The Environment and the Earth class at the University of South Carolina participated in a campus environmental service-learning project where students collected data lighting, water fixtures, recycling bins, and trash in five academic buildings.

An important property of linear functions is that they grow by equal differences over equal intervals. In this task students prove this for equal intervals of length one unit, and note that in this case the equal differences have the same value as the slope. In F.LE Equal Differences over Equal Intervals 2, students prove the property in general (for equal intervals of any length).

An important property of linear functions is that they grow by equal differences over equal intervals. In this task students prove this for equal intervals of length one unit, and note that in this case the equal differences have the same value as the slope.

In this task students prove that linear functions grow by equal differences over equal intervals, and that exponential functions grow by equal factors over equal intervals.

This task helps students understand the meaning of the equal sign and to use it appropriately.

This task asks students to use inverse operations to solve the equations for the unknown variable, or for the designated variable if there is more than one. Two of the equations are of physical significance and are examples of Ohm's Law and Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation.

This task requires students to use the fact that on the graph of the linear equation y=ax+c, the y-coordinate increases by a when x increases by one. Specific values for c and d were left out intentionally to encourage students to use the above fact as opposed to computing the point of intersection, (p,q), and then computing respective function values to answer the question.

In this problem students must transform expressions using the distributive, commutative and associative properties to decide which expressions are equivalent.

This is a standard problem phrased in a non-standard way. Rather than asking students to perform an operation, expanding, it expects them to choose the operation for themselves in response to a question about structure. The problem aligns with A-SSE.2 because it requires students to see the factored form as a product of sums, to which the distributive law can be applied.

The purpose of this task is to directly address a common misconception held by many students who are learning to solve equations. Because a frequent strategy for solving an equation with fractions is to multiply both sides by a common denominator (so all the coefficients are integers), students often forget why this is an "allowable" move in an equation and try to apply the same strategy when they see an expression.

In this interactive activity a user identifies two pairs of equivalent fractions for a given random fraction or one of the player's own and the user creates their representations by dividing and shading either a square or circular region. The fractions are shown as locations on the number line and their equivalency is demonstrated when they are at the same point. The user has the ability to construct a table of equivalent fractions. Instructions and exploration questions are given.

The purpose of the task is to get students to reflect on the definition of decimals as fractions (or sums of fractions), at a time when they are seeing them primarily as an extension of the base-ten number system and may have lost contact with the basic fraction meaning. Students also have their understanding of equivalent fractions and factors reinforced.

The accuracy and simplicity of this experiment are amazing. A wonderful project for students, which would necessarily involve team work with a different school and most likely a school in a different state or region of the country, would be to try to repeat Eratosthenes' experiment.

This activity is a field investigation where students find real-life examples of erosion in their school surroundings. Students will extend what they learned during stream table lessons about erosion, deposition, deltas, meandering streams, and dams.

In this math activity, learners are presented with a problem: two bowls are suspended from the ceiling by springs. One bowl is lower than the other. In one bowl, you can only place marbles; in the other bowl, you can only place bingo chips. Learners investigate how many items must be placed in each bowl so that the heights of the bowls are the same, and in doing so, solve a system of linear equations. This lesson guide includes questions for learners, assessment options, extensions, and reflection questions.

This article explores the alignment of the sixth essential principle of the climate sciences to national science education standards and its connections to the K-5 curriculum. The article also identifies some common misconceptions young students have about weather and climate. The free online magazine Beyond Weather and the Water Cycle focuses on the topics that are appropriate for young learners and introduce them to climate literacy concepts.

The task is designed to show that random samples produce distributions of sample means that center at the population mean, and that the variation in the sample means will decrease noticeably as the sample size increases. Random sampling (like mixing names in a hat and drawing out a sample) is not a new idea to most students, although the terminology is likely to be new.

This Illuminations activity focuses on making predictions and the collection and analysis of data by having students take their pulse after different exercises. All individual data is collected in a classroom chart where the results are interpreted and conclusions drawn. The lesson includes a student worksheet and extension questions.

In this unit, students use online pan balances to study equality, order of operations, numerical and variable expressions, and other key algebraic concepts. Lessons focus on balancing shapes to study equality and equivalence; balancing algebraic understanding, to explore simplifying expressions; and balancing algebra, to determine if algebraic expressions are equal.

Simple machines are devices with few or no moving parts that make work easier, and which people have used to provide mechanical advantage for thousands of years. Students learn about the wedge, wheel and axle, lever, inclined plane, screw and pulley in the context of the construction of a pyramid, gaining insights into tools that have been used since ancient times and are still important today. Through numerous hands-on activities, students imagine themselves as ancient engineers building a pyramid. Student teams evaluate and select a construction site, design a pyramid, perform materials calculations, test a variety of cutting wedges on different materials, design a small-scale cart/lever transport system to convey building materials, experiment with the angle of inclination and pull force on an inclined plane, see how a pulley can change the direction of force, and learn the differences between fixed, movable and combined pulleys. While learning the steps of the engineering design process, students practice teamwork, creativity and problem solving.