Math in Focus: 4B (2013)

Modeling Decimals (Area and Grid Models)

Model and compare decimals using area models. Set the number of sections in each model to 1, 10, or 100, and then click in the models to shade sections. Compare decimals visually and on a number line. 5 Minute Preview

Modeling Whole Numbers and Decimals (Base-10 Blocks)

Model numbers with base-10 blocks. Drag flats, rods, and individual cubes onto a mat to model a number. Blocks can be exchanged from one area of the mat to the other. Four sets of blocks are available to model a variety of whole numbers and decimals. 5 Minute Preview

Cannonball Clowns (Number Line Estimation)

Launch clowns from a circus cannon and try to hit the target. Drag digit cards on the control panel to set the launch distance and choose an appropriate unit of distance. After practicing your clown-launching skills on a number line, move on to the Big Top, Football Field, School Buses, the Golden Gate Bridge, and more! 5 Minute Preview

Modeling Decimals (Area and Grid Models)

Model and compare decimals using area models. Set the number of sections in each model to 1, 10, or 100, and then click in the models to shade sections. Compare decimals visually and on a number line. 5 Minute Preview

Modeling Whole Numbers and Decimals (Base-10 Blocks)

Model numbers with base-10 blocks. Drag flats, rods, and individual cubes onto a mat to model a number. Blocks can be exchanged from one area of the mat to the other. Four sets of blocks are available to model a variety of whole numbers and decimals. 5 Minute Preview

Comparing and Ordering Decimals

Use grids to model decimal numbers and compare them graphically. Then compare the numbers on a number line. 5 Minute Preview

Rounding Whole Numbers (Number Line)

Place points on a number line. Round these values to the nearest ten or hundred. Visualize rounding by showing the number line as a hill or series of hills. These hills cause the points to roll to the nearest valley (nearest multiple of ten or one hundred). 5 Minute Preview

Factor Trees (Factoring Numbers)

The Factor Trees Gizmo has two modes. In Factor mode, you can create factor trees to factor composite numbers into primes. In Build mode, you can build numbers by multiplying primes together. Can you build all composite numbers up to 50? Any whole composite number up to 999 can be factored or built with the Gizmo. 5 Minute Preview

Percents, Fractions, and Decimals

Compare a quantity represented by an area with its percent, fraction, and decimal forms. 5 Minute Preview

Finding Patterns

Build a pattern to complete a sequence of patterns. Study a sequence of three patterns of squares in a grid and build the fourth pattern of the sequence in a grid. 5 Minute Preview

Adding Whole Numbers and Decimals (Base-10 Blocks)

Use base-10 blocks to model two numbers. Then combine the blocks to model the sum. Blocks of equal value can be exchanged from one area of the mat to the other to help understand carrying when adding. Four sets of blocks are available to model different place values. 5 Minute Preview

Critter Count (Modeling Multiplication)

Use groups of critters on leaves to model multiplication as repeated addition. Change the expression to change the number of groups or the number of critters per group. Display the critters either on leaves or as a rectangular array. 5 Minute Preview

Subtracting Whole Numbers and Decimals (Base-10 Blocks)

Use base-10 blocks to model a starting number. Then subtract blocks from this number by dragging them into a subtraction bin. Blocks of equal value can be exchanged from one section of the mat to the other to help understand regrouping and borrowing. Four sets of blocks are available to model different place values. 5 Minute Preview

No Alien Left Behind (Division with Remainders)

The alien school children from the planet Zigmo travel to distant planets on a field trip. The goal is to select a bus size so that all buses are full and no aliens are left behind. This is a nice illustration of division with remainders. 5 Minute Preview

Elevator Operator (Line Graphs)

Operate an elevator in an old apartment building. Pick up and drop off residents where they want to go. A line graph shows where the elevator traveled over time. Operate the elevator either by using the standard up and down controls, or by building a graph to program where you want it to go. 5 Minute Preview

Mean, Median, and Mode

Build a data set and find the mean, median, and mode. Explore the mean, median, and mode illustrated as frogs on a seesaw, frogs on a scale, and as frogs stacked under a bar of variable height. 5 Minute Preview

Movie Reviewer (Mean and Median)

Movie reviewers rate movies on a scale of 0 to 10. Each movie comes with a set of reviews that can be changed by the user. The mean of a data set can be explored using a see-saw balance model. Students can also find the median, mode, and range of the data set. 5 Minute Preview

Stem-and-Leaf Plots

Build a data set and compare the line plot of the data set to the stem-and-leaf plot. 5 Minute Preview

Spin the Big Wheel! (Probability)

Step right up! Spin the big wheel! Each spin can result in no prize, a small prize, or a big prize. The wheel can be spun by 1, 10, or 100 players. Results are recorded on a frequency table or a circle graph. You can also design your own wheel and a sign that describes the probabilities for your wheel. 5 Minute Preview

Fido's Flower Bed (Perimeter and Area)

Construct models of gardens on a grid using squares of sod. Fence the gardens to find and compare perimeters. Work with pre-built gardens made of 36 squares each to compare perimeters of shapes with equal areas. 5 Minute Preview

Perimeter and Area of Rectangles

Discover how to find the perimeter and area of a rectangle, and of a square (which is really just a special case of a rectangle). 5 Minute Preview

Fido's Flower Bed (Perimeter and Area)

Construct models of gardens on a grid using squares of sod. Fence the gardens to find and compare perimeters. Work with pre-built gardens made of 36 squares each to compare perimeters of shapes with equal areas. 5 Minute Preview

Adding Fractions (Fraction Tiles)

Add fractions with the help of the Fractionator, a fraction-tile-making machine in the Gizmo. Model sums by placing the tiles on side-by-side number lines. Explore the usefulness of common denominators in adding. Express sums as improper fractions or mixed numbers. 5 Minute Preview

Area of Parallelograms

Examine and manipulate a parallelogram and find its area. Explore the relationship between the area of a parallelogram and the area of a rectangle using an animation. 5 Minute Preview

Area of Triangles

Use a dynamic triangle to explore the area of a triangle. With the help of an animation, see that any triangle is always half of a parallelogram (with the same base and height). Likewise, a similar animation shows the connection between parallelograms and rectangles. 5 Minute Preview

Holiday Snowflake Designer

Fold paper and cut in a certain way to make symmetrical snowflakes with six sides (similar to what can be found in nature) or with eight sides (an easier folding method). This simulation allows you to cut virtual paper on the computer screen with round dot or square dot "scissors" of various sizes before using physical paper. 5 Minute Preview

Quilting Bee (Symmetry)

Participate in an old-fashioned quilting bee and create a colorful, symmetrical quilt. Quilts can be created with a vertical, horizontal, or diagonal line of symmetry. Quilts can be folded to look for reflections, or rotated to test for rotational symmetry. 5 Minute Preview

Fractions Greater than One (Fraction Tiles)

Explore fractions greater than one with the Fractionator, a fraction-tile-making machine in the Gizmo. Create sums of fraction tiles on two number lines. Sums greater than one are shown as improper fractions on the top number line, and as mixed numbers on the bottom number line. 5 Minute Preview

Holiday Snowflake Designer

Fold paper and cut in a certain way to make symmetrical snowflakes with six sides (similar to what can be found in nature) or with eight sides (an easier folding method). This simulation allows you to cut virtual paper on the computer screen with round dot or square dot "scissors" of various sizes before using physical paper. 5 Minute Preview

Quilting Bee (Symmetry)

Participate in an old-fashioned quilting bee and create a colorful, symmetrical quilt. Quilts can be created with a vertical, horizontal, or diagonal line of symmetry. Quilts can be folded to look for reflections, or rotated to test for rotational symmetry. 5 Minute Preview

Toy Factory (Set Models of Fractions)

Create a set of stuffed animals: monkeys, giraffes, and rabbits. Toys can be painted red, green, or blue. Describe the makeup of the set (animals or colors) with fractions. Arrange the toys into groups to simplify the fractions. 5 Minute Preview