Directional Detour

Recommended Grade: Grade 1 and 2

Curriculum Expectations (strand): Geometry and Spatial Sense:

Mathematics Grade 1: describe the relative locations of objects using positional language.

Mathematics Grade 2: describe and represent the relative locations of objects, and represent objects on a map

Social Studies Grade 1: Understanding Context: describe significant aspects of their community, with reference to different areas, services, and natural and built features, demonstrating an understanding of some basic ways of describing location and measuring distance

Social Studies Grade 2: Understanding Context: identify and locate various physical features and selected communities around the world, and describe some aspects of people’s ways of life in those communities

Learning Goal: We are learning to describe the movements on a grid and describe the relative locations so that we are familiar with mapping skills and spatial awareness

Required Supplies:

      • Dash robots
      • Learning Carpet or taped grid
      • Various materials to represent buildings in the community or land-forms
      • Blockly App
      • Cue cards to indicate Start and Finish or (fire station and house)
      • Blank grid on paper with positional language listed to add

Instructions:

1. Students can create their own community on the grid or the teacher can.

2. The student has to label his or her grid with land-forms and/or buildings

3. The student has to code a path (using Blockly) to get Dash (the fireman) to Jenny's burning house, following the grid lines.

4. Students describe the path taken with their group.

Extensions: Create an alternative route. Label the grid with coordinates. Reduce or increase the number of obstacles. Adjust the starting and ending points. Use a smaller or larger area. Add meter sticks for students to measure the distance. Adjust partners.

Reflection Questions:

  • Which landforms did you use in your community?
  • What would happen if the route that you chose, was barricaded with a fallen tree?
  • What did you do if you encountered an obstacle?
  • Do you think the path you took was the most direct route? How do you know?