If there's one question I can bank on hearing in conversation with students during Math lessons every single year, it's "when will I ever use this in real life?". This question is a big one and an important one; quite frankly, I welcome it with open arms because it provides opportunity for enriching discussions. When we begin Math in September, our first lessons include brainstorms on what students remember learning, symbols or images that come to mind, and also what careers utilize Mathematics.
Our school year is filled with lessons, work, activities, centers, tasks, you name it! But when it comes to spiralling learning AND connecting to real life, my Apartment Remodel Project takes the cake and is sure to be a fun and thought-provoking activity in the classroom.
The purpose of this blog post is to go into detail about the project itself and explain the steps to help guide you with this project. Please note, the project is flexible and you can always change your own copy as you see fit, based on what works for you and your students. This project can also be used for most upper elementary grades! I've used it for both grades 6 and 7!
Be sure to grab yourself a copy of the Google Slides Edition and the Google Doc Printable Edition, which are both located on the Resources page of my website!
Here are a few things to consider before starting this assignment with your class:
Students should have finished learning about all the concepts covered in this project which include area of 2-D shapes, surface area of rectangular prisms, extension questions using surface area, metric conversions including squared numbers, rounding decimal numbers, creating and explaining budgets, calculating sales tax.
I like to split the project into TWO PARTS. This is two-fold; it helps organize the students instead of overwhelming them with all the steps, and it helps split the marking for me so that I can mark the first part while students work on the second part.
This can absolutely be done digitally. I like to print mine and have students do it by hand. I just like the authenticity behind it, and they really get into the nitty gritty of solving!
There are TWO blueprints included. I've used both, but I still to the simpler one. The more advanced blueprint is a great challenge for students who excel in Mathematics.
My resource includes a PDF of floor samples that I took pictures of, however if you want your own floor samples you can always visit places like Home Depot or Rona and see what they offer! My kids have always loved going through the bin of samples and being hands-on in that aspect.
This project is a lengthy one, but there will be students who may get through it quickly. I like to use www.floorplanner.com as an extension for students who are done early, or as an optional addition. It's a great and free website to create 2D and 3D blueprints. It does take some time to familiarize yourself with how to use it but it's a great final task if needed.
If there are ANY other questions - send me a DM over Instagram - @thecheerteacher.
So, let's get started!
PART ONE:
Like I mentioned above, I like to split this project into two parts. What I'll do first is explain what parts encapsulates Part One and explain each part in some more detail.
Budget: This one is a good conversation start. We usually discuss what a budget it, where we might see or hear a budget being used, and why it's important to have a budget. We talk about what it means to have a reasonable budget as well. This may be tough since not many students will be familiar with how much things in a renovation cost! You can provide a range to assist them, or just let them use whatever number they believe works. The end of the project allows them to reflect on their original budget price. Once the budget is chosen, students are asked to explain why they chose that amount.
Floor plans: I've linked two different floor plans in both versions of this assignment. I typically only use the basic floor plan because it is a lot of work. I only assign the advanced version for any students who need a challenge and I know based on what I've seen could handle it. This is totally your discretion. I print a version for my students so they have a tangible copy and just allow them to take a look at the entire blue print. From there, they decide what three rooms they would like to remodel. You can choose any amount of rooms that works for YOU! I also have some students who choose to combine rooms to make bigger ones (e.g., combining both bedrooms for one big one), which is fine as well, but they are expected to calculate the appropriate dimensions.
Imperial versus Metric Systems Lesson: This was a new addition to the project (literally added the day I wrote this blog), after realizing that many of my students had questions about why we've been using metres in class yet the blueprints are in feet. The slides and doc provide a short explanation between both as well as how to convert from feet to metres! If you want to skip this step, you can do what I did in the past which is telling students to just ignore feet and pretend it is all in metres, despite how large this makes the room. Again, totally your call.
Converting from Feet to Metres: At this point, I get my students to highlight all their dimensions on their blueprint that have been provided. We then use our calculators and convert from feet to metres by multiplying by 0.304. I model the first one, and then allow them to do the rest while I circulate. Afterwards, we take them up together to ensure they have all the correct answers.
Redrawing Rooms: The next step is for my students to redraw the rooms they will be focusing on. They just use a ruler to draw the rooms and label dimensions accordingly.
Calculating Area: Now that all dimensions are complete and rooms are redrawn, students will calculate the area of their rooms and show each step, including what formula is used. Note that the basic blueprint includes squares and rectangles for the most part. Also, the doorways do not affect the area of the room. I typically ignore the doorway in all the work for area and surface area just to avoid more confusion.
Metric Conversions: Once students find the area in squared metres, I also challenge them to convert to squared centimetres and squared kilometres.
CHECK-IN AND HAND IN: At this point, I review with students to ensure they've done every single step. Even if it sounds repetitive. In many instances, they've forgotten to do something. If they've done it all, I collect part one.
PART TWO:
This part no longer needs much of the blueprint or information from the first part which is why I print it as a seperate package. They will need to access the areas of each room for the flooring section, and the dimensions of their living room for the very first question but that's about it!
SURFACE AREA: This includes a serious of 3 questions that focus on surface area. I ask students to solve the surface area of the living room (I provide them with the height), then a question involving how many paint cans would be needed for purchase with given amounts, and finally a cost calculation including tax for cans of paint needed. You're welcome to change what room it is but for marking purposes I make all my students do the same room.
FLOORING: At this point in the project, I pull out my bin of floor samples (reminder that I attached a PDF with samples and prices in the project as well). Students go through and choose a particular floor for each room and provide me with the name of the floor used, the cost per square metre, the cost to cover their rooms (they calculated these areas in Part One - they may need guidance to figure out how to now calculate the cost), and finally, calculate that cost with HST! I make them break down the costs step by step to help with organization but also to see if they are able to follow these steps and calculate correctly.
FURNITURE: Before this project, my students participate in an activity where they went on a "shopping spree" and had to find items to purchase and find tax for. I found that doing that activity just before this project sets them up for this particular step! As a class, we brainstorm stores where they might purchase furniture and I write these store names on the board for them to use. I ask students to find five pieces of furniture for each of their three rooms. They are required to write the name of the furniture piece (e.g., Ikea Kallax Desk White), the cost of the item before taxes, the cost after taxes, and finally the total cost of all pieves of furniture. (You may choose to let students do more, and some students ask to do more! I keep it at 5 because this project is so lengthy!)
GRAND TOTALS: This step is pretty simple given that students were prompted in earlier steps to find their floor and furniture totals for each room. It requires them to go back and write down their totals per room and finally, add them all together! It is totally your call whether or not you want students to do this with or without the use of calculators.
FINAL REFLECTION: The final piece of the project is a reflection piece. This can be modified or accommodated for students as you see fit. For example, I've had students in the past use websites like Flip (www.flip.com) or I've also had students chat with my in person to reflect while I jotted down their answers. The reflection has them comparing their budget to what was actually spent, whether it was more or less, what costs they feel weren't included in the project that they think would be a reality for a real renovation, their feelings regarding the entire project, and finally what they found was the easiest and also most difficult part of the entire task. This last question is more for me to continue improving the project for the next years to come.
EXTENSION ACTIVITY/EARLY FINISHERS:
Floor Planner is a website that I discovered years ago when I first started this project. Originally it was a a part of the project I made everyone do, the year after I didn't use it all, and then I realized it's the perfect project extension for any of my kids who need more of a challenge or the early finishers. Most of the kids get excited when I see this so it's always an option to do on their own time as well. It does take some figuring out which is what takes up a chunk of time, but once you have it figured out it is SO easy to use! You can design rooms, choose floors, furniture, windows, doors - you literally design to your heart's content. The nice part is you can save in 2D or in 3D like in the picture above. There is a free version to use too which is what we do in class!
In Conclusion:
This project has been under construction for a few years and I know that I'll continue to improve it and tweak it as I continue to use it! Should you have any questions or need more clarification you can always DM me on my Instagram page (@thecheerteacher). I hope this blog and the explanations included help and that you are able to implement this project into your classroom! If you do, be sure to tag me in it and show me the amazing things your class is doing! Happy Renovating!