Tell students that you have constructed a building
with a volume of six cubic units but that you are not
going to show them your building.
Can you use 6 cubes and construct a building that
you can be sure is exactly like the building I made?
Explain your thinking. (Possible response: I can
make another building with a volume of 6 cubic
units but since there are many possible ways to
construct the building it may not be exactly like
your building.)
What other information would be helpful to help you
build the same building? (Possible response: It
would help to know the number of floors that the
building has and how many cubes are on each
floor. It would also help to see the building that
you made.)
The number sentence for my building is [3 + 2 + 1]. Can you be sure to build an exact copy now?
(No. There are a few ways to put 3 on the bottom floor.)
Show students the building that you constructed and ask them to build another building that is exactly the
same. Ask them to suggest a number sentence that describes the volume of the building.
Assign the Two Buildings page in the Student Activity Book. Students can complete the page independently or with a partner.
Use the
Two Buildings pages in the
Student Activity Book to
assess students’ abilities to represent the volume of objects
using connecting cubes and symbols [E2]; measure volume
by building models and counting cubic units [E3]; and
recognize that different shapes can have the same volume
[E5].
