Algebra - Forming Expressions - Presentation

In a comprehensive algebra lesson focused on forming expressions, students are invited to delve deeper into the world of algebra by building upon their understanding of function machines. The lesson begins with an engaging discussion where students are encouraged to contemplate the meaning of 'expression' within the context of algebra. Using visual aids such as cubes, the students learn to represent algebraic expressions and understand how these representations correlate with function machines. For instance, they explore how an input, when processed through a function machine that adds 4, yields an output expressed as 'y + 4'. The lesson is designed to be interactive and thought-provoking, prompting students to apply Tia's method of using cubes to represent the output for various function machines when the input is 'a'.

As the lesson progresses, students encounter a variety of activities that further enhance their algebraic reasoning skills. Leanna's method introduces lolly images as a tool for writing expressions for function machines, offering a different visual approach. Students are tasked with using this method to determine the output for given inputs, such as 'a' through function machines that multiply by 7 or add 5. In a more complex task, Zach's method challenges students to write expressions for two-step function machines that combine multiplication and addition operations. The lesson also includes reasoning exercises, where students must analyze whether two different function machines would yield the same result for a given input. Independent work reinforces the concepts taught, as students use cubes to represent function machines and explore the relationships between different algebraic expressions, such as the equivalence of '2a + 6' and '6 + 2a'.