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Lesson 3
Part 1: Planning for the Lesson

A: Standards

i. Key Content Standard:

5.MD.5c. Recognize volume as additive. Find volumes of solid figures composed of two non-
overlapping right rectangular prisms by adding the volumes of the non-overlapping parts, applying this
technique to solve real world problems.

B. Objectives

i. Learning Objective/Goal: The students will (DO __) to (LEARN ___).

Students will find the volume of rectangular prisms and solve real-world mathematical problems using
the volume of composite figures.

ii. Language Objective (transfer this from "Incorporating Academic Language"):

Students will explain the steps to find the volume of a composite figure.

C. Assessments:

i. Informal assessment strategies you will use during class (What informal assessment
strategies will you use, what specific evidence will you see and/or hear and how will you
note it?)
Assessment Strategy Evidence of Student Learning
Teacher will record notes of student
thinking and areas of
competency/struggle during group work
Anecdotal notes
as well as individual work. When needed,
teacher will verbally clarify with a student
his/her thinking.
Students will draw their figure (two boxes
put together) and measure the length,
width, and height. Students will apply
those measurements to the formula l x w
x h = volume to find the volume of each
prism. Then, students will add the
Recording sheet
volumes of the prisms together to find the
volume of the entire figure.
Students will complete real-world
problems posted around the classroom
using their knowledge of solving additive
volume problems.

ii. Written assessment you will use to determine, for each individual student, to what extent
they have met your learning objectives. (What evidence will you collect?)
Students will work individually to complete various mathematical problems and real-world problems
that require an understanding of how to find the volume of a composite figure. At the end of class,
each student will submit their recording sheet which will be the form of assessment.

D. Lesson Resources/Materials (e.g., student handouts, manipulatives, PPTs, text pages,

special supplies)
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Volume poster
- New additions: How to find the volume of a composite figure
- 1. separate the two prisms 2. find the volume of the first prism 3. find the volume of the second
prism 4. add the two volumes together
Vocabulary chart
- New additions: additive volume
Boxes of various sizes
- Same boxes that were used in Lesson 1 and 2
- Now, sets of 2 boxes are attached using velcro to create one figure (this figure is representing
additive volume)
Rulers
“Real world” word problems
- Put up around the classroom
Recording sheet with blank white paper attached
- Same recording sheet as Lesson 2
“Finding Volume” worksheet (Teaching to Inspire, Jennifer Findley, 2017)
Whiteboards and markers

Part 2: Instructional Sequence - Engaging Students in the Learning Process

Introduction (10 min.):

● Show students 3 boxes of various sizes. Tell students the scenario, “I am moving to a new house and
need to pack up my stuff. I have 3 boxes and need to find how much stuff I can fill in all three boxes.”
Ask the students what this scenario is asking us to find (answer: volume); have students turn and talk
to their group members. Have groups share their contributions in a class discussion.
- Scaffold students towards understanding that we can find the volume of three boxes by finding
the volume of each box and then adding them together. Explain to students that this is called
additive volume. Read the definition of additive volume from the vocabulary chart (additive
volume: determining the volume of multiple shapes or an irregular shape made up of
rectangular prisms).
● Tell students that the learning objective of the day is “Students will find the volume of multiple
rectangular prisms to learn how to find the volume of composite figures in solving real world and
mathematical problems”; write the learning objective on the board.

Body of the Lesson (30 minutes): Describe step-by-step what the teacher and the students will be
doing during the lesson.
● If students seem comfortable and have reached a level of automaticity in finding the volume of
multiple rectangular prisms, pose the scenario to students; “My mom came by my house and helped
me pack my boxes. She brought me 3 additional boxes that were the same size as the first three.
What is my new volume?” Proceed with the same protocol as above, scaffolding students towards
understanding that the volume can be found by adding again the same set of volumes from the first
three boxes. Ask students if they can think of another way to find the volume, instead of using addition
(answer: double, or multiplying by 2, the original volume of the first set of boxes).
● Show students a model (two rectangular prism boxes velcroed together); explain that this is a
composite figure. Instruct students to draw the model in their notebooks and label the length, width,
and height (provided by teacher). Then, separate the two boxes. Then, reattach the boxes together.
Tell the students that the objective is to determine the volume of the whole model.
- Have groups work together to find the volume of the composite figure. Call on groups to share
their contributions to the class by explaining the steps they took.
- Discuss that the volume of a model can be found by finding the volumes of two rectangular
prisms. Again, separate the model into two rectangular prisms. Ask students what the length,
width, and height of each prism is. Draw the two rectangular prisms on the board, labeling the
length, width, and height. Have students find the volume of each rectangular prism if they have
not done so yet.
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- Ask students what the next step would be after we have found the volume of both prisms
(answer: add them together). Have the whole class chorally say the total volume.
● Put rulers and the various models on each group table (models: boxes velcroed to each other) and
show students the word problems hung up on the wall. Instruct students to find the volume of the
boxes; specify that they are allowed to take the boxes apart as long as they are reattached. Pass out
the recording sheet and ask students if they have any questions on what their task is.
● Instruct students to complete the word problems on the blank paper of attached to their to recording
sheet. Tell students that they are working individually to solve these problems.
● While students are working individually, work in a small group with focus students based on their
results from the Lesson 2 assessment and discuss feedback given.
- Have the focus students bring their whiteboard and markers to the U-table in the classroom
- Tell students that our goal is to revisit yesterday’s objective to ensure that they can complete
today’s objective
- Pass back student work samples from Lesson 2 and allow students time to read the feedback
written on his/her work sample. Ask students to share 2 main takeaways from the feedback
that they will work on addressing during this small-group activity.
- Review the material covered in Lesson 2. Use the worksheet “Finding Volume” to review with
students how to find the volume of a rectangular prism. First, have the students find the
volume by counting out each cubic unit. Then, have students find the length, width, and height
and input it into the volume formula. Ask students if the two ways of finding volume resulted in
the same volume.
- Show students another volume problem and have them complete individually, using the
volume formula. Have students check their answer by counting each individual cube.
- Review composite volume by showing students a model (2 boxes put together). Have students
in the small group take turns explaining the steps for finding the volume.
- Show students another model and ask them to work individually to find the volume.
- Review student answers. If students completed the problem correctly, dismiss them to work on
the class activity.
- If needed, work with student/s who are still struggling. Use unit cubes to create a composite
figure and have students deconstruct the figure to make two rectangular prisms. Guide the
student through finding the volume of each figure, and then adding the two volumes together
to find the total volume.
● Continue to monitor student work; provide feedback and assistance as necessary.

Closure (5 minutes):
● After the allotted time, have students return to their desk.
● Collect recording sheets from the students.
● Have students Think-Pair-Share with their group members about what they learned from today’s
lesson. Ask students to connect today’s learning objective with yesterday’s learning objective
- “Was yesterday’s learning objective necessary to achieve today’s learning objective? Did
today’s learning objective build on yesterday’s? What is new about today’s learning objective?”)
● Tell students to explain to a partner how he/she found the volume of a composite figure using the
sentence starters, “First I________. Then I ______. Lastly I ________.”
- Model a Think-Aloud of the questions one would ask him/herself to identify the information to
include in the sentence frames.]

Part 3: Incorporating Academic Language

1. Describe the rich learning task(s) related to the content learning objective.
- Students will find the volume of composite figures by measuring the length, width, and height
of each rectangular prism and applying the volume formula. Then, students will add the two
volumes together to give the total volume of the composite figure.

2. Language Function:
Explain
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3. Language Demands:
Vocabulary: measurement, rectangular prism, volume, length, width, height, multiply, “x”
symbol, “=” symbol
Key to this lesson: composite figure, added/addition

Syntax1: NA

Discourse2: Students provided with the sentence starters, “First I________. Then I ______.
Lastly I ________.”]

4. Language Objective:
Students will explain the steps to find the volume of a composite figure.

5. Language Support: What instructional strategies will you use during your lesson to teach the
specific language skill and provide support and opportunities for guided and independent
practice?
Instruction Guided Practice Independent Practice
-Pre-teach vocab terms; - Think-Pair-Share - Think-Pair-Share
provide pictures and definition - Sentence frames to use - Students explain with a
- Model a think-aloud during discussion/lesson partner the steps taken to find
the volume of a composite
figure using the sentence
frames
- Flexible group-work

1
Use of a variety of sentence types to clarify a message, condense information, and combine ideas, phrases, and clauses.
2
Discourse includes the structures of written and oral language, as well as how member of the discipline talk, write, and
participate in knowledge construction.