few_shots: Example:
Problem/activity:
Narrative
The purpose of this activity is for students to create composite shapes and compose new shapes from composite shapes. For example, students may find that a rectangular prism can be made from four triangular prisms or from eight smaller cubes. Students then discover that they can combine two of the composed rectangular prisms to make a new rectangular prism.
Required Materials
Materials to Gather
Geoblocks
Launch
Groups of 4
Give each group geoblocks.
Display a large cube.
“This cube can be built from other shapes. See how many ways you can build a cube using other shapes.”
3 minutes: partner work time
Share responses.
Activity
“Choose a different shape. Try to find smaller shapes you can use to build that shape.”
5 minutes: partner work time
Student Response
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click here to register or sign in
for free access to Student Response.
Activity Synthesis
Display a cube and a composite cube—for example, a cube composed of four small cubes and one rectangular prism.
Demonstrate putting the shapes together.
“What new shape did I make with the cube and the cube I made?”
“Put your shapes together to make a rectangular prism.”
Display a rectangular prism and two triangular prisms.
“Find these shapes. Put them together. What new shape can you make?” (a cube, a rectangular block)


Standard options: 
A. Partition circles and rectangles into two and four equal shares, describe the shares using the words halves, fourths, and quarters, and use the phrases half of, fourth of, and quarter of. Describe the whole as two of, or four of the shares. Understand for these examples that decomposing into more equal shares creates smaller shares.
B. Distinguish between defining attributes (e.g., triangles are closed and three-sided) versus non-defining attributes (e.g., color, orientation, overall size); build and draw shapes to possess defining attributes.
C. Compose two-dimensional shapes (rectangles, squares, trapezoids, triangles, half-circles, and quarter-circles) or three-dimensional shapes (cubes, right rectangular prisms, right circular cones, and right circular cylinders) to create a composite shape, and compose new shapes from the composite shape. (Students do not need to learn formal names such as “right rectangular prism.”)


Your response, in json format:
{
  "explanation": "This activity asks students to compose three-dimensional shapes, using geoblocks, to create composite shapes.",
  "answer": "C"
}

Now, assign the following problem or activity to one or more relevant standards it aligns with.
shot_info: im_lesson_009431

1
options: Write simple expressions that record calculations with numbers, and interpret numerical expressions without evaluating them. For example, express the calculation “add 8 and 7, then multiply by 2” as 2 × (8 + 7). Recognize that 3 × (18932 + 921) is three times as large as 18932 + 921, without having to calculate the indicated sum or product.

Use parentheses, brackets, or braces in numerical expressions, and evaluate expressions with these symbols.
problem_activity: Narrative
The goal of this activity is to represent expressions as decompositions of a figure made of two non-overlapping right rectangular prisms. This gives students an opportunity to interpret parentheses in expressions while also checking their understanding of different ways to represent the volume of rectangular prism; namely, length times width times height and area of a base times the corresponding height.
Students work abstractly and quantitatively in this problem (MP2) as they relate abstract expressions to decompositions of figures composed of two rectangular prisms.
MLR7 Compare and Connect.
Invite students to think about details they can include that will help others understand their thinking. For example, specific language, using different colors, shading, arrows, labels, notes, diagrams or drawings. Give students time to investigate each others’ work. During the whole-class discussion, ask, “What kinds of details or language helped you understand your partner’s work?”
Advances: Representing, Conversing
Launch
Groups of 2
“Look at the first figure and think about how you might decompose it into 2 prisms.”
1 minute: quiet think time
“Now you will consider how different expressions can represent the volume of figures.”
Activity
5 minutes: independent work time
5 minutes: partner discussion time
Monitor for students who
use the numbers in the expressions to determine how to break up the figure
break up the figure and use this to identify the expressions.
Student Facing
Explain how each expression represents the volume of the figure. Show your thinking. Organize it so it can be followed by others.
\(((2 \times 3) \times4) + ((3 \times 3) \times 2)\)
\((5 \times 6) + (3 \times 4)\)
[IMG]
How does each expression represent the volume of the prism? Explain or show your thinking. Organize it so it can be followed by others.
\((5\times8\times6) + (5\times4\times9)\)
cubic inches
\((5\times4\times3) + (5\times12\times6)\)
cubic inches
[IMG]
Student Response
Teachers with a valid work email address can
click here to register or sign in
for free access to Student Response.
Advancing Student Thinking
If students do not describe how the expressions represent the volume of the figure, show them part of the expression, the numbers inside the parentheses for example, and ask them to explain which part of the figure is represented.
Activity Synthesis
Invite students to share how the expressions for the first prism represent its volume.
“Why are there 3 factors in the expression
\((2 \times 3) \times 4)\)
but only 2 factors in the expression
\((5 \times 6)\)
?” (The 2, 3, and 4 are the length, width, and height of the prism in the back. The 5 is the height of the prism on bottom whose base area is 6.)
“In the expression
\((3 \times 3) \times 2\)
, what do the parentheses tell you?” (They tell me to first multiply 3 times 3, which gives me the area of the base, and then I multiply that by 2 to get the volume of the prism.)


correct_option_index: 0