Direct instruction

Teacher(s): Laura Curry

Subject: 8th grade math (geometry)

Standard(s): Common Core, Arizona Career and College Ready Standards, ISTE Standards apply
to this lesson

Common Core/Arizona Career and College Ready Standard: 8.G.C.9. Know the
formulas for the volumes of cones, cylinders, and spheres and use them to solve realworld
and mathematical problems.

ISTE Standard: 2a. Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others
employing a variety of digital environments and media.

Objectives (Explicit): Use Blooms verbiage and formula

Make use of the formulas for volumes of cones, cylinders, and spheres to find the
volume of given shapes with given dimensions and to find dimensions of given
shapes with a given volume.

Evidence of Mastery (Measurable): An actual product /Include an explanation of how you are
going to grade/grading tool? (rubric, checklist, etc.)
Final Product (end of the week): Design an aquarium tank using at least 2 of the 3 shapes we
learned about (cylinder, sphere, cone) which holds about 20 gallons of water (approximately 2.67
cubic feet). Students will make a poster that includes a sketch of their tank (including dimensions)
and shows their work to prove that their tank will hold approximately 20 gallons of water. This will
be a group project, and we will do it in steps. In order to make sure each student is accountable for
mastery of the content, each student will need to turn in their own copy of the mathematical proof
that their tank will hold about 20 gallons of water. When students present their material, I will
randomly pick each of them to explain different parts of their project, so they will all need to be
familiar with all of the content. I will use a rubric to grade this project, and I will grade both the
poster and the presentation for accuracy.
This lesson relates to the final product because it familiarizes students with the volume formulas
and the real-life applications of using volumes of cylinders, spheres, and cones. By the end of this
lesson, the students should feel comfortable working with the volume formulas and understanding
their applications. Next, we will work on manipulating the formula to solve for dimensions when
we have a given volume.
Sub-objectives, SWBAT (Sequenced from basic to complex): Content and Language objectives
action verbs such as write, list, highlight, etc.)

List the formulas for the volumes of cones, cylinders, and spheres
Calculate the volume of cones, cylinders, and spheres using the formulas
Solve real-world problems using the volume formulas

Key vocabulary: (academic vocab associated with

lesson. Ex: polynomials)

Volume
Sphere

Materials/Technology Resources to be Used:

Cylindrical jar filled with

jellybeans
Models of cylinders, spheres, and

Cylinder
Cone

cones
Access to Padlet (at home) (need
computer/internet access)

Opening (state objectives, connect to previous learning, and make RELEVENT to real life [things
you CAN do during opening]) ENGAGE/ hook the students
Show the students a cylindrical jar of jellybeans and they have to guess how many are inside.
Discuss how they came up with their answer, easier ways to find the answer (5-8 minutes) [take 2
minutes to talk in pairs/groups, then have class discussion about it]

Instructional Input

Teacher Will: Be specific

1. Talk about definition of

volume (relate back to
opening) and review what
cones, cylinders, and spheres
look like
2. Give formulas for volumes of
cones, cylinders, and spheres
[put with labeled drawings of
each shape so they know
which part is which].
DISCUSS UNITS
3. Do some examples together of
finding volume when you
know the correct dimensions
WITH UNITS

Student Will: Be specific

1. Be engaged in discussion and

provide their own definitions from
prior knowledge
2. Take notes in their notebook on
volume formulas, including
diagrams and units (gaining
knowledge for sub-objective 1)
3. Write down the examples and
participate in calculation of
volumes (gaining knowledge for
sub-objective 2)

Students will honestly participate in the

formative assessment

Formative assessment: Thumbs up,

middle or down to indicate whether
theyre understanding the examples.
Co-Teaching Strategy/Differentiation How will your instruction look different for those
students who need differentiation or accommodations during your instructional
input/teaching?

Guided Practice

If students would like to have models of the shapes on their desks, they
may.
If they would prefer to draw the shapes in their notes, they may, but they
may also have a copy of the shapes given to them that they can cut out and
put in their notes.
Students will sit in groups so they may clear up small misunderstandings for
each other as instruction takes place

Teacher Will: Be specific

Student Will: Be specific

Give the students the dimensions of the

jar of jellybeans (in inches) and number
of jellybeans that fit in a cubic inch
(relating back to opening)

Listen and write down the information they

will need to use

After giving the information about the

jellybeans, tell students to work in groups
to use volume to find the approximate
number of jellybeans in the jar. They may
choose their groups. However, they must
choose their groups so that they know
they will feel confident about their answer
after working together. Walk around to
help students while they do this. After a
sufficient amount of time, come back
together as a group to talk about their
answers. There is the option of nonvoluntary participation during the group
discussion, so everyone must understand
how their group came up with their
answer.
Formative assessment: Have students
come up with 3 things a fellow student
might misunderstand about the topic.
Keep these in mind as we move on to the
next example.

Also give the radii for Earth and Sun.

Have them figure out how many Earths
can fit inside of one Sun (volume-wise,
assuming theyre spherical). After a
sufficient amount of time, come back
together as a group to talk about their
answers. (formative assessment- making
sure they can apply their new knowledge
to the warm up)
After discussing this, give the students
who came up with their own applications
a chance to share (more details in the
differentiation).

Take the information they have been given

and apply the knowledge they have gained
about calculating the volume of a cylinder to
solve the problem from the opening. (subobjective 3).

Participate in the formative assessment

activity and use the ideas we come up with to
help further their learning.

In addition, take the information they have

been given and apply the knowledge they
have gained about calculating the volume of a
sphere to solve this real-world application.
(sub-objective 3).

Listen and critique their classmates examples

to make sure theyre valid examples.

Be honest in their self-evaluation and

communicate whether or not they understand
the material.

Formative assessment: Self-reporting

strategy: Watch body language, fingers up
(1-5, 1 being dont understand at all, 5
being I can teach this to someone else).
Co-Teaching Strategy/Differentiation/Check for Understandinghow are you going to
know if EACH student is ready to move onto independent practice? And how are you
going to differentiate if they do not understand?

Allow students to work individually or in groups. Groups can be anywhere

from 2 to 4 people. They may pick their groups, however, they must choose

Independent Practice

their groups so that they know they will feel confident about their answer
after working together. There is the option of non-voluntary participation
during the group discussion, so everyone must understand how their group
came up with their answer. If groups are not on task I will change their
groups or make them work individually.
If they want to move to a different spot in the classroom, they may.
If they would rather work on whiteboards, they may, but they need to copy
their final work into their notebook so they can reference it at a later time.
Any students who did not understand almost anything about the lesson can
go to a specific part of the room where we will work together for
understanding.
If anyone is finished before everyone else, they can brainstorm some other
real-world applications for why we would need to know the volume of
cylinders, spheres, and cones.

Teacher Will: Be specific

(HOMEWORK)
Assignment: Students are given 2
problems for each shape: one is with
given shape and given dimensions and the
student must calculate the volume, the
other problem is a real-world application
for the volume of that shape. The students
must solve all 6 of these problems.
Formative assessment: pick the
application problem you think was the
most difficult to solve and post your
solution (including steps/thinking) on
Padlet.(can do anonymously as long as
85% or more of the class is posting. If
not, then will start showing names). OR if
you thought they were all easy, if
someone else posted an incorrect solution
you can comment on their solution and
describe where the error occurred and
how the corrected version of that solution
would look. OR describe an error you
made while trying to solve the problem
and how you corrected it/why you made
that error/how your thinking has changed.

Student Will: Be specific

Practice their ability to use the formulas for
volume of cylinders, cones, and spheres to
find the volume of the different shapes. In
addition, use these skills and apply them to
solving real-world applications. (main
objective of lesson).
Review their own solutions and reflect on
their new knowledge and skills. Assess their
own or others work, find errors, and discuss
the way to correct these errors. Share
knowledge with each other so that everyone
has a deeper understanding of the material.

Co-Teaching Strategy/Differentiation How will your instruction look different for those
students who need differentiation or accommodations?

The student may complete and submit these problems online (using a
website like WebWork) or they may do the work by hand and submit it that
way. (if they use the online tools to complete, they must submit their scratch
work)
If students would prefer not to use Padlet or if they do not have access to
the internet at home, they may instead handwrite the review of their

solutions/assessment of their work and submit it with the rest of their work.
If they would prefer to present the assessment of their work verbally to me
the next day in class, they may do this as well. (Their submissions will be
counted toward the 85% completion rate from above).
For students who want more of a challenge, they may instead come up with
a real-world application problem for each of the shapes and solve those.

Closing/Student Reflection/Real-life connections: What connections will students make to their

real lives? What essential questions will they reflect on in their closure of the lesson?

Have a student come up with a real-world application where we would need to find the
volume of a cylinder, sphere, or cone (voluntary participation). Preferably, if the class is
having a lot of trouble with a particular shape, this application would use that shape. Then
have the class work through how to calculate the volume for this application (nonvoluntary participation).