using, e.g., transparencies and geometry software; describe transformations as functions that take points in the plane as inputs and give other points as outputs. Compare transformations that preserve distance and angle to those that do not (e.g., translation versus horizontal stretch). 2. Develop definitions of rotations, reflections, and translations in terms of angles, circles, perpendicular lines, parallel lines, and line segments. Mathematical Practices 3. Constructing viable arguments and critiquing the reasoning of others 4. Using Appropriate Tools Strategically Learning Goals(Beyond Mathematics) 2. Research 3. Working with others

Materials PowerPoint Slide

Prior to Class

Background Experience 3. Knowledge of Shapes 4. Constructions

Translations Time 5 mins Student Thinking What is the ball representing? Teacher Action Teacher shows the PowerPoint Slide from the day before to remind students where we left off during the previous day. Teacher proposes the idea that if a figure is represented twice and seems the same; we must determine if the two figures are congruent. To determine if figures are congruent the teacher can refer to the agreed up elements from the day before. Teacher facilitates discussion. Why Im doing what Im doing This is to develop students idea that multiple figures can represent one figure and in this representation each of the figures must be congruent. Students will remember the tools/equations needed to determine if two figures are congruent.

1.

2.

5 mins

How do we know the two figures are congruent?

3.

10 mins

4.

20 mins

5.

6.

10 mins

What are the equations to determine the elements of squares, rectangles, triangles, circles and other geometric figures? If the ball is the represented by congruent circles before and after, what rule can we write to represent the rule and its movement. What if I am given a rule, can I determine where an object will be after a translation? How can I formally name a figure before and after a translation?

This is to formalize how to determine if objects are congruent.

Teacher formally defines a Translation and passes out a worksheet for students to formalize their thinking. Teacher proposes a worksheet that will require movement rules for objects, given the starting place of the object. Teacher proposes discussion with the class as a whole.

This is to formalize the relationship between figures.

To develop students abilities and thinking about translations. This will touch on the relationship of a figure before and after a translation. In naming the vertices, students will develop the thinking that the vertices must correspond to know a figure is congruent after a transformation. Students need to notice that not only does a figure move in a certain direction, but it moves to a particular magnitude.

7.

10 mins

Does the object have to move in horizontal and vertical directions only?

Teacher discusses with students: How can we determine how far an object is before and after a translation?

Student Discourse Observation Tool Observing Congruency

Student discourse
e.g., verbatim quotes, sketches, paraphrasings

What elicited this discourse

e.g., student interactions, instructional moves

Curiosities and conjectures

related to student thinking & implications for instruction

Students state they found many of the faces to look alike. They defined these features as similarities. They defined these similarities as symmetry between the two faces, colors, tones, shapes, gesturesect. Students defined the similarities as reflections of one another.

Teacher asked what students found interesting about the two photos on each slide.

Were the two photos actually of the same person?

Teacher asked students if there was anyone they knew who looked exactly like them.

Were the students able to think about the exact images as more than just reflections? What about taking a picture and pasting it next to their face or rotated near their face? Were students able to define what makes figures match each other? Students needed measuring tools. Measurements are a key component to identifying figures as congruent. What components define objects as congruent to one another? Do students see that objects are either congruent or similar, or do they see that they can be both or neither? Students had a tendency to focus on motion terms from physics, opposed to the terms used throughout the lesson. Did students understand the importance of the introduced terms?

Students defined many figures as congruent figures. Students were not able to settle on a decision if certain figures were matching. These figures are congruent, they have the same number of sides of which are the same length. Objects are either congruent or they are similar.

Teacher told students to identify matching figures.

Students decided matching meant congruent.

Teacher asked students to defend which objects were in fact congruent.

Teacher asks students to define similar and congruent as two separate terms.

Students define a ball in motion using the geometric terms for the day.

Teacher directs students toward using the geometric terms for the day.

Student Discourse Observation Tool Translations

Student discourse
e.g., verbatim quotes, sketches, paraphrasings

What elicited this discourse

e.g., student interactions, instructional moves

Curiosities and conjectures

related to student thinking & implications for instruction

Students discuss with the teacher the image represented on the exit ticket from the previous days class session. Students defend their definition of congruent figures.

Teacher class solicits discussion and guides students toward using geometric terms.

Do students understand that the image represents multiple congruent objects.

Teacher proposes a set of slides where students are asked to determine, How do we know figures are congruent?

Students discussed how congruent images can be an object that has been slid some distance, rotated, and reflected. In these transformations, students believe the object and its image are congruent. On a plane, in how many directions can object move? On a plane, how can we summarize how an object has moved? If we only know the direction an object moves, we still need the distance the object moved.

Students discuss how the angles and segments are congruent.

Teacher proposes the idea of a rigid motion.

Students talk about vertical, horizontal and diagonal direction.

Teacher proposes formal syntax to define the directions one object must move to transform to its image. Teacher discusses the familiarities between a diagonal distance and the distance formula.

Vertical and horizontal distances require you to count the units from a vertex to its image. Diagonal distances require more.

Where does the distance formula come from? Can we use the Pythagorean Theorem?

Reflection on Lesson Observing Congruency

Inferences, conjectures, and curiosities 1. Mathematical ideas students understand... Students understand congruency and similarity as ways to define a relationship between one object and another. Evidence Students defined these terms on their own papers before offering an agreed upon definition they have made with their peers groups at their table.

Conjectures and curiosities... Do students know how to identify corresponding parts, angles and segments? 2. Mathematical ideas students are struggling with... Students seemed to struggle with recognizing the difference between congruent figures and similar figures.

The definition students proposed were hardly different from one another. The only difference they proposed between the two was incorporating exact into the definition of congruency.

Conjectures and curiosities Do students understand the difference between congruency and similarities? 3. Ways the lesson design affected the character/quality of cognitive demand, mathematical discourse, trends in students mathematical thinking, and/or strategies used by students... Students needed to defend their conjectures about congruent objects. Students needed to defend their definitions of congruency and similarity. 4. Lesson adaptations and/or next steps... The Memory boards could be made as memory cards. Memory cards would not be as fragile as the Memory boards were. The Exit ticket slide needs to be adjusted to read Using the Geometric terms covered today: What is the ball in this picture representing?

Students worked together to determine pairs of congruent objects, the definition of congruency and the definition of similarity.

Students responded to this exit ticket using Physics terms because they are all enrolled in Physics. The image used is similar in structure to the images used in Physics.

Reflection on Lesson Translations Inferences, conjectures, and curiosities 1. Mathematical ideas students understand... Students understand congruency and similarity as ways to define a relationship between one object and another. Evidence Students participate in discussion as they reflect upon the image shown at the end of the previous class session. Students follow the instructions on Going-fora-Glide to determine the direction an object moves.

Students understand how to represent the direction an object moves.

Conjectures and curiosities... Do students know that objects represents before and after a movement are congruent objects? 2. Mathematical ideas students are struggling with... Students seemed to struggle with recognizing corresponding parts between two objects.

Conjectures and curiosities Do students understand that an object and its image have corresponding parts? 3. Ways the lesson design affected the character/quality of cognitive demand, mathematical discourse, trends in students mathematical thinking, and/or strategies used by students... Students needed to defend their conjectures about congruent objects. Students needed to defend the corresponding parts of their objects. 4. Lesson adaptations and/or next steps... For students who were able to accomplish the tasks on Going-for-a-Glide the teacher asked them to determine the distance between the two objects.

Students continued to follow the instructions on Going-for-a-Glide that were complimented by the teachers instruction. Students identified an object by defining a letter to a vertex. Students then identified the objects image by defining the vertex as the prime of the original vertex. Students worked together to determine the corresponding parts of congruent objects.

Students worked together to determine the distance between two objects. They determined vertical distances, horizontal distances and diagonal distances.

Revised Lesson Script Observing Congruency and Reflection

Lesson Script Learning Goals Mathematical

Other

1. Represent transformations in the plane using, e.g., transparencies and geometry software; describe transformations as functions that take points in the plane as inputs and give other points as outputs. Compare transformations that preserve distance and angle to those that do not (e.g., translation versus horizontal stretch). 2. Develop definitions of rotations, reflections, and translations in terms of angles, circles, perpendicular lines, parallel lines, and line segments. Mathematical Practices 5. Constructing viable arguments and critiquing the reasoning of others 6. Using Appropriate Tools Strategically Learning Goals(Beyond Mathematics) 4. Working with others

Materials Memory Boards PowerPoint Slide

Prior to Class

Background Experience 5. Knowledge of Shapes 6. Constructions

Revised Lesson Script Observing Congruency and Reflection

1. Time 10 mins 20 5 mins Student Thinking Students begin to think about how they recognize similarity around them in their day to day lives. As students begin to work with memory puzzle, they Students discuss in groups how they know faces or are not alike. Teacher Action Teacher will play Look-A-Like video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jY563iIyDZ0 Teacher walks around room and observes student conversations. Teacher participates in conversations correcting student misconceptions. If students are struggling to identify congruent figures, teacher will hand out measuring tools(ruler, protractor, ect.) for students to analysis. Write similar characteristics on the board; congruent and similar. Have students compare the two by writing a clear definition. Why Im doing what Im doing This video will solicit a discussion about how people recognize similarity daily. Talking with the students will allow the teacher to observe student development and tendencies.

2.

3.

10 mins

Ask students the question: How do you know when two faces are similar or congruent?

3.

10 5 mins

How do these ideas apply to geometry?

Teacher administers memory board and explains to students the goal is to find matching objects.

3.

10 mins

Ask students the question: How do you know when two objects are similar or congruent? Ask students to define the elements that make objects congruent.

Write two categories on the board; congruent and similar. Have students compare the two by writing a clear definition. Write congruent the two vocabulary words on the board in a way that allows students to contribute elements that make objects congruent. Teacher provides exit ticket question and shows students a PowerPoint slide.

4.

10 5 mins

To get students to recognize that faces can be similar, but not the same. This will allow students to distinguish the difference between similar and the same. the two vocabulary words. To get students to recognize that objects are can be similar, but not congruent. This will allow students to distinguish the difference between the two vocabulary words. To get students to recognize that objects can be similar, but not congruent. This will allow students to distinguish the difference between the two vocabulary words. To get students to think about the elements that makes up congruent objects. This exit ticket will provide a starting place for the next days lessons.

5.

5 mins

What is the ball in this picture representing using geometric terms?

Reflection: This lesson seemed to have gone well for the most part. My Cooperating teacher made very few adjustments to the lesson plan. We did decide that the memory board might be less fragile if the memory objects were on the back of cards opposed to tapped to a poster. I think that if I were to implement this lesson plan in the future, I would write some of the questions on a PowerPoint slide to formalize the discussion.

Revised Lesson Script Translations

Lesson Script Learning Goals Mathematical

Other

1. Represent transformations in the plane using, e.g., transparencies and geometry software; describe transformations as functions that take points in the plane as inputs and give other points as outputs. Compare transformations that preserve distance and angle to those that do not (e.g., translation versus horizontal stretch). 2. Develop definitions of rotations, reflections, and translations in terms of angles, circles, perpendicular lines, parallel lines, and line segments. Mathematical Practices 7. Constructing viable arguments and critiquing the reasoning of others 8. Using Appropriate Tools Strategically Learning Goals(Beyond Mathematics) 5. Research 6. Working with others

Materials PowerPoint Slide

Prior to Class

Background Experience 7. Knowledge of Shapes 8. Constructions

Revised Lesson Script Translations

1. Time 5 mins Student Thinking What is the ball representing using geometric terms? Teacher Action Teacher shows the PowerPoint Slide from the day before to remind students where we left off during the previous day. Teacher proposes the idea that if a figure is represented twice and seems the same; we must determine if the two figures are congruent. To determine if figures are congruent the teacher can refer to some the agreed up elements from the day before. Teacher defines translations on a plane(rigid motion). Why Im doing what Im doing This is to develop students idea that multiple figures can represent one figure and in this representation each of the figures must be congruent. Students will remember the tools/equations define the elements needed to determine if two figures are congruent.

2.

5 10 mins

How do we know the two figures are congruent? If we know two figures are squares, how do we know they are congruent? If we know two figures are rectangles, how do we know they are congruent? If we know two figures are triangles, how do we know they are congruent? If the figures have an arbitrary shape, how do we know if they are congruent? What are the equations to determine the elements of squares, rectangles, triangles, circles and other geometric figures? If the ball is the represented by congruent circles before and after, what rule can we write to represent the rule and its movement. What if I am given a rule, can I determine where an object will be after a translation? On a plane, in how many directions can object move? On a plane, how can we summarize how an object has moved? How can I formally name a figure before and after a translation?

3.

10 mins

Teacher facilitates discussion.

This is to formalize how to determine if objects are congruent.

4.

20 mins

Teacher formally defines a Translation and passes out a worksheet for students to formalize their thinking. Teacher proposes a Translations worksheet that will require movement rules for objects students to define an object before and after a translation, given the starting place of the object.

This is to formalize the relationship between figures.

4.

5 mins

To develop students abilities and thinking about translations.

5.

10 mins

Teacher proposes discussion with the class as a whole.

This will touch on the relationship of a figure before and after a translation. In naming an object by a vertex, the vertices, students will develop the thinking that the vertices must correspond to know a figure

6.

10 mins

7.

10 mins

Does the object have to move in horizontal and vertical directions only? Some units to the left (or -x) Some units to the right (or x) Some units down (or -x) Some units up (or x) How far did the object move?

Teacher discusses shorthand notation with students and passes out Going-for-a-glide.

is congruent after a transformation. Students need to notice that not only does a figure move in a certain direction, but it moves in a specific direction to a particular magnitude.

Teacher discusses: How can we determine how far an object is before and after a translation?

Students need to notice that not only does a figure move in a certain direction, but it moves a specific magnitude.

Reflection: I enjoyed watching this lesson plan implemented. My Cooperating teacher made minor adjustments to this lesson. He extended my PowerPoint to include a more formal introduction to translations. These slides solicited more discussion. Also, he designed a worksheet that condensed the worksheet I had designed in the first place. The worksheet he designed comprised of many objects on one plane, opposed to many planes with one object. This adjustment optimized our use of the students time. My Cooperating teacher also adjusted how to name object s before and after a movement. Traditionally, objects are defined clockwise by assigning a letter to each vertex. This worksheet only required students name objects by their center or a vertex. This worksheet formalized the direction an object moves after a translation, using vector notation. Lastly, my teacher made magnitude an extension for students who completed the worksheet before the end of class.