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Maker Lesson:

Personal Conics Pictures

Overview

The Idea

Students created a picture using conics sections. They first graphed by hand, then transferred their graph to desmos. Finally their picture was printed and they used craft supplies to decorate and bring their picture to life.

Making pictures out of conic sections is the top conic sections project on google. I liked the idea because students could easily make it personal, use technology, and be creative. However, I was not set on the idea of students not having something they could hold and use their hands to create. In order to achieve this goal, I decided to have the desmos picture as just one part of the project. The next part would have students adding extra elements using craft supplies to their piece more personal and creative.

Click here for my lesson plan

The following sections are a description of what students do in each part and my reflection.

Part 1

Reflection

I launched Maker by showing a video and having students think-pair-share about what they thought about making. I wrapped it up with a discussion on growth mindset and collaboration and how we would need both going into our project. Next I launched the project. Students were given the task and project requirements. They then looked up desmos art and brainstormed things they would like to create. Once they decided on a picture, they began to draw by hand on graph paper. During this time I checked in on each student to discuss what they were creating, how they were going to use conic sections, and offer the opportunity for questions and suggestions.

When I first introduced the project students were kind of confused. They weren’t sure what to create or how this would work. This is why I think having them look up desmos art came in handy. They were able to see some things other people have made and how graphs can be used to make art. They also got really excited and picked out some elaborate things to create. This at first made me really excited that the students would have the opportunity to create some really cool art, but then I got worried that they would not able to complete the project. During Part 2 I addressed this concern by letting students know if they feel overwhelmed that their picture is too complicated, they can think about ways to simplify while still creating a picture. I did notice that the students seemed a little overwhelmed by the maker video. In the future I would probably change how I introduce making.

Part 2

Reflection

This part had students take their initial designs and begin to graph them on desmos. They first did an activity on desmos called "des-pet" in order to practice making a picture with graphs. Des-pet taught the students how to restrict domain/range and create new shapes. Then students began to graph their own pictures in desmos.

I think des-pet really helped students see how they could restrict domain/range in order to create certain shapes. However, in the future I would probably give them a little more practice or a workshop on this in addition to the activity. When students were working on their graphs I still got a lot of questions on "how do I do this again?", so I think a little more practice would be helpful.

During this part is when students began to see the difficulty of the project and re-think their designs. Many had to simplify what originally was a very complex idea, while others worked on their pictures outside of school in order to keep more detail. It was also during this part where I really saw a lot of collaboration. I was worried because this project did not have explicit opportunities to work together, however I explained that it would be difficult and we would need to help each other. As I walked around the class, I saw students moving around the classroom to ask different people how to create a certain shape. I saw students huddled together discussing their designs and what they needed to do next. I was extremely proud of my students for taking this opportunity to really get help from their peers. Implementing this project again I will try to find a way to make this project even more collaborative. Maybe have students work in pairs.

Part 3

Reflection

During this part, students get to work with their hands to add extra physical elements to their pictures. Students can use pompoms, pipe cleaners, stickers, tissue paper, LED lights, and whatever else they can think of to add to their pictures.

During this part students will also prepare for their gallery walk. I will give students three questions to answer to guide their presentations: what did you struggle with, how would you improve/add to your project, and how did you use math to create art.

Before Implementation: I believe the opportunity to create a physical product is an important aspect of making and why I added this part to the project. I am planning on starting with 30 minutes of crafting time. I want students to have the opportunity to show their creativity without getting off task. If I notice students are focused and engaged with the project, I will extend the time. I think have the opportunity to really express themselves in a math class will be different, but exciting for students. I hope they enjoy this opportunity. I'm giving them some questions to prepare in order to help guide their presentations. I hope by preparing a few questions, the students will be more open to talking about how they learned from this project and how it is personal to them.

5/6/2019: A few students have gotten to this part of the project. These students typically put a lot of effort into their work, and this is also seen in their projects so far. At first the students were confused by me telling them to use craft supplies to add to their project. They were not really sure where to start. Once I explained this is really for them to just be creative and make a cool art piece, they got to work. I was so happy with their progress. Each student did their's a little different. One cut out their picture and glued it to another piece. One student added elements directly to her printed picture. Some other students created models of their picture. All projects were creative and the students seemed excited to get to be artistic. 

Part 4

Reflection

Finally, students present their projects in a gallery walk format. Half the class sets up their projects to present, while the other half walks around and ask questions. I will put a list of questions on the board so that students have something to go off of. Students will also use feedback slips to give feedback to presenters. The feedback slips have a place to write “I Likes” and “Next Steps”. I Likes are things that the presenter did well or the reviewer likes about the project. Next Steps are things the presenter should work on or suggestions for what the presenter could do next to add to the project. After about 15 minutes the groups will switch and the other half of the class will present.

After the gallery walk, students will do a written reflection on the whole project. They will reflect on the entire process from brainstorming to presenting. I will use a few different prompts & sentence stems to get students thinking on what they can write about. During this time I will move the projects to the hallway outside to showcase the projects to the whole school.

Before Implementation: Although the students have presented before, I think this presentation will be a little different than what they are used to. Instead of just presenting on what they discovered, they will be presenting on the entire process of making their project. I think appreciating the process is an important part of making, so I am excited to see what my students think of it. I am also excited to bring in a few outsiders to my classroom.

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Update: I was happy to see students showing some reflection on their work and the process rather than just presenting a final answer. I think the reflection questions helped prompt the students' presentations. In the future I would like to see deeper reflection, but as this is something pretty new to the students I was happy with what they did.

Overall Reflection

So far I am extremely happy with how the project is going. I have had students excitedly show me what they have created, even if it's just a circle. While students are working I will notice them get up and walk across the room to show another student what they have been working on and ask for advice. I think the students have been working really well together, even though they are all doing individual projects.

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Something that I actually don't think went really well is introducing making. I think the video was a lot for students as it shows over-the-top projects. I think instead showcasing my own small projects and asking students they have made would be more accessible to students. We are all makers, we just might not know it. This is also something I struggled with before I joined UTeach Maker, so I understand students thinking it's something they can't do.

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I hope students will really reflect on the entire project. By saving artifacts throughout the project, talking about the process during their presentations, and doing a final written reflection, I want my students to see how far they have come in completing their projects. In the future I would incorporate short written reflections at the end of each part in order to have students reflecting throughout the entire process.

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Overall I am so proud of my students for working together and solving problems. I am excited to see their final products and what they learned from the making process.

In future implementations I would:

  • Introduce making differently

    • I think students were overwhelmed by the projects in the video​

    • Instead I would show my own making projects and ask students if they have made anything

    • I would try to show students that they are already makers and making isn't just huge projects 

  • Have final products to show students before they start the project

    • This would be extremely helpful to students to have an idea of where they're headed​

  • Hopefully have more time so that students can present to people outside of their school

    • This is an important aspect of making that I did not have enough time to implement in this iteration of the project​

  • Require students to use LED lights by working a circuits activity into the lesson

    • This would add more technology to the project and have students learn a new skill

    • One possible activity is "Let There Be Light" and could be taught during Part 3 

  • Have students complete short written reflections at the end of each part

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