Content Objective
This cross-curricular unit combines foundational mathematical concepts with narrative writing to deepen my students’ learning. It is designed to help solidify my eight-grade students’ conceptual understanding of the base ten principles and scientific notation by locating multiples of powers of ten on a number line. For example, locating multiples of 100, and then multiples of 10 on a number line declared to have length 1000, or locating multiples of 100,000 and 10,000 of a number line declared to have length one million, etc. Students will also engage with narrative writing techniques, such as character description, reflection, and pacing to create and develop an entertaining narrative. The unit addresses key concepts that help students to know when and how to write numbers in standard notation (long form), practical uses for scientific notation, comparing quantities written in scientific notation, and how to write a coherent and effective narrative.
The unit meets several objectives for formative and summative student assessment including:
- Describe the patterns in the placement of the decimal point when a number is multiplied by a power of 10.
- Locate and compare very large and very small values on a number line.
- Write and compare quantities in scientific notation.
- Use narrative techniques to develop a character.
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