ERIC Number: EJ1190061
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018-Sep
Pages: 7
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1073-5836
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Exploring Spatial Reasoning with Sketchup Make
Singer, Bethany; Shafer, Kathryn G.
Teaching Children Mathematics, v25 n1 p46-52 Sep 2018
Building physical models is a natural activity for children and provides a context for lessons on two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) shapes. However, children do not think of their models as prisms, cylinders, and pyramids. Their creations are spaceships, tunnels, castles, and nets on the floor. Creating these types of shapes with SketchUp Make™ (Trimble Navigation)--a widely popular program with architects, video game designers, model builders, and digital printing enthusiasts--helps students as young as five and six years old gain meaningful experiences with two-dimensional and three-dimensional shapes. Identification of shapes, as well as modeling through building and drawing, are specifically addressed in the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) K.G.A.3 and K.G.B.5 (CCSSI 2010). In this article, the author Bethany Singer describes and reflects on a sequence of SketchUp activities that she designed and implemented in 2014 at a developmental kindergarten (DK)-4th school located in the Midwest. In 2013-2014, this school had 550 students, with approximately 23 percent receiving free and reduced lunch. Singer had most recently taught algebra and geometry to students in grades 7 and 8 before moving to the kindergarten level.
Descriptors: Kindergarten, Young Children, Mathematics Education, Mathematics Skills, Skill Development, Spatial Ability, Thinking Skills, Student Developed Materials, Geometric Concepts, Models, Mathematics Activities, Technology Uses in Education, Computer Simulation, Common Core State Standards, Play
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. 1906 Association Drive, Reston, VA 20191. Tel: 800-235-7566; Tel: 703-620-9840; Fax: 703-476-2570; e-mail: NCTM@nctm.org; Web site: http://www.nctm.org/publications/teaching-children-mathematics/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Kindergarten
Audience: Teachers
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A