Linear equations in slope intercept form is a concept that spans multiple grade levels. We call this vertical alignment. Students start the learning process in 7th grade with proportional relationships. Then in 8th grade they move to rate of change and then slope. Once they hit high school, the linear equations turn into functions and the learning continues.
Having a solid foundation of linear equations in slope intercept form is vital to a success math journey.
You can read here how I scaffold linear equations for struggling students!
Level 1: The Need to Know Information
What information do students *HAVE* to know before moving into high school? This first section contains the pertinent content.
- What does m represent?
- What does b represent?
- What is the equation of a line?
After having the “head knowledge”, they have to know how to use it. Students need to be able to read a graph and create a linear equation in slope intercept form.
I am a huge advocate of scaffolding and structuring questions to help students become independent learners. That is evident in this section. The first graph has all of the lattice points drawn as well as the structure of the linear equation is already written. The other two in the “Level 1” Section don’t have these components
Each of the levels comes with its own self-grading Google Forms. This allows for teachers to use this whether they are teaching in-person, online, or in a hybrid model. The questions in the Google Forms comes directly from the review activity.
Level 2: The Main Ideas
In this section, students will review the bulk of linear equations.
- Graphing a linear equation in slope intercept form.
- Find the slope from two coordinate points.
- Create the linear equation from a table.
Level 3: Different Types of Slope
Here, students are given 3 questions that follow the same format. Given a coordinate pair and the y-intercept, find the slope and graph.
Level 4: Word Problems
Word problems can be some of the best pieces of any math concept.
Here’s why:
Word problems give a real world context. When students are able to make connections outside the math classroom, it gives the math meaning and relevance.
Plus, because of the complex nature of word problems, it is a great sign as to whether or not students truly understand the concept.
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