What suggestion can you offer for enhancing a specific lesson of a Glencoe mathematics text? Ideas may include using concrete objects to illustrate concepts, working with cooperative groups, incorporating ongoing assessment, or any other strategy that you have used successfully in your classroom.

Example: This activity was written by a teacher using the 1995 edition of Mathematics: Applications and Connections, Course 2, lesson 7-4, pages 263-265. The lesson is entitled "Adding Integers."

"I used students holding a positive or negative sign instead of using counters. Students took turns in front of the room displaying their signs. Those at their seats wrote the addition sentence shown by the human counters. Those remaining after zero pairs sat down represented the answer."

Course 2/Lesson 1-7: Eric J., Teacher
Navarre, OH
"Prior to starting this lesson, I ask students to evaluate an expression on paper and then using a calculator. The differences in answers make students realize that the calculator knows the order of operations and how important it is."

Course 2/Lesson 2-6: Maryanne H., Teacher
Madison, CT
"I introduce the use of negative exponents as an extension of this lesson. Students don't need an understanding of integers, and the concept is connected to decimals which is what this chapter is all about."

Course 2/Lesson 2-8: Marshalyn B., Teacher
Oakland, ME
"Students brought several different calculators to class and, using the 'Calculator Hint', determined whether each one rounded or truncated the results. The students also determined what percent rounded and what percent truncated. Then they discussed the value and disadvantages of each kind."

Course 2/Lesson 2-9: Diane H., Education Technologist
Fort Benning, GA
"To help students remember the place-value position of metric prefixes I provide students the following mnemonic:

Course 2/Lesson 5-3: Karen K., Teacher
Grand Island, NE
"I model adding and subtracting fractions with Cuisenaire Rods. It's easier for my students to understand than fraction circles because I use the rods all year long."

Course 2/Lesson 5-5A: Sharon G., Teacher
Sanford, ME
"Working in cooperative groups, students establish financial investment companies. Using a $10,000 limit, I have students buy and sell stocks using the prices listed in the newspaper. Throughout the year, I have groups exchange their stock portfolios with another group to determine their net worth."

Course 2/Lesson 5-6: Joy M., Teacher
Delaware, OH
"To assess students, they were asked to make rectangles that had a perimeter of 24 inches. Some made their rectangles with tape on the floor while others constructed them on paper. Some had only whole number dimensions while others included the use of fractions and mixed numbers."

Course 2/Lesson 6-7: Fred Z., Teacher
State Center, IA
"To explore the relationship between perimeter and area, I gave students a fixed area and asked them to design a rectangular-shaped courtyard with the largest perimeter. Then they were given a fixed perimeter and asked to design the courtyard with the largest area."

Course 2/Lesson 7-3: Karey K., Teacher
Grand Island, NE
"To reinforce this lesson, students play 'Coordinate System Battleship.' This is played like the commercial game Battleship but with graph paper. Students graph adjacent points to represent five different size ships. When a ship is located, students mark them with an X."

Course 2/Lesson 7-4: Sandra H., Teacher
Emporia, KS
"I used students holding a positive or a negative sign instead of using counters. Students took turns in front of the room displaying their signs. Those at their seats wrote the addition sentence shown by the human counters. Those remaining after zero pairs sat down represented the answer."

Course 2/Lesson 8 Opener: Lucy A., Teacher
Aurora, IL
"I developed a vocabulary sheet of all the 'Words to Learn' in this chapter. When students learned the meaning of a term, they wrote its definition in their own words. This mini-glossary became a quick-reference guide that students used throughout the chapter."

Course 2/Lesson 11-8: Linda W., Teacher
Toano, VA
"My students practice illustrating fractions or percents by using two different color plastic plates with a radius cut in each plate. Aligning the cuts, students turn the top plate so that it goes through the cut and under the bottom plate to reveal a pie-shaped section of the bottom plate."

Course 2/Lesson 12-4: Virginia H., Teacher
Harrisonburg, VA
"Students can act as servers with menus from local restaurants. Students switch from the role of server, (where they total the bills and calculate the tax), to the role of customer, (where they check the total and determine the tip). This is a practical use of percents that everyone needs to practice."

Course 2/Lesson 12-8: Alvin H., Teacher
Stafford, VA
"I challenge students to write real-world problems that involve percents. An example follows. Jim purchased 9 packages of baseball cards. Each package costs $1.09. The sales tax in his state is 6%. If he handed the cashier a $20 bill, how much change should he receive?"

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