Building Geometric Understandings through Building Structures
Students--working in small groups, in pairs, and individually--will initiate and participate in Makerspace investigations of model structures aligning with NCTM Pre-K-2 Expectations-Geometry as well as the NYS Learning Standards-Geometry.Students will respond to and reflect on challenges as they explore and create models of simple structures. The STEAM mindsets of asking questions, imagining, planning, creating, improving, and persevering will provide opportunities for exposure, practice and application as students recognize, name, build, and compare two- and three-dimensional shapes. The collaborative nature of the process will create opportunities for sharing and practice of terms such as names of shapes, faces, and vertices. Learners will also benefit from hands-on practice with various materials and structures, helping to ensure transfer of concepts between abstract and concrete applications.