Step right up!

The students will learn to name an ordered pair for a point and plot positions named by an ordered pair on a large grid located on the classroom floor.

A lesson plan for grade 3 Mathematics

By Shelley Dodson

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Related pages

• Human coordinate graph: Students will actively learn how to plot ordered pairs on a coordinate plane. They will also learn how to connect ordered pairs to graph a picture.
• Coordinate plane artwork: For this lesson students will go to the computer lab and use the General Coordinate Game applet created by the Shodor Foundation to obtain a more specific understanding of the coordinate plane, its parts, and how it can be used to graph points. Afterward, the students will practice using the coordinate plane by drawing a picture on a coordinate plane and then writing out directions (using coordinates) for that picture to be replicated exactly by another student, who will not see the picture but will follow the directions.
• Our geometric world: The students will use newspaper and magazine pictures to recognize geometric figures within the real world. They will make a collage of pictures showing various geometric shapes. They will write a summary of the shapes that are represented in their collage.

Related topics

• Learn more about coordinate planes, geometry, hands-on, mathematics, and ordered pairs.

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Learning outcomes

Students will:

• understand the concept of a grid.
• know that the first number in an ordered pair tells how many units to go to the right, and the second number tells how many units to go up.
• name the ordered pair for a point.
• plot positions named by ordered pairs.

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

45 minutes

Materials/resources

• colored masking tape
• 5 x 5 inch construction paper pictures to symbolize a park, school, library, church, shopping center, bank, Jenny’s house, and Mike’s house
• 4-inch letters made from construction paper of an A, B, C, D, E, and F
• 2 sets of 4-inch letters made from construction paper of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6
• “Secret Code Grid” worksheet

Activities

1. Prior to the lesson, construct a 6×6 foot grid on the classroom floor using colored tape. You can use the lines between the tiles as a guide. Use the 4-inch numbers to label the horizontal and vertical lines.
2. Have the students sit around the outside of the grid.
3. Tell the students that they are going to use the saying, “Step Right Up!” to learn about coordinate grids.
4. Explain that a coordinate grid is a special type of graph that is used to locate points. Point out that the places moved on a grid are called units. Tell them that they must remember a special rule to locate points. In an ordered pair the first number tells how many units they must go right, and the second number tells how many units they must go up. Remember, “Step Right Up!”
5. Give examples of ordered pairs and model locating the points. Stress starting at zero each time, going right on the first number, and up on the second number.
6. Write an ordered pair on the board and call on a student to place the symbols in the correct place. Do this for each of the symbols. Stress that the symbols must be put at the intersections of lines and not between them.
7. When all symbols have been placed on the large grid, the teacher can rearrange them and call on students to give the new ordered pairs for the points.
8. Remove all symbols for places.
9. For additional practice, give the students new ordered pairs. Have them replace the symbols with a letter (A - F). Point out that the letters are naming the location of the point. Continue to stress “Step Right Up!”
10. Students then do the worksheet “Secret Code Grid” independently.

Assessment

• Observing the students’ understanding during the lesson.
• Completion of worksheet “Secret Code Grid.”

Supplemental information

Comments

The students love working on the large grid. It provides great hands-on practice for them.