Follow, devise, and describe practical lists of instructions. Students follow directions for a trip within the classroom - for example, students are asked where they would end up if they started at a given spot facing in a certain direction, took three steps forward, turned left, took two steps forward, turned right, and moved forward three more steps. Students follow oral directions for going from the classroom to the lunchroom, and represent these directions with a diagram. Students agree on a procedure for filling a box with rectangular blocks. Students explore the question of finding the shortest route from school to home on a diagram like the one pictured below, laid out on the floor using masking tape, where students place a number of counters on each line segment to represent the length of that segment.
Students find a way through a simple maze.
They discuss the different paths they took and their reasons for doing so. Students use Logo software to give the turtle precise instructions for movement in specified directions. References Baratta-Lorton, Mary. Mathematics Their Way . Addison Wesley, 1993.