This past weekend I was contacted about creating a Pythagorean Theorem Solve and Snip. It was on my list of many but was probably a lot further down that any time soon so I decided that I would take time this weekend to create it and get it up. As I was going through making the activity, it reminded me of a story that I am NOW able to say is funny. When it happened, not so much.
So roll back to Summer of 2009…. I was interviewing like crazy down in the Austin area and had received an interview at a Middle School to be a math teacher. The interview was going great. I loved the administration and the building was beautiful. Yea, the interview was going great until they asked me how I would teach various topics. Fractions… no brainer! Problem Solving… got it! and the last one… Pythagorean Theorem. I went BRAIN DEAD!
Sitting there in the interview, I had to find a way to say “I don’t quite remember what that is but I know that I would research the topic and present a lesson that was engaging and meaningful to my students.” Yea, didn’t quite get that job. Needless to say, whenever Pythagorean Theorem comes up now (yes, 4 years later) the story comes back up and we all get a good laugh. And, if you are wondering, yes, I know what it is now and actually LOVE teaching it.
So when I started working on the Pythagorean Theorem Solve and Snip it of course came up once again. I’m pleased to say that each of the 10 problems in the Pythagorean Solve and Snip have been worked out well and are all from real life experiences which of course makes it that much more interesting. If you haven’t checked out my Solve and Snips before, each of them include a total of 10 word problems formatted to be run on a piece of paper double sided. There is room to show your work and then a third column for the answer. That third column is what makes the activity interactive.
Each Solve and Snip comes with a sheet of answer choices with enough for 4 students per page. I normally copy these on colored paper before cutting them into fourths for my students. The great thing about this is that it is pretty self-checking because if something is wrong the answers won’t work out correctly! Each Solve and Snip also comes with a full page answer key for both sides of the assignment for easy checking.
I have created quite a compilation of Solve and Snips and actually really love making them because my students (and so many others that have purchased them) enjoy working with these as they are engaging, quick and cover a skill to determine how well a student understands the topic. Feel free to check out my entire collection of Solve and Snips in my Teachers Pay Teachers Store or Teachers Notebook Store today.
And now, this and all of my other Solve and Snips are available in Spanish! If you are Bilingual or ESL teacher this will be perfect for your students as well!
