Encourage tinkering with ideas, relationships, connections. Set up situations where students have to find information not readily available in school texts. Provide opportunity for students to design open-ended explorations of the concept. Provide multiple options so students can plan a unique "proof" of learning.

Student Projects

Objective: To allow students to try a hands-on experiment using similarity

Students will conduct indirect measurement techniques using the shadow method, mirrors and hypsometers

Students will choose one of the following projects:
1. Group project. Research “golden rectangles”. Design and conduct a survey to determine if people really do prefer “golden rectangles” to rectangles which are not “golden”. Report on your findings.

2. Write a report on NASA’s uses of similarity.

3. Complete a scale drawing of the school grounds.

4. Report on fractals. Choose a fractal that utilizes “self-similarity”. Develop a part of the fractal during your presentation.

5. Using HyperStudio, write a story, with illustrations, that utilizes similarity as a main idea in the story.

Evaluation: Do the indirect measurements and projects demonstrate an understanding of similarity?