As they work with the materials, students explore different relationships as they convince others that their box holds the most. 3-dimensional figures made from wood by the grandfather of one of the students. First they observe and feel the differences, then verbally compare the objects in cooperative groups. Students are asked to construct shapes in any way they wish. The shapes to be constructed are cubes, cylinders, triangular prisms, rectangular prisms, and spheres.
Students become creative in solving the problem of how to construct a sphere.
Some students use a partially inflated balloon, others make wads of aluminum foil. Still others overlap and connect metal rings for holding loose-leaf paper. As a culminating activity, the many shapes are labeled and hung together to make mobiles, which are hung in the hallway for everyone to see. Examples of Student Learning Students build shapes with toothpicks and 1 cm clay balls. They make geopanes by hanging the shapes on thread and dipping them into a mixture of water and soap.