Many students never really understand volume or surface area, although they can memorize the formulas and even apply them on tests. These resources have been selected with an eye to helping students enter into the concepts of volume and surface area through practical problems, hands-on experiences, and applets they can manipulate to actually see how […]

Understanding ratio and proportion, one of NCTM’s Focal Points for grade 7, presents a real challenge for all levels of middle school. Here are classroom-friendly ways to explore the topic from several angles. Each involves visuals or hands-on activities that bring students into close contact with the abstract concept of ratio. Let other teachers hear your ideas […]

Students need active learning experiences to understand measurement concepts and develop important skills. These resources provide opportunities for students to problem solve with hands-on and virtual measurements in real-world and online environments.
Fit by Design or Design to Fit
This applied mathematics lesson features hands-on activities supporting the NCTM Measurement Standard, and can be used to introduce […]

Here are online resources with virtual manipulatives that can help make area and volume real for students. Be sure to check out the sites these resources are from — the sites contain many other interesting and useful mathematics learning resources.
Area Explorer
With this simulation, the student finds the areas for irregular shapes on a grid. […]

Density is a property of materials included in the National Science Education Standards Physical Science Content Standard B. It is a property by which mixtures can be separated but has much more profound applications outside the classroom such as rock formation, severe weather and living systems. But none of these concepts are fully comprehensible without […]