STARTER Comment on the relationship between the

A VOLUNTEER TO PRACTISE THEIR TEACHING area of the triangle and the area of the
OF THIS EXAMPLE AND INCORPORATING THE rhombus below. Justify your answer.
PROFICIENCIES

COMMENT ON / DISCUSS
Make explicit reference to and expand upon the
information provided.

JUSTIFY
Provide mathematical evidence and clear reasoning
for an answer, whether it be worded, numerical or
algebraic. If used with “whether”, then students need
to decide on a result with supporting reasoning.
 Measurement
& Geometry:
Dimension, Size & Week 5 2024

Shape
Dion Alfonsi
ECU

MSE2101: Teaching Lower Secondary Mathematics

MSE6711: Mathematics Education Foundations
[email protected]
Session Objectives

5.1 - LECTURE 5.2 - IN THE CLASSROOM 5.3 - PROFESSIONAL

WORKSHOP PRACTICE WORKSHOP
Distinguish between the
Examine the “constructivist” Experiment with different
ideas of dimension, size and
philosophy as a student- strategies for giving students
shape in the context of the
centred learning philosophy immediate, on-the-spot
Measurement & Geometry
and how it could play a role in feedback.
strand from Years 7 – 10.
the Mathematics classroom.
 THE SUBTLE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN

5.1 LECTURE DIMENSION, SIZE & SHAPE

Teaching
HIGHLIGHTING DIMENSION, SIZE &
students to
SHAPE IN EXAMPLES IN THE
work with YEARS 7 – 10 CURRICULUM
dimension, size
PEDAGOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS
and shape
CONCEPTUAL DISTINCTIONS

DIMENSION SIZE SHAPE

A defining directional The quantity associated to the The geometric form of an
feature or space, e.g., measurement in a particular object within a dimensional
● One-dimensional dimension. space, defined by an outline
● Two-dimensional ● One-dimensional length
or boundaries.
● Two-dimensional area
● Three-dimensional OTHER TERMS:
We define our dimensions as having
● Three-dimensional volume ● Figure
90-degrees difference between them! ● Solid

“DIMENSIONS”

The specific measurements

(size) of an object (shape) in
each direction for which it
exists (dimension).

5
EXAMPLE 1
Year 7 Measurement & Geometry
Establish the formulas for areas of
rectangles, triangles and parallelograms,
and use these in problem-solving
(ACMMG159)
• building on the understanding of the area
of rectangles to develop formulas for the
area of triangles
• establishing that the area of a triangle is
half the area of an appropriate rectangle
• using area formulas for rectangles and
triangles to solve problems involving areas
of surfaces

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
EXAMPLE 2
Year 7 Measurement & Geometry
Calculate volumes of rectangular prisms
(ACMMG160)
• investigating volumes of cubes and
rectangular prisms and establishing
and using the formula V = l × b × h
• understanding and using cubic units
when interpreting and finding volumes
of cubes and rectangular prisms

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
 Draw each of the three views of the following solid.

EXAMPLE 3
Year 7 Measurement & Geometry
Draw different views of prisms and solids
formed from combinations of prisms
(ACMMG161)
• using aerial views of buildings and other
3-D structures to visualise the structure
of the building or prism

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
EXAMPLE 4
Year 8 Measurement & Geometry
Choose appropriate units of
measurement for area and volume and
convert from one unit to another
(ACMMG195)
• choosing units for area including mm2, cm2,
m2, hectares, km2, and units for volume
including mm3, cm3, m3
• recognising that the conversion factors for
area units are the squares of those for the
corresponding linear units
• recognising that the conversion factors for
volume units are the cubes of those for the
corresponding linear units

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
 Calculate the area of the following parallelogram.

EXAMPLE 5
Year 8 Measurement & Geometry
Find perimeters and areas of
parallelograms, trapeziums, rhombuses
and kites (ACMMG196)
• establishing and using formulas for areas
such as trapeziums, rhombuses and kites

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
EXAMPLE 6
Year 8 Measurement & Geometry
Investigate the relationship between
features of circles such as circumference,
area, radius and diameter. Use formulas
to solve problems involving circumference
and area (ACMMG197)
• investigating the circumference and area of
circles with materials or by measuring, to
establish an understanding of formulas
• investigating the area of circles using a
square grid or by rearranging a circle divided
into sectors

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
EXAMPLE 7
Year 8 Measurement & Geometry
Develop formulas for volumes of
rectangular and triangular prisms and
prisms in general. Use formulas to solve
problems involving volume (ACMMG198)
• investigating the relationship between
volumes of rectangular and triangular
prisms

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
 (a) Calculate the area of the following composite shape.

EXAMPLE 8
Year 9 Measurement & Geometry
Calculate areas of composite shapes
(ACMMG216)
• understanding that partitioning
composite shapes into rectangles and
triangles is a strategy for solving
problems involving area

(b) Justify whether it is possible to calculate the perimeter.

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
EXAMPLE 9
Year 9 Measurement & Geometry
Calculate the surface area and volume of
cylinders and solve related problems
(ACMMG217)
• analysing nets of cylinders to establish
formulas for surface area
• connecting the volume and capacity of
a cylinder to solve authentic problems

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
 (a)

EXAMPLE 10
Year 9 Measurement & Geometry
Solve problems involving the surface area
and volume of right prisms (ACMMG218)
• solving practical problems involving
surface area and volume of right prisms

(b) Justify whether it is possible to calculate the surface

area.

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
EXAMPLE 11
Year 10 Measurement & Geometry
Solve problems involving surface area
and volume for a range of prisms,
cylinders and composite solids
(ACMMG242)
• investigating and determining the
volumes and surface areas of
composite solids by considering the
individual solids from which they are
constructed

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
 Determine whether or not there is sufficient information to
calculate the volume and surface area of the following

EXAMPLE 12
composite solid.

Year 10A Measurement & Geometry

Solve problems involving surface area
and volume of right pyramids, right cones,
spheres and related composite solids
(ACMMG271)
• using formulas to solve problems
• using authentic situations to apply
knowledge and understanding of
surface area and volume

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
EXAMPLE 13
Year 10A Measurement & Geometry
Solve problems involving surface area
and volume of right pyramids, right cones,
spheres and related composite solids
(ACMMG271)
• using formulas to solve problems
• using authentic situations to apply
knowledge and understanding of
surface area and volume

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
EXAMPLE 14
Year 10A Measurement & Geometry
Solve problems involving surface area
and volume of right pyramids, right cones,
spheres and related composite solids
(ACMMG271)
• using formulas to solve problems
• using authentic situations to apply
knowledge and understanding of
surface area and volume

Dimension Size Shape

Pedagogical Consideration
Be conscious of the language you
are using to talk about dimension,
size and shape – the incorrect use
of language in measurement and
geometry is where many
misconceptions may arise.

20
5.2 FEATURES OF A CONSTRUCTIVIST
WORKSHOP MATHEMATICS CLASSROOM

Constructivism
& Student- AN ACTIVITY THAT PROMOTES A
Centred CONSTRUCTIVIST CLASSROOM
Learning
CONSTRUCTIVISM PHILOSOPHY
1. STUDENT-CENTRED: The role of the learner in building their own
understanding.

2. EXPERIENTIAL: Personal construction of meaning and knowledge through

experience, based on prior knowledge and experience.

3. ACTIVE LEARNING: Active engagement with the world and real-world

contexts.

4. KNOWLEDGE: Knowledge is socially constructed, but still personal, as each

learning activity may result in different learning by each student, as their
subjective interpretations differ.

5. MENTAL MODELS: Learning exists in the mind and can be continually

updated with new experiences.

Cognitive development stems from social interactions from guided learning

within the zone of proximal development (ZPD) as children and their partners
co-construct knowledge.
- Vygotsky (1978)
 CONTINUUM OF CONSTRUCTIVISM
SOCIAL COGNITIVE RADICAL

Social interactions and Mental processes (attention, Subjective experiences and

Knowledge collaboration perception, and memory) interactions with the world

Active participant in the Active problem-solver who Sole constructor of

Learner construction of knowledge constructs knowledge knowledge and meaning

Encourages the learner to

Facilitates learning by Provides information and
Teacher providing opportunities resources
question and reflect on their
experiences

A social process that involves An individual and subjective

An individual process that
Learning collaboration, negotiation,
involves mental processes
process involving one’s
and reflection experiences

Socially constructed and Subjective and constantly

Objective and exists
Reality subjective, and there is no
independently of the learner
evolving, and there is no one
one objective truth. objective truth
A CONSTRUCTIVIST CLASSROOM
ROLE OF THE TEACHER:
• Encourage students to think for themselves.
• Believe that students are capable of thinking and coming up with their own
ideas.
• Create a collaborative problem-solving environment.
• A facilitator rather than an instructor.

LEARNING ENVIRONMENT:
• Student-centred, where student questions and interests are valued.
• Interactive, where teachers and students have a dialogue.
• Knowledge is shared between teachers and students.
• Authority is shared between teachers and students.
OTHER PEDAGOGICAL
CONSIDERATIONS OF A
CONSTRUCTIVIST CLASSROOM

Multiple perspectives and Authentic tasks in realistic

Multimodal representations
alternative solutions contexts

Manipulatives and physical

Small group interaction Real, raw, primary data
material

Reflection, metacognition
Student elaborations and
and cognitive command Inquiry and open-endedness
explanations
words
YOUR TASK (25 mins)
You have been given a sample Task Sheet for an in-class activity.

In small groups, analyse the task by:

q spending 10-15 minutes working on the task.
q identifying the features of the task that lend themselves to a
constructivist classroom.

Would you use this task? If so, with who? How?

“Through multiple opportunities to
explore and compare concepts and
clarify their meaning, learners
gradually construct deeper
understanding of the concepts and
the language used to describe
them.” (Quinnell, 2020)

27
 IMMEDIATE CORRECTIVE FEEDBACK

5.3
WORKSHOP
Giving On-the- MODELLING FEEDBACK

Spot Feedback
TWO USEFUL TYPES OF IMMEDIATE
CORRECTIVE FEEDBACK
1. EXPLICIT CORRECTION: Provide a clear, non-judgemental, explicit feedback
statement to correct their misunderstanding. It needs to prioritise student safety
and accountability.

E.g., “Remember, when you are calculating area, you need to use square units.”

2. IMPLICIT CORRECTION USING REFORMULATION & RECASTING: Reform a question and

recast it to the students in a way whereby they can arrive at the correct
understanding themselves.

E.g., ”When I am calculating the area of a 2D shape, what smaller shapes am I

imagining inside the 2D shape? And so, what does that mean for the units?”
29
MODELLING IMMEDIATE FEEDBACK
GROUP ACTIVITY
In groups of 3, nominate a Person A, B and C.

Context: A teacher is sitting beside a student

whilst they are working on the following
example:

“Calculate the surface area of the following

composite solid”
ROUND 1:
Modelling Immediate Feedback

PERSON A PERSON B PERSON C

Teacher Student Observer
ROUND 2:
Modelling Immediate Feedback

PERSON A PERSON B PERSON C

Observer Teacher Student
ROUND 3:
Modelling Immediate Feedback

PERSON A PERSON B PERSON C

Student Student Teacher
Additional Readings

Take-Home Task
Read the sequence of short nrich articles on spatial and geometric thinking:
• Development of Thinking: 5 – 18: https://nrich.maths.org/2483/index
• Development of Thinking: Space in Drawings: https://nrich.maths.org/2485/index
• Development of Thinking: The importance of instruction:
https://nrich.maths.org/2487

Design the rationale and task sheet for a 15 – 20 minute student-centred activity
that has the focus of either:
• USING DRAWING TO TEACH SPATIAL AND GEOMETRIC THINKING
• USING TANGRAMS TO TEACH SPATIAL AND GEOMETRIC THINKING