
We’ve all been there. Your students are working on math problem and come across the most unrealistic scenario ever. As teachers, we want to prepare our students for the real world! Therefore, we want to expose them to real-life scenarios in our everyday instruction.
So, that leads me to today’s post. Let’s chat a little bit about Project-Based Learning and why it has been such a game changer in my math classroom.
What is Project-Based Learning? (PBL)
Project-based learning (PBL) is a student-centered teaching approach in which students explore real-world problems and scenarios. Students work on a series of open-ended challenges to arrive at a solution for their problem.
The Benefits of Project-Based Learning in the Math Classroom:
Students apply the content and skills that they’ve learned to real-world examples.
Develops problem-solving skills
Encourages critical thinking
Provides opportunities for team work and collaboration
Promotes self-directed learning and exploration
Instills leadership in young learners
Project-based learning activities increase student engagement.
Planning a Math Project-Based Learning in the Classroom:

When planning a collaborative project-based learning activity for your students, you’ll want to start with the end in mind.
What do you want your students to learn or be able to do by the end of the activity?
Create a problem that students will encounter in the future. Do you want them to work with money? Have them start their own business!
Give students an allotted budget and have them design their own restaurant. Some elements of PBL might seem like “role playing” since students will be shifting their perspective to that of a business owner.
Then, decide how you will evaluate students on the solution to their problem.
Your PBL activity might not necessarily have a right or wrong answer. You’ll want to evaluate students based on their creativity, ability to think critically, and overall application of skills.

What are Some Examples of Project-Based Learning?

Dog Groomer Project-Based Learning
Your students will apply third grade math skills while starting their own Pet Grooming business.
Pet Groomer PBL
Challenge:
Your students are opening up their own pet grooming business! Students will explore a business-owner mindset to manage and maintain their grooming center.

Real-World Math Scenarios Included:
Plan and design the grooming center layout
Hire a company to place turf in their playground area
Purchase supplies for their center while staying within their budget
Hire employees to run their business
Calculate employee salaries
Plan out advertisements for their business
Calculate daily sales
Create employee schedules
Analyze monthly sales & graph data
Standards & Skills Targeted:
This PBL targets third and fourth grade standards. Students will need to apply addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, measurement (area), data, and elapsed time skills for this activity. For a complete list of targeted standards, check out the full resource listing here.

This Pet Grooming Project-Based Learning activity is now available in DIGITAL format!


Diner Restaurant Project-Based Learning
Your students will apply third grade math skills while starting their own Diner Restaurant business.
Build and Manage a Diner Restaurant PBL
Challenge:
In this project-based learning activity, students are building and running their own diner restaurant. This PBL is perfect for the month of February!

Real-World Math Scenarios Included:
Plan and design the layout of the diner restaurant
Write Checks to the contractors
Hire employees
Calculate employee salaries and hours worked
Plan out advertisements
Calculate daily sales using receipts
Count customer money and provide change
Analyze monthly sales and graph data
Standards & Skills Targeted:
This PBL targets third and fourth grade standards. Students will need to apply addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, measurement (area), data, and elapsed time skills for this activity. For a complete list of targeted standards, check out the full resource listing here.

This Diner Resturant Project-Based Learning activity is now available in DIGITAL format!


Camping Project-Based Learning
Your students will apply second grade math skills to plan out a camping trip with their friends. This cross-curricular project-based learning includes math, writing, and STEM components.
Camping PBL
Challenge:
Your students have decided to go on a camping trip! They will use real-life math skills to plan, design, and explore on their trip.

Real-World Math Scenarios Included:
Create a park map
Brainstorming and plan out camping essentials
Use time cards to create a camping schedule
Purchase camping supplies with a budget in mind
Use a compass to design the campground
Analyze photos of animals and create graphs with the data
Measuring animals & plotting the data
Solving different word problems with camping scenarios
Writing a s’more recipe
Extension Activities Included:
Shoe box diorama model of the park
STEM Challenge- Build your own tent
Animal Research
Standards & Skills Targeted:
This PBL targets 2nd-3rd grade standards. Students will need to apply addition, subtraction, graphing, measurement, money, telling time, and direction skills to complete this camping project-based learning activity. For a complete list of targeted standards, check out the full resource here.

Organizing a PBL:
As you can see, a PBL can be a long-term project. However, they are designed so that students can work collaboratively on different elements during short periods of time. The project may take a total of 1-2 weeks to complete since they are working on each section for about 30 minutes per day. The beauty of it is that each activity builds on the previous activity
On Monday, they might work on designing the layout of their business.
Tuesday, they’ll work on purchasing supplies for their business.
Wednesday, they’ll brainstorm ways to hire employees and calculate salaries.
etc…
You’ll want to create some kind of organizational system where students can keep their activities and can easily access them each day. I like to create PBL Booklets with all of the pages the students will be working on each day. This binding machine is a life saver! I use it to bind everything for my students.
I hope this post inspires you to try out a project-based learning activity in your math classroom. PBL is a great student-centered approach that targets those high-achieving learners in your classroom.
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