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By: Swarna Krishnan
It was one of my regular thirty-minute online class for Class 3 and I had planned to introduce Equilateral triangles to the students. To make it interesting, I had asked them to keep a few matchsticks handy for the class. In one of my previous sessions, I had already introduced the concept of triangle, as a closed figure bounded by 3 straight lines. So, I decided to start this class by asking them to make a triangle using 3 matchsticks. Once the students made the triangle, I asked them to leave it undisturbed for the rest of the class.
Then, I showed them 2
triangles on the screen - a 6-stick triangle and a 9-stick triangle. I was keen
to know their observations about the 2 triangles. When asked, they started with
answers like “triangles made of match sticks”, “big triangle”, “small triangle”
etc. When they started observing closely, one student said, “left side and
right side of the triangle have same number of sticks” and another student said,
“right side and the bottom of the triangle have same number of sticks”. Finally,
a student summed it up by saying, “left side, right side and bottom of the
triangle have the same number of sticks”. This made my job easier for the
session and I swiftly introduced 3-sided closed figure with equal lengths on
all sides as an equilateral triangle.
Then, I asked the students to make a
triangle with 12 sticks and check whether it is equilateral or not. Students
made triangles using 12 sticks and almost all of them declared it as an
equilateral triangle. Then, I asked them to revisit the 3-stick triangle that they
had made and promptly everyone declared that as an equilateral triangle. I was
convinced that the students have understood the basics of equilateral triangle.
With 10 minutes gone by, we entered the testing ground.
I asked the students to make a triangle
using 4 sticks and share their observation on whether it is an equilateral
triangle. After different permutations, they declared that the triangle is not
an equilateral triangle. I repeated the exercise, this time with 5 and 8
sticks. They swiftly responded that both weren’t equilateral triangles. I gave
them 10 minutes to try making equilateral triangles with any number of sticks
they like. While few students stuck to single digit, majority of them tried using
a full match box. I could see them try 15-20 combinations in a span of 10
minutes and some of them had unknowingly deciphered that it is possible to make
equilateral triangles only when the number of sticks is in a multiple of 3.
When I heard them murmur different logics during the activity, I was quite happy
and surprised at the same time and asked few of them to share some interesting
bits with the whole class.
Among all these, one student kept making
triangles that had 2 sides equal and was quite unhappy about the number of
failed attempts he had. That is when I told him he was ahead of the class and
he needs to wait for the next class to get introduced to Isosceles triangles.
When I reflect back on these 30-min, I see
that the concept of equilateral triangles had barely anything to do with
measurements, scale, 60-degree angles, etc. For a Grade 3 student, a matchstick
has turned into a measuring instrument and I am sure they can now seamlessly
replace that with a scale someday.
This also tells me, geometry is not just
about designing or drawing figures and guessing at random. In my school days, I
was often tested on my drawing skills and memory of shapes and figures. When I
attempt to re-look at the approach now, topics like geometry have very relevant
real-life examples and applications that can be used to teach, memorize and
practice. Geometry classes that go beyond geometry boxes also unlock the power
of imagination, visualization and creativity in students. This way, students can learn and discover figures,
properties and shapes like never before. I, as a teacher, just need to help
them relate these things back to the topic in hand. In the long term, this
practical-to-theory approach helps the students enhance their observation, reasoning
and pattern identification skills while also staying in touch with the subject.
In the short term, I am glad that my students are as excited as I am to get
introduced to Isosceles and scalene triangles in the coming days.
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About the author:
Swarna Krishnan, the author, has pursued Bachelors in Engineering from Anna University, Chennai and Masters in Education from Azim Premji University, Bengaluru. The author is an enthusiastic teacher and content developer, who believes in the continuous process of new and practical ways of teaching. She can be reached at swarna91g@gmail.com
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