The lesson begins with having students talk about and discuss skyscrapers in order to get them engaged and thinking about the attribute of height. They then listen to a book that introduces the concept of height and the appropriate mathematical terminology. Material is modeled for students so they can perform the tasks on their own and understand the lesson expectations.
“Today we are going to be working with blocks to build towers. How many of you have ever seen a skyscraper?” Look to see hands and acknowledge students. “Are all skyscrapers alike? No, some are different. What are some ways that we can compare skyscrapers?” Students may come up with suggestions such as color, shape, and size/height. “That’s right! Those are some great answers! Today, we are going to compare towers by height.”
Explain to students that you are going to be comparing the heights of different towers in class.
“Raise your hand if you like to build towers. Right now I am going to show you what you will be doing in your groups.”
Begin by modeling. Have in front of you a stack of Tower cards (M-K-6-2_Tower Cards.docx), the Tall Tower index cards (M-K-6-2_Tall Tower Index Cards.docx), and some building blocks. Have students circle around you so that everyone can see.
“We are going to use these blocks to build towers of different heights.” Pick two Tower cards from the pile and build the towers that are represented on the cards. Stand one tower on the index card labeled A and the second tower on the index card labeled B. “How can we compare the heights of these two towers?” The students’ responses should be geared toward the identity of each tower being a different number of blocks. A student might say, “Tower A is three blocks tall and Tower B is five blocks tall.”
Model several examples for the class, including asking questions about how many more blocks or how many fewer blocks certain towers have. When students seem comfortable with the concept, call on individuals to demonstrate building towers. Once the towers are built, have the class make comparative statements about which tower is taller/shorter or tallest/shortest.
Tower Building Activity
Before they begin the activity, model for students how to complete their Tall Tower Observation sheets. Instructions are provided below.
Setup: Place at each table or station a face-down stack of Tower cards (M-K-6-2_Tower Cards.docx), the Tall Tower index cards (M-K-6-2_Tall Tower Index Cards.docx), enough building blocks for small groups to use (approximately 15, depending on group size), and one copy of the Tall Tower Observation sheet (M-K-6-2_Tall Tower Observation.docx) for each student. Provide cutout squares for students to glue on their Tall Tower Observation page.
Activity: Divide students into groups of three. The first student should pick up two Tower cards from the stack on the table, and everyone in the group should work together to build the towers, placing them on the tower A and tower B index cards. Students should then use the squares to show the towers on their Tall Tower Observation sheets. Once their towers are glued down, students should record how many blocks tall their towers are. Under that section, they are asked a question: “Which tower is taller?” Students should write either tower A or tower B on the line.
Guide students to keep them focused and to make sure they understand the information. Groups will work on building towers for about 15 minutes. As you walk around to various groups, ask students questions such as:
- “What size towers are you building?”
- “Which tower is tallest/shortest or has the greatest/least height?”
- “How do you know?”
- “How many more/fewer blocks does this tower have than the other?”
Once students are finished completing their observation sheets, call them back together. Review with students what they were just working on by giving them an example to try out on their own. Say, “Okay, I have a question for you. I have a tower that is five blocks tall. Can you please build a tower that is shorter than five blocks?” Have students break apart their previous towers and individually build a tower that is shorter than five blocks. Once they have built their towers, have students explain whether their tower is actually shorter than five blocks and how they know. Repeat this review activity again by saying, “I have a tower that is three blocks tall. Can you please build a tower that is taller than three blocks?” Be aware that some students may try to build really tall towers. If students are trying to build really tall towers, remind them they still need to share and to only use the blocks that they have at their tables. This activity will recap the Tower-Building activity and will help you determine if students understand key vocabulary words and the main idea of the lesson, or if anything should be retaught.
Call students back together as a class. It is important to reflect on the lesson and revisit the material that was taught to reinforce the information. Have a couple groups volunteer to show their towers on their observation sheets and to explain their findings. Guide them in using the correct vocabulary, such as “taller than,” “shorter than,” etc.
Following group discussion, have students return to their seats and distribute the Lesson 2 Comparison Assessment (M-K-6-2_Lesson 2 Comparison Assessment and KEY.docx). Go over the example on the assessment as a class, and then talk through the rest of the assessment with students as they are completing it.
Refresh in students’ minds why they are learning these concepts. We use height in our everyday lives and can compare the heights of objects such as crayons, doorways, trees, buildings, and people.
Extension:
Use the activities and strategies listed below to meet the needs of your students during the year.
- Routine: There are several routines that can be established in the classroom to reinforce the concept of height.
1. For a morning activity, have students organize different objects in the classroom. Children love to volunteer and would be more than willing to help out to determine the correct outcome. Some different objects that could be used for this routine are toys, writing utensils, or students.
2. During snack time, challenge students to build different-sized towers with their snacks on their napkins and compare them. This can be done with crackers, raisins, popcorn, cookies, or any other snack.
3. Measure and record students’ heights over the course of the year. Perhaps mark heights on the inside of closet doors with pieces of masking tape for students to see. Lead students in conversations about how their height has changed over the year and how their height compares to that of their peers.
- Small Group: Gather students who need additional opportunity for learning into a small group. Have each student in the group build a specific-sized tower: three blocks, four blocks, five blocks. Then have students practice comparing the pairs of towers using appropriate vocabulary. For example, “The three-block tower is shorter than the four-block tower. The four-block tower is taller than the three-block tower. Now compare the three-block tower and the five-block tower.”
- Expansion 1: Have students assist you in the construction of three towers of different heights. Use index cards to label the towers A, B, and C (M-K-6-2_Extension 1 and 2 Index Cards.docx). Have students compare the heights of the towers two at a time and identify the three taller-than or shorter-than relations. (Example: A is taller than B; B is taller than C; A is taller than C.)
- Expansion 2: Challenge students to construct towers to meet given conditions. For example:
- Build a tower that is taller than tower A.
- Build a tower that is shorter than tower B.
- Build a tower that is shorter than tower A and taller than tower B.
