Primary Type: Lesson Plan
Status: Published
This is a resource from CPALMS (www.cpalms.org) where all educators go for bright ideas!
Resource ID#: 51234
Popsicle Problem
Students will work in teams to help choose the best popsicle to sell. They will develop a procedure based on the following criteria: taste, color, cost,
and melting speed. They will reassess the popsicles during the twist incorporating flavors and a fourth popsicle choice. Students may arrange the
criteria based on their team's interpretation of most important to least important. Students may have to make trade offs based on these
interpretations.
Subject(s): Mathematics, English Language Arts
Grade Level(s): K
Intended Audience: Educators
Suggested Technology: Computer for Presenter,
Microsoft Office
Instructional Time: 3 Hour(s)
Freely Available: Yes
Keywords: kindergarten, counting, collaborative, real world problem, greater than, less than, equal to
Instructional Design Framework(s): Cooperative Learning
Resource Collection: STEM Lessons - Model Eliciting Activity
LESSON CONTENT
Lesson Plan Template: Model Eliciting Activity (MEA)
Formative Assessment
The teacher can open the lesson by modeling how to count groups of objects (blocks, bears, pencils, etc.) and determining if the groups are less than or greater than.
The following questions should be asked after the first client letter has been read. The teacher can continue to ask these questions while students work cooperatively to
keep them on task.
1. Who is the client? (Sunny Sweets, owner of Summertime Popsicle Company)
2. What is the client's problem? (She has a new popsicle recipe she wants to sell)
3. What does the client want you to do to help solve the problem? (rank the popsicles on taste, color, cost, and melting speed)
Feedback to Students
The students will receive immediate feedback throughout the lesson. The teacher will introduce the lesson, then allow the students to work either individually or in
small groups to complete the first task.
After the first task, the teacher will ask the students reflection questions (set 1) as a whole group. The teacher will give feedback specific to each group (or individual)
regarding their process and/or procedure for solving the problem.
Summative Assessment
Summative Rubric for Summertime Popsicle MEA: Popsicle rubric.docx
Learning Objectives
Given a real-world, open-ended problem, students will be able to:
Work in a collaborative group to develop a plan for problem solving.
Identify whether a group of objects in one group is greater than, less than, or equal to the number of objects in another group.
Create a plan to rank items.
Communicate their plan both verbally and in writing.
page 1 of 3 Prior Knowledge
Students will need to know how to read a data table. (The teacher may need to review the data in the table to ensure student understanding).
Students will need to understand a key.
Students will need to be able to count to 20.
Instructional Suggestions
1. Read the first letter to students and ask them to identify the problem. Review the vocabulary: client, response, problem, procedure, data, and table with the
students. Use the Guided/Reflective questions as a resource.
2. Guide students in reading and interpreting the data table. Ask students to share their observations about the data.
3. Divide students into small groups. Assign student roles within the group according to your preferred style. (Suggestion: captain, recorder, reporter, and supplier.)
4. Students will work collaboratively to determine a procedure to rank the popsicles from best to worst. The teacher will circulate and ask reflection questions, assist
students with reading the data table, and identify key information.
5. After allowing time for discussion in small groups, the teacher will assist groups with organizing their responses using the letter template.
6. The teacher will read the second letter to the students and ask them to identify the changes made to the problem.
7. Guide students in reading and interpreting the data table. Ask students to share their observations about the data.
8. Students will work in their same small groups to determine if they need to change their procedure and to rank the popsicles from best to worst. The teacher will
circulate and ask the reflective questions.
9. Students, with assistance from the teacher, will prepare a second letter response that reflects their choices and the reasoning used. (see Letter Template 2)
10. Groups will share their process and results with the class.
Guiding/reflective Questions
1. How many smiley faces in this box? How many smiley faces all together (in a row)? Is this number of smiley faces more or less than this number? What does that
mean about the popsicles (taste, cost, melting time, etc.)? (answers may vary)
2. What do you think is most important (e.g., color, taste)? (answers may vary)
3. Why do people eat popsicles? (to cool down, as a treat, on a hot summer day, etc.)
4. Why would you consider how fast a popsicle melts when buying them? (determines how fast you have to eat it, the faster it melts the messier it is, etc.)
Reading Passage 1
Summertime popsicle letter 1.docx
Readiness Questions
Who is the client in this letter? (Sunny Sweets, President of Summertime Popsicles)
What is the problem that the client needs help with? (wants to sell a new popsicle and needs to find out which one is the best)
What information do you have to solve the problem? (a data table with taste, color, cost, melting speed, and in data 2, flavors; smiley faces and a key to explain the
smiley faces, names of the new popsicles)
What do you need to include in your letter to the client? (rank popsicles from best to worst, procedure or plan for how teams decided the ranking)
Data Set 1
Summertime Popsicle Company data set 1.docx
Letter Template 1
Letter template 1.docx
Comprehension/readiness questions
What is the new problem that the client needs help with? (another popsicle was created and a new category, flavors, was added to the table)
What changes might you have to make to your procedure to solve the new problem? (answers may vary, i.e. changed which criteria was most important)
What information do you have to solve the problem? (a table with smiley faces and a key, names of the new popsicles, categories; taste, cost, color, melting speed,
flavor)
What do you need to include in your letter to the client? (new rankings and if the team changed their procedures)
Reading Passage 2
Summertime popsicle letter 2.docx
Data Set 2
Summertime Popsicle Company data set 2.docx
Letter Template 2
Letter template 2.docx
Additional Instructions or Materials
Pictures from Microsoft Clipart program
Literary Text: Popsicles on the Run by Cheryl Reynolds
Reflection question 2
1. Did your procedure change? (answers may vary)
2. In what way(s) did you have to change your procedure? (answers may vary)
3. Can your procedure be used if Sunny Sweets decides to add any new types of popsicles in the future? (answers may vary)
ACCOMMODATIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
Accommodations:
Teacher can have students complete the MEA as a whole class or as an introduction to MEAs.
Teacher can have students work in either heterogeneous or homogeneous groups.
Teacher can have students complete the process orally and can transcribe the written letters.
Teacher can break lesson into smaller mini-lessons completed over 3 days.
Extensions:
Students can present their procedure to the class.
Students can create their own popsicle.
page 2 of 3 Student can make crafts out of popsicle sticks.
Suggested Technology: Computer for Presenter, Microsoft Office
Additional Information/Instructions
By Author/Submitter
This lesson addresses Mathematical Practice Standard MAFS.K12.MP.1.1: Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.
SOURCE AND ACCESS INFORMATION
Contributed by: Stephanie Radford
Name of Author/Source: Stephanie Radford
District/Organization of Contributor(s): Volusia
Is this Resource freely Available? Yes
Access Privileges: Public
License: CPALMS License - no distribution - non commercial
Related Standards
Name
LAFS.K.L.1.1:
Description
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
a. Print many upper- and lowercase letters.
b. Use frequently occurring nouns and verbs.
c. Form regular plural nouns orally by adding /s/ or /es/ (e.g., dog, dogs; wish, wishes).
d. Understand and use question words (interrogatives) (e.g., who, what, where, when, why, how).
e. Use the most frequently occurring prepositions (e.g., to, from, in, out, on, off, for, of, by, with).
f. Produce and expand complete sentences in shared language activities.
LAFS.K.SL.1.1:
Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about kindergarten topics and texts with peers and adults
in small and larger groups.
a. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., listening to others and taking turns speaking about the topics and
texts under discussion).
b. Continue a conversation through multiple exchanges.
MAFS.K.CC.3.6:
Identify whether the number of objects in one group is greater than, less than, or equal to the number of objects in
another group, e.g., by using matching and counting strategies.
page 3 of 3