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.

Students write equations from teacher-read sentences.

Objective: To apply what has been learned about equality to word problems.

Activity: Working in cooperative groups, teacher reads a sentence aloud, such as, “There are seven more boys than girls in class today with a total entrollment of twenty-seven. How many boys are there?” Each student in the group composes an equation derived from the words. Group compares equations and agrees on correct form to be shared with rest of class. Groups receive points for correct answers. Groups are given six additional sentences to solve cooperatively.

Assessment: Ability to work together. Quality of completed sentence equations.