Area

Title:
Type:
Subject:
Grade Range:
Description:
Duration:
Teacher:

Graduated Difficulty
Lesson Plan
Mathematics
3
Area
45+ Minutes
Jessica Foster

Instructional Unit Content

Standard(s)/Element(s)
Content Area Standard
MCC3.MD.5 Recognize area as an attribute of plane figures and understand concepts of area
measurement.
MCC3.MD.7a. Find the area of a rectangle with whole-number side lengths by tiling it, and
show that the area is the same as would be found by multiplying the side lengths.
MCC3.MD.7d. Recognize area as additive. Find areas of rectilinear figures by decomposing
them into non-overlapping rectangles and adding the areas of the non-overlapping parts,
applying this technique to solve real world problems.
TAG Standard

Higher Order and Critical Thinking Skills

4. Make and evaluate decisions using criteria

Summary/Overview
The focus of this lesson is to give students the opportunity to assess their own understanding of
how to find the area of rectangles and make decisions about what they need to do to
improve their understanding/skill.

Enduring Understanding(s)
At the end of this lesson the student will understand that
a. You can find the area of a rectangle through counting square units and/or multiplying
length times width.
Essential Question(s)
How do you find the area of a rectangle? Why is it important to be able to correctly find the
area of a shape? When would someone in the real world need to be able to find out the area
of a space?

Concept(s) to Maintain

addition
multiplication
length x width =area of a rectangle

Evidence of Learning
What students should know:
a. The definition of area is how much space is inside of a shape.
b. A rectangle is a 4 sided polygon with congruent opposite sides. If you know the length of
one side, you know the length of the opposite side.
c. Multiplication facts through 9s.
d. Area is measured with square units.
e. The equation for area is length X width.
What students should be able to do:
a. Use a strategy to find the area of a rectangle. Ex: Counting square units and/or length x
width.
b. Decompose overlapping rectangles into non-overlapping rectangles and add the areas
together to get a total area.
c. Make and evaluate decisions using criteria.

Suggested Vocabulary
Length, width, rectangle, area

Procedure(s)
Phase 1: Hook
1.

What kind of floors do you have in your house (carpet, hard wood floors, etc.)? Who do you
think put the floors in? How do you think they knew how much flooring to buy from the store
to cover the floors in your house?

Phase 2: Acquiring Content

2.

Pose the Essential Question. Why is it important to be able to correctly find the area of a
shape? Gather student responses.

Explain that today we are going to learn some different strategies for finding the area of
rectangles.
4. Use the Area Flipchart to teach students the rule.
3.

Phase 3: DECIDE and Practice and DECIDE

5.

Explain You will now be given an opportunity to practice what you have learned. Because
everyone learns at a different pace, I will leave it up to you to decide which problem set is most
appropriate for you. To help you make the best choice lets consider a few questions.

Distribute the DECIDE handout and three problem sets. Provide time for students to
examine the three sets and decide which set is the most appropriate challenge to
complete.
7. Students will complete the problem set of their choice and check their work. Students who
quickly and accurately complete their selected set should try the next level. Students who
quickly and accurately complete Level C should create a more difficult Level D with a
corresponding answer sheet. They can trade problem sets with other Level D students.
8. When all students have had an opportunity to complete and check at least one problem
set, lead the students in a discussion to identify the criteria they used to make their choice,
determine if the first choice was the best choice, and determine the knowledge/skills
needed to move to the next level.
9. Each student will establish a learning goal to improve their own achievement related to
understanding and using the order of operations.
6.

Summarizing Activity
Sum It Up!: Create the most complex math problem that you can. You are going to draw a
rectangle or overlapping rectangles and include either the square units or dimensions in order
to solve for area.
Resource(s)
Anchor Text(s):
Technology:
Active Inspire Flipchart: Area
Handouts:
Handout 1: DECIDE
Handout 2: Level A Problem Set
Handout 3: Level B Problem Set
Handout 4: Level C Problem Set
Handout 5: Level D Problem Set
Handout 5: Sum It Up!
Handout 6: Level A-C Keys

Determine what you know about the skill to be practiced.

What skills or knowledge do I need to know to solve the area of a shape?

Examine the levels of difficulty and choose the level that is best for you.
What makes one level harder than the next?

What level do you think will work best for you? Why?

Check your work. Change your level or create a new level if you completed Level 3.
What was easy about the level you chose?
What was difficult about the level you chose?

Identify the criteria you used to make your choice.

What criteria did you use to select the level at which you wanted to work?
If you are given another opportunity to choose the difficulty of your class work, will
you change the criteria? Why?

Determine if you made a good choice and decide what you need to
know/understand to move to the next level.
Was your choice a good one for you? Why or why not?
What do you need to know/do to move to the next level?
__________________________________________________________________
Establish a goal for improvement.

Name: __________________________
Worksheet A
Area
a.

d.

b.

e.

h.

c.

f.

i.

Name: __________________________
Worksheet B
Area
a.

d.

g.
7

b.

e.

h.
5

c.

f.

i.
7
8

6
3

Name: __________________________
Worksheet C
Area
a.

d.

g.

3
6

4
4

2
5

4 4

b.

e.

h.
3

3
5

c.

f.

i.

3
4

6
2

4
5

Name: __________________________
Worksheet D: Create nine problems that are more difficult than
the ones that you completed on Worksheet C. Could you create
an irregular shape with three overlapping rectangles? Do not
forget to make an answer key.

Area
a.

d.

g.

b.

e.

h.

c.

f.

i.

Sum It Up!
Create a problem requiring you to solve for the area of a shape. Can
you solve for the area in more than one way?

Work the problem using what you

learned today.

Work the problem as if you had

never heard of how to solve for
area.

Name: __________________________
Worksheet A Answer Key
Area
a.

d.

9 square units

10 square units
16 square units

b.

e.

18 square units
c.

h.

12 square units
f.

8 square units

12 square units
i.

12 square units

20 square units

Name: __________________________
Worksheet B Answer Key
Area
a.

d.

g.
7

3 X 6 = 18 square units

b.

2 X 7= 14 square units
e.

4 X 8= 32 square units
h.

5
2

7 X 5= 35 square units
c.

2 X 5= 10 square units

9 X 4= 36 square units
f.

i.
7

6
3

3 X 9= 27 square units

8 X 6= 48 square units

4 X 7= 28 square units

Name: __________________________
Worksheet C Answer Key
Area
a.

d.

g.

7
3

5
6

4 4

4
2
5

7 X 3=21 square units

3 x 2=6 square units
21 + 6= 27 square units

b.

6 X 2=12 square units

7 X 4= 28 square units
12 + 28= 40 square units

5 X 1= 5 square units
5 X 4= 20 square units
20 + 5= 25 square units

e.

h.
3

3
5

8
3

6 X 3= 18 square units
2 X 1= 2 square units
18 + 2= 20 square units

c.

2
3 X 8= 24 square units
4 X 2= 8 square units
24 + 8=32 square units

2 X 3= 6 square units
8 X 3= 24 square units
6 + 24 =30 square units

f.

i.

4
3

3
4

5
6

3
3 X 7= 21 square units
3 X 3= 9 square units
21 + 9= 30 square units

3
9 X 3= 27 square units
3 X 2=6 square units
27 + 6= 33 square units

5
2 X 4= 8 square units
5 X4= 20 square units
8 + 20= 28 square units