Engage

Launch the Engage Section

ACTS is what the teacher will do and ASKS is how the teacher will facilitate.

ACTS	ASKS
On the board, draw a picture of a treasure map without lines with two spots for a treasure. See the example on Slide 4 in the Lab 1 Image Slideshow. As students start to talk to each other, begin to draw the next map (see an example in the Lab 1 Image Slideshow) that is in a grid style with numbers at the top and alphabet letters at the left side. Put a dot on 1A and 3C. Show the students the Battle Boats printout. Callout the coordinate plane on the page and show the x and y axis of the plane (also in the Lab 1 Image Slideshow). Point to the coordinates 3C. Scan your finger to show the x axis is the number 3 and the y axis is the letter c.	Have you ever gone a treasure hunt? Did you use a map? How were you able to read the map? For many treasure hunters, maps help them locate areas that could have the treasure. Maps have lines that are on the x and y axis. Let’s draw one and now I’m going to put numbers at the top and letters at the side of the map. Now, looking at this second map, what changes do you see? Which map do you prefer and why? If I told you to go to 1A would you know where to go? What if I told you a buried treasure was in 3C would you be able to find it? This map is called a coordinate plane. This map has an x axis and a y axis. Today we are going to learn about coordinate planes. Coordinate planes are used throughout mathematics to help us understand geometry and algebra. Coordinates like “3C” determine where a point is located on a coordinate plane. Today we will be making our own coordinate plane to plot points on.

ACTS

ASKS

On the board, draw a picture of a treasure map without lines with two spots for a treasure. See the example on Slide 4 in the Lab 1 Image Slideshow.
As students start to talk to each other, begin to draw the next map (see an example in the Lab 1 Image Slideshow) that is in a grid style with numbers at the top and alphabet letters at the left side. Put a dot on 1A and 3C.
Show the students the Battle Boats printout. Callout the coordinate plane on the page and show the x and y axis of the plane (also in the Lab 1 Image Slideshow).
Point to the coordinates 3C. Scan your finger to show the x axis is the number 3 and the y axis is the letter c.

Have you ever gone a treasure hunt? Did you use a map? How were you able to read the map? For many treasure hunters, maps help them locate areas that could have the treasure.
Maps have lines that are on the x and y axis. Let’s draw one and now I’m going to put numbers at the top and letters at the side of the map. Now, looking at this second map, what changes do you see? Which map do you prefer and why? If I told you to go to 1A would you know where to go? What if I told you a buried treasure was in 3C would you be able to find it? This map is called a coordinate plane. This map has an x axis and a y axis.
Today we are going to learn about coordinate planes. Coordinate planes are used throughout mathematics to help us understand geometry and algebra.
Coordinates like “3C” determine where a point is located on a coordinate plane. Today we will be making our own coordinate plane to plot points on.

Getting the Students Ready to Build

Now, it’s time to build our very own coordinate plane, called Battle Boats! Now, let’s get building so we can start playing and plotting points.

Facilitate the Build

InstructInstruct students to join their group, and have them complete the Robotics Roles & Routines sheet.
DistributeDistribute build instructions to each group.

Battle Boats build
FacilitateFacilitate building process. Have Builders and Journalists follow their responsibilities outlined in the Lab 1 image Slideshow.
OfferOffer suggestions and note positive group building and problem solving strategies as groups build together.

Teacher Troubleshooting

Keep an Eye Out - Remind students to look for the eye indicators in the Build Instructions. They note places where the orientation of pieces is important in a successful build. If students are having trouble with things fitting together properly, first ask if their pieces are lined up correctly, and if they match the Build Instruction images. Checking this for each step can help prevent frustration at later points in the build.
Putting the Sheet on the Build - Show students during the beginning of Engage how to push the pins through the paper. By modeling this, students will have a better understanding when they are attaching the sheet to the grey plates.

Facilitation Strategies

Encourage Thoughtful Building in the Whole Group - As students are building, ask questions about the process to help them think about why pieces are going together in this particular way. For instance, questions about why the connectors are used instead of beams for the side walls, or what helps the build stop being movable, enable students in all roles to be engaged in the building process.
Strategy Shine Time - If one group gets done with the build, encourage those students to walk around and offer tips and strategies to other students. Allowing for these students to shine also gives more hands to help for groups that are slower at building.
Use the Get Ready...Get VEX...GO! PDF Book and Teacher’s Guide - If students are new to VEX GO, read the PDF book and use the prompts in the Teacher’s Guide (Google / .pptx / .pdf) to facilitate an introduction to building and using VEX GO before beginning the Lab activities. Students can join their groups and gather their VEX GO Kits, and follow along with the building activity within the book as you read.
- Use the Teacher’s Guide to facilitate student engagement. To focus on VEX GO connections in a more concrete or tangible way, use the Share, Show, or Find prompts on each page to give students an opportunity to get to know their kits in more depth.
- To focus on the habits of mind that support building and learning with VEX GO, like persistence, patience, and teamwork, use the Think prompts on each page to engage students in conversations about mindset and strategies to support successful group work and creative thinking.
- To learn more about using the PDF book and accompanying Teacher’s Guide as a teaching tool any time you are using VEX GO in your classroom, see this VEX Library article.

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