Primary Type: Lesson Plan
Status: Published
This is a resource from CPALMS (www.cpalms.org) where all educators go for bright ideas!
Resource ID#: 47310
How much can it hold?
This lesson uses a discovery approach to exploring the meaning of volume. The students will utilize math practice standards and cubes as they
construct and analyze the relationship between the length, width, and height to the total amount of cubes. Since the students should already be able
to use the formula on their own (from 5th grade standards), they will be able to apply it to real world applications of other right rectangular prisms
and compare to determine which will hold the most volume.
Subject(s): Mathematics
Grade Level(s): 6
Intended Audience: Educators
Suggested Technology: Document Camera,
Computer for Presenter, Interactive Whiteboard
Instructional Time: 1 Hour(s)
Freely Available: Yes
Keywords: length, base, height, volume, right angle, similar, edges, area
Instructional Design Framework(s): Structured Inquiry (Level 2)
Resource Collection: CPALMS Lesson Plan Development Initiative
LESSON CONTENT
Lesson Plan Template: General Lesson Plan
Learning Objectives: What should students know and be able to do as a result of this lesson?
By the end of this lesson, students will gain a stronger understanding of volume as a three dimensional unit.
Students will find volume of rectangular prisms using cubes with fractional side lengths.
Students will apply the volume formula (V = l w h or V = B h) of a right rectangular prism with fractional edge lengths to calculate volume. Note that the uppercase
B represents the calculated area of the bottom layer of the prism.
Students will use the formula for volume to accurately compare the volume of 5 similar boxes.
Students will use precise labels in cubic units when determining volume.
Students will be able to determine a missing dimension using an equation when given total volume and two of the three dimensions.
Students will be able to calculate the quantity of cubes with fractional sides needed to fill a rectangular prism.
Prior Knowledge: What prior knowledge should students have for this lesson?
Students should know their whole number multiplication quickly and efficiently.
Students should be able to multiply fractions and decimals and work with them interchangeably.
Students should understand the volume concept, know, and be able to use the volume formula V = lwh or V = Bh where B = the area of the bottom layer of the
prism.
Guiding Questions: What are the guiding questions for this lesson?
What does volume represent?
How can we determine the volume of a rectangular prism?
Teaching Phase: How will the teacher present the concept or skill to students?
The Hook: Starbursts!
Open the lesson with a demonstration of a box neatly packed with Starbursts. Flip the box onto a table so the Starburst stay stacked without the box. Note that
page 1 of 4 Starbursts are not cubes but an improvised unit of measurement for volume.
1. Divide the class into 4 or 5 groups and give each group a whiteboard or chart paper to show their answers on.
2. Allow 75 seconds for the students to discuss the quickest strategy to find out how many Starbursts are in the box and write it on their whiteboard or chart paper.
3. Have each group share their ideas.
4. Give each group their own little box of Starbursts, but only give them enough Starbursts to find the length of each dimension, not enough to fill the entire box. Make
sure all the boxes are the same size and shape and have the same amount of Starbursts inside. Have the students do a race to determine which group has the best
strategy to find the volume the quickest.
5. Record the allotted time and accuracy on the board.
6. Ask the students to describe which is a better method to represent the volume the quickest? After the class discussion, observe which students have changed their
minds about their original strategies to a different strategy based on evidence from the activity.
Before starting the Guided Practice section, be sure to point out that today's lesson will focus on finding volume of prisms that have fractional side lengths.
Guided Practice: What activities or exercises will the students complete with teacher guidance?
Students will use cubes with fractional parts (such as base ten block unit cubes or wooden cubes that have fractional side lengths) to create five rectangular prisms.
They will draw illustrations, labeling the measurements of the length, width, and height while identifying the edges of the prism. They will complete a chart for each
figure and analyze it to determine (or remember from 5th grade) the formula we can use to calculate volume of a rectangular prism. Allow 10 minutes for this activity.
Quickly, rotate around the room and check for understanding on the Prism Charts the students completed. Write the volumes on the board. Have students discuss why
we arrived at those numbers?
Cube Creations.docx
Independent Practice: What activities or exercises will students complete to reinforce the concepts and skills developed in the
lesson?
Create a story about the principal congratulating your class for doing such an amazing job on fundraising for Relay for Life. As a reward, your classroom will be turned
into a foam cube pit for one day. Unfortunately, the principal does not know how many foam cubes will fit in the ¾ bottom part of the classroom, leaving 1/4 free of
cubes to allow for movement. We need to determine how many foam cubes will fit into the given space so we can play. Have a large cube box to demonstrate the size
of the foam cube to the students.
Divide the class into 4 groups. Give each group a clipboard with a response sheet to record their information. Assign each group a starting center and demonstrate the
sequence of centers for them to rotate in a specific order. Allow each group to work for 5 minutes. Have some music available to play during the rotation from one
center to the next. As soon as the music stops, students should be at their new center and ready to begin working on that center.
Center Response Sheet.docx
Center Response Sheet Answer Sheet.docx
Station 1: Provide students with rulers and 5 boxes with similar volumes but different dimensions, labeled A - E. Have the students place the boxes in order from
greatest to least volume and describe evidence to prove that their order is the correct order.
Station 2: Have students complete volume problems, which include fractions and decimals. Answer key for this station is in the attachment Center Response Sheet
located above.
Station 3: Have each student use a measuring tape to measure the length, width, and height of the classroom and record their measurements in customary units. Have
the students find the volume of the classroom and determine how many cubic boxes (of the size I modeled) will fill the room.
Ask students to check their calculations, complete the charts, and make some observations about the relationship of the boxes with the volumes. Circulate and check for
understanding.
Questions you may ask as you circulate around the groups:
What do we have to find out?
How is this similar to finding area?
Which formula can you develop to find volume?
Is a specific sequence of steps necessary to find volume? Why or why not? Is there a property in math that shows that the steps do not need to be sequential?
What representation can you create to help this problem make sense?
What does each part of the drawing represent in the story?
What equation can we create to help us determine the missing dimension?
Does your amount make sense?
After 25 minutes, bring class back together for closure.
Closure: How will the teacher assist students in organizing the knowledge gained in the lesson?
The teacher will bring the class back to whole group and select students to fill in the class version of the Center Response Sheet on the board. Teacher picks one
student to bring the 5 similar boxes to the front of the room and put them in the order requested. Teacher then unveils which bowl matches with which boxes and goes
over the rest of the Center Response Sheet as students check for accuracy. Discuss units of measurement, their strategies and solutions for determining ¾ of the
volume of the classroom using foam cubes. Also, discuss what other household items are rectangular prisms and what is the importance of determining the volume and
the unit of measure.
Have the students take the Summative Assessment which is attached in the Summative Assessment Box. The answer key is also attached.
Have the students write a two sentence Exit Ticket on a post-it note that describes the method/formula to determine volume in an object.
Have the students attach the post-its to a wall, door, board, or chart.
page 2 of 4 Allow each group to eat their Starbursts in celebration of a volume kind of day!
Summative Assessment
Listening to student conversations will provide the teacher with information on student understanding during the Guided Practice and Closure. A more formal
assessment is attached. 75% or above will demonstrate passing proficiency in finding volume. The assessment is comprised of only 7 items to easily identify missing
or incorrect steps in finding volume. Please see the answer key for responses.
Downloadable attachments:
Volume Assessment
Volume Assessment Answer Key
Formative Assessment
For this lesson, circulate around the room during the entire time and observe by having the students verbally explain and demonstrate patterns in counting and
calculating volume using the formula V = l w h. Make sure they use three different edges to show three different dimensions. Evaluate by checking the use of the
formula and the correct multiplication.
Feedback to Students
Students will be receiving constant feedback from each other, as well as from the teacher by circulating around the room and utilizing probing questions. Students
should use this feedback immediately to help continue with the activities and persevere in finding the correct answers.
Possible questions might include:
Where are the three edges you will use to calculate?
How many identical layers can you stack inside the box?
What is the difference in the model between finding the area and finding the volume of your figure?
ACCOMMODATIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
Accommodations: Cubes are will help students visually see and count the number of units. Help students create smaller rectangular prisms, possibly even color
coordinated, to be easier to count in an organized fashion.
For extra visuals and online practice, please see Math is Fun and Math Village.
The teacher can create additional conversion problems to be done at a separate help center in the room.
Extensions: When students show they understand these math ideas, they are ready for more difficult volume problems for more complicated shapes such as
complex rectangular prisms.
Have the students investigate what the difference would be in finding volume if we used round plastic typical ball pit balls instead of foam cubes.
A complex rectangular prism can be shown at Complex Rectangular Prism.
Have students research how to find volume of non-rectangular figures, like cylinders and prepare a lesson to teach the class.
Suggested Technology: Document Camera, Computer for Presenter, Interactive Whiteboard
Special Materials Needed:
Cubes with fractional parts,
5 similar boxes,
chart for students to complete,
Starbursts,
4 or 5 congruent boxes (depending on the number of groups you will have during the lesson),
rulers,
measuring tapes,
printout of the worksheets,
1 large cube box,
centimeter cubes,
unifix cubes,
calculators,
multiplication charts
Further Recommendations: You may wish to keep the solutions for the centers nearby as well as a paper for recording which students you want to post their
comments, solutions or strategies.
Students should be allowed to discuss the figures and help each other.
If students have difficulty with their multiplication facts, you may want to some multiplication charts or calculators available for them to prevent frustration.We do not
want students to spend all their time struggling to calculate, but instead determine ways to find volume.
page 3 of 4 Additional Information/Instructions
By Author/Submitter
This lesson also aligns with:
MAFS.K12.MP.1.1: Make Sense of Problems and Persevere in Solving Them.
MAFS.K12.MP.2.1: Reason abstractly and quantitatively.
MAFS.K12.MP.3.1: Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.
SOURCE AND ACCESS INFORMATION
Contributed by: Ana Fajardo
Name of Author/Source: Ana Fajardo
District/Organization of Contributor(s): Flagler
Is this Resource freely Available? Yes
Access Privileges: Public
License: CPALMS License - no distribution - non commercial
Related Standards
Name
MAFS.6.G.1.2:
Description
Find the volume of a right rectangular prism with fractional edge lengths by packing it with unit cubes of the appropriate
unit fraction edge lengths, and show that the volume is the same as would be found by multiplying the edge lengths of
the prism. Apply the formulas V = l w h and V = B h to find volumes of right rectangular prisms with fractional edge
lengths in the context of solving real-world and mathematical problems.
page 4 of 4