what is Desmos?

Desmos is a free graphing and teaching tool for math available on the web as well as on iOS and Android. In addition to plotting equations, classroom activities are available to help students learn about a variety of math concepts. For example, students can learn how to transform periodic functions by trying to slide marbles through points on a graph. Or they can plug in their own equation and see what kind of graph pops up; sliders allow students to adjust values and see what happens. Users can also click directly on the graph to find the coordinates of points of intersection, maxima, and minima.

Desmos encourages students to practice math skills as well as play with math to express their creativity. Kids can enter an unlimited number of mathematical expressions and instantly see results graphed on the page. A variety of colors and features make it possible to turn graphs into complex and realistic drawings. With a free Desmos account, students and teachers can save graphs to revisit later.

The Tasks

Desmos can be used in a range of different ways. It can be used as a free graphing calculator, saving students from purchasing a $100 calculator. Teachers can use it to make high-quality images for assessments and presentations. But the classroom activities are where Desmos really stands out. Teachers can use Desmos to help students connect mathematical concepts to concrete, real-world shapes and pictures. Starting an activity with your students is easy: Simply have the kids enter the activity code into the website. Prior to assigning an activity, try the student preview.

Teacher moves are listed at the bottom of activities, giving specific ways you can coach your kids while they're working. Progress can be monitored using the teacher dashboard. Using this information, teachers can work specifically with students one at a time or pause the whole class if most are headed down the wrong path. Desmos can also be a powerful tool in leading math discourse. Use the Snapshot tool to capture specific student responses and sequence them in the best order to drive class conversation.

EARN THAT BADGE:

Go to https://teacher.desmos.com/ and create a free account (you can sign in with google).
From there you can either search for activities or create your own to use with your students.
Once you have chosen an activity or created one, you then assign it to the students with a class code.
The students join the class by going to https://student.desmos.com and typing in the code.
The teacher can then see a live update of the students answers.
Take screenshot of the teacher dashboard when finished with the activity.

Resources:

Desmos YouTube Channel

Virtual teaching with desmos

Using desmos in remote learning

Assessments with Desmos

GET THAT BADGE!

Once you have chosen an activity or created one, you then assign it to the students with a class code. The students join the class by going to https://student.desmos.com and typing in the code. The teacher can then see a live update of the students answers. Take screenshot of the teacher dashboard when finished with the activity.

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