Introduction to Lesson
The focus of this specific lesson is to introduce students to various types of graphs. Just a reminder that my module is targetted towards students in my Mathematics 9 class who will be entering alternative programming in grade ten (Mathematics 18).
In order to activate students’ prior knowledge on graphing, I have created a Lumi video that reviews the various forms of graphs that would have been introduced to students in elementary school. Students may or may not remember these types of graphs. When possible, I will give students the option of completing “Mild”, “Medium”, or “Spicy” work which increases in diffuculty from easy to hard. This will allow choice, and will allow for some differentiation.
Lesson Learning Objective
The module being created for the Canvas course assignment is focused on one part of the Math 9 Linear Relations unit. The portions of the lesson I will be sharing today are focused on one part of the graphing learning objective:
“Create and analyze various types of graphs: bar graphs, double bar graphs, pictographs, line graphs”
The remainder of the module will focus on other portions of the graphing learning objective which are:
- Identify the x and y axis on a coordinate plane
- Sort a set of graphs by their characteristics
- Graph points on a coordinate plane
- Collect and analyze data
Creation of Module
**Please note that I was unable to directly embed the Lumi content into this post (only paid version allows this), so please use the links or QR codes where provided.
To introduce the graphing portion of the unit, I plan to create an introduction page which summarizes the learning goals for the learning objective. On this page, I will provide students with an optional “Graphing Word Search” that I created using Lumi. This word search gives students an opportunity to explore words related to graphing, and may help to engage their mind for the section.
The first section in the series of graphing lessons will focus on analyzing and viewing various types of graph. To introduce these graphs, I will give students the option of viewing one of the three following videos that were created using Lumi: “Mild”, “Medium”, or “Spicy”. Students hopefully will make a decision of which video to watch based on their interaction with the word search and ideas presented on the introduction page. All videos are designed to take a similar amount of time for students to complete, contain similar content, and allow me the opportunity to collect data on their answers through the Canvas LMS.
This “Mild – Types of Graphs” interactive video uses animation, slow voice, and many pictures to explain each graph.
This “Medium – Types of Graphs” interactive video uses an animated story to introduce various types of graphs. I think this was my most successful attempt at using Lumi!
This “Spicy-Types of Graphs” interactive video uses more of a direct instruction approach and only reviews bar and line graphs. The overview of these graphs are more in-depth than the other two videos. Although only two types of graphs are mentioned in this video, the other graphs addressed in the other videos are incorporated into the interactions provided in this video. It is definitely a spicier video than the others!
Rationale
Lumi is a great way to introduce students to a new (or perhaps familiar) concept. The interactive video allows students to independently review and test their understanding of types of graphs through an interactive interface. Since I am trying to create a platform that is flexible for students who are learning below grade level, I want to make sure that I make students are engaged, feel that they have autonomy in their learning, and that their learning experience is similar to their classmates. The “Mild”, “Medium”, and “Spicy” option is something that is used with the entire classroom and help students to build autonomy in their learning. Additionally, I hope that students who are working AT or SLIGHTLY BELOW grade level in math can use the “Spicy” video to fill gaps and boost confidence in their own learning and understanding of graphs.
Experience with Lumi
I have to admit, Lumi has not been as easy to use as I thought it would be. I find that creating questions without being able to view the video to be a flaw in the software. However, I really like the variety in assessments, tools, and the database that Lumi provides. It is a really great program and I look forward to working with it more now that I am over the peak of the learning curve! I look forward to my students trying out the interactive videos as well!
Ms. Weisbrod's "WeisBlog" 
Thanks for sharing your experiences with Lumi, I agree that there were parts of the software that were a little difficult to work with but I appreciate how you also highlighted the opportunities Lumi provides. I really enjoyed your “spice” level of assignments. It is like the math version of “Hot Ones” haha! I can see that you are trying to make these lessons accessible to students who need extra support and having three options makes it even more adaptable to their learning needs. I find sometimes with math there is a “they either know it or they don’t” mindset and it is great to see that you are developing a course that will benefit all students.
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I love this and can’t wait to see how your course continues to develop! I too have a love for making lesson adaptable and accessible for students who aren’t “proficient” and need a break down as I was that student in high school Math class. I needed visual and rationale and couldn’t just memorize everything. Your lesson looks fantastic. I love that you see Lumi as a hook to engage students and ‘test’ their prerequisite knowledge. I am enjoying the Lumi feature that sends me the results so I can gauge where there are potential knowledge gaps in the students’ learning.
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Do you receive the results from Lumi through Canvas? If so, do you find that you have to do something specific when you embed your Lumi into Canvas in order to collect the results?
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“Mild, Medium or Spicy” I love that! This is definitely something I can see myself using. My students love quirky little things like that! Great job in allowing for student choice. I really appreciate student choice and it definitely helps with student engagement and ownership. Students can chose assignments to boost confidence by picking a mild one or challenge themselves to the spicy version of the assignment.
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I know I commented on this previously, but I LOVE your “spice” levels. This is amazing and something I would like to incorporate into my classroom in the fall, how fun! I think this is a great way to provide student choice and further, challenge your students. Do you think you will continue to use Lumi moving forward?
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Thank-you, Raegyn! The students respond really well to the spice level options! I would definitely like to explore some of the other features of Lumi as I create activities for the rest of my module. There seems to be so many opportunities for content creation!
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Like everyone else here, I think your different “spice” aka difficulty levels is awesome! As I recall you writing in your previous blog, student learning gaps are becoming more and more pronounced and so having these different “levels” is a great way to meet students where they are at. Do you do stations in Math 9 where you could potentially have a station with these Lumi videos, for example?
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Hi Kayla,
I don’t currently run stations in grade 9 math. I do however try to incorporate some Building Thinking Classrooms work into my lessons which is where the spice levels came from. I hope to one days use stations once I have taught the content for a few years!
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