Teacher: Alisha Isable, Morgan Showalter, Kim Farley Dates: 7-20-
11
Unit Topic:/Title: Inequalities and the Real World Grade Level: 8th
Content Standard(s):
Maryland State Curriculum (1.B.2.a-c): Students will algebraically represent, model, analyze, and solve mathematical or real-world problems by writing and solving inequalities.
Brain Target #1
Emotional Connection:
1. Greet students at the door, with a smile and upbeat attitude and a password of the day (inequalities)
2. Have daily objective written on the board. It should be in the same spot every day.
3. Have pinch cards for students to share how they are feeling though out the class that are written as an inequality I am < ok, I am = ok, I am >ok
4 Conduct a brain storming session. Write the student’s answers on the board. (where you always right these types of answers) Ask the students what they know about inequalities. Allow for all possible definitions and time to explore meanings of social inequality. Positively reinforce all attempts to answer. Lead the conversation into the subject of math inequalities. Share the painting The Passion of Sacco and Vanzetti to further discuss the meaning of inequality.
5. Warm up activity: Using sentence strips, place a variety of phrases in other languages on the board. Use common phrases students should be familiar with (ex: hola, como estas, adios, uno..dos..tres, etc.). Have students translate (tell me what it means) the phrases. Then place popular symbols (peace sign, heart, etc.) on the board, ask students to translate the symbols. Finally, place mathematical symbols on the board. Have students translate these. Explain that Algebra - is like taking a statement and writing it in a different language. Instead of written words, this language uses numbers, symbols, and letters.
6. After the brain storming session and before introduce the concept map, write some of examples of algebraic inequalities on the board. Use this to assess prior knowledge and to give students a visual connection to the types of problems they are about to work with.
Show examples of simple inequalities, algebraic inequalities with a single variable, algebraic inequalities with multiple variables and number line examples that correspond to a simple inequality. Do this quickly. It is just a way to give the students a taste of what they will be doing. It will also provide a link with some of the new images they see around the room. (see BT2)
7. Introduce the concept map.
8. Create a point system that encourages participation and positive peer interaction and encouragement. The students will be allowed to score themselves along side of the t eacher’s daily scoring. The point system does not relate to the student’s grade in the class. Instead they will be able to use their points to obtain school related prizes such as writing materials, notebooks, interesting erasers, etc.
9.
Have the students act out basic inequalities. (BT4) A group of seven students is greater than a group of three students. A student will stand in the middle and bend to become a greater than or less than symbol. This will reduce stress by allowing the students to move around and by adding humor. Try to get everyone to participate.

Brain Target #2
Physical Environment:
1. Create a display of felt algebraic inequality equations. All of the parts can therefore be moved around. After the students are introduced to the lesson they will be able to rearrange the equations.
2. The environment will contain items that are natural, organic, and alive. This will help to alleviate the possible sterility of the preconceived idea of a math instruction environment. It will also help to reduce stress and promote a peaceful feeling (BT1) A fish-tank is a good idea. The students will be able to volunteer for the various jobs necessary to maintain the tank. Potted plants could also be used.
3. Create a reading area with a small library. The books should pertain to math but should also include literary classics and books students “should” read before they leave high school.
4. Create an area that contains extra-credit extension assignments. Students who are able to finish early can utilize these assignments.
5. Create an area where weekly points can be displayed from the system described in
(BT1).
6. Have an area on the wall that displays images and information about a famous mathematician. Change it often. Be sure to highlight the contributions of women, minorities, and contributions from various cultures and times in history. Also try to display someone who contributed to the particular topic being taught.
7. Display student work from the current unit.
8. Leave enough space for students to be able to act out inequality concepts. (BT1)
9. Use floor lamps to create a more interesting lighting environment.

Brain Target #3
Concept Map / Advanced Organizer:
Climbing the Inequalities Ladder
Learning Goals:
Students will demonstrate, through a variety of activities, their ability to write, solve, and apply algebraic inequalities to solve real-world problems.
Introductory “Big Picture” Activity/Assessment of Prior Knowledge
Activity #1: Students will create Pacman icons to use as greater and less than symbols.
These can be used as resources throughout the unit.
Activity #2: Provide students with the concept map above (no color). Explain the Unit to students using the concept map. Ask students what skill on the concept map did they demonstrate with the Translation Activity - BT 1
(answers may vary but students should recognize that they knew Inequality Symbols.)
Provide students with yellow and green colored pencils. Have students color green: the skills they are very comfortable with, yellow: the skills they know a little about leave blank: what they are not comfortable with or do not know at all.
Using a poster sized Concept Map, color those skills most of the class feels they have already mastered. Explain to students that they will be climbing the inequalities ladder.
The goal is to reach the top by mastering each subskill.
Instructional Objectives:
Writing Inequalities:
Students will demonstrate their understanding of inequality symbols.

Students will demonstrate their ability to translate verbal phrases into algebraic inequalities.
Students will demonstrate their ability to write inequalities for real-world problems.
Solve Inequalities:
Students will demonstrate their understanding of solutions for inequalities as infinite.
Students will demonstrate their ability to solve one step and two step inequalities.
Students will demonstrate their ability to solve real world problems by finding the unknown in an inequality.
Brain Target #4
Activities for Teaching Mastery of Declarative/Procedural Knowledge
1. Vocabulary
 illustrate new vocabulary on note cards
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 play memory with note cards create and label a process chart
 play team jeopardy multiple choice readiness quiz on the computer
2. Writing Inequalities
 using dry erase boards turn worksheet into “I have who has?”
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 play bingo with cards that have inequalities and teacher reads inequality statements.
in pairs, act out and try to guess the inequality
 Have students match the inequality with the solution
3. Solving Inequalities
 have students work in teacher groups where one student is the teacher and can either explain to their group how to write or solve an inequality or they can ask the group to explain how to write or solve an inequality while they record what is being said on a dry erase board.
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 solve an inequality using a balance draw a solution using a balance walk around the room solving inequalities and matching the answer with a letter that will spell out the answer to a riddle

Brain Target #5
Activities for Extension and Application of Knowledge
!. Activity 1 = investigation= Is it cheaper to buy or cook dinner every night for a family of
4?
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Choose a dinner from a menu and determine the cost for a family of 4.
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Find a recipe for the same dinner
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Create a shopping list
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Go to the store and price the items
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Create an inequality comparing the home made dinner to the restaurant dinner.
o total cost of Groceries (<,>,= ) total cost of 4 dinners
2, Activity 2 = Planning a trip on a budget - $200
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Students choose a place they would realistically like to visit.
Students research the location to complete a spread sheet including o o o o travel expenses (plane, train, rental car, gas) lodging expenses food expenses (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack) include at least 1 activity
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Complete the inequality : travel + lodging + food + activity(s) > or = $200
Based on research and the inequality, students assign an amount of money for each event category.
Students will write a word equations under each event category showing how the money will be dispersed (miles / miles per gallon = # of gallons x cost per gallon less than or equal to _______ dollars.
Add numeric values to word inequalities in order to solve to make sure you come in under budget.
Discussion questions o o o o
What were some problems you came across when doing this activity?
How did you solve them?
What was helpful throughout this activity.
What would have been more helpful?
Extension questions o What would you do differently if you had $400? or What would your ideal o budget be?
How was this activity helpful? Can you think of other times you might need to create a budget?

Brain Target #6
Evaluating Learning
1. Participation points for students engaged in whole-class activities.
2. After each day, students complete journal activity in which they reflect on any “new learning.” Students may explain what they learned using any form:paragraph, example with labels, a rap, poem, pictures, steps, etc.
3. After sufficient practice and prior to moving on to new skill, students will receive an exit slip for each instructional objective in order to evaluate student mastery. These exit slips will have 4-5 problems and will be given point for each correct answer.
4. Use exit slips in determining class pairs/groups for practice activities.
5. Each day, take five minutes to review previous day’s exit slip. Tell the correct answers and highlight any errors that were consistently made by students.
6. A week long homework assignment will be given that asks students to find the solution to a real-world problem involving inequalities.
7. Rubric will be used to score Road Trip Activity. Elements on which students will be scored include Accurate Prices for each category, Values make Inequality True
8. Unit Assessment will be given that covers all instructional objectives