Extend your geometry curriculum with hands-on geometric drawing lessons that involve the use of a compass and straightedge. Compass Constructions activities supplement advanced geometry lessons for students in grades 5–8. Students will enjoy activities that apply fundamental geometric concepts studied in class, such as the definitions and properties of altitudes, angle bisectors, perpendicular bisectors, parallel lines with transversals, parallelograms, and other quadrilaterals. Students will broaden their knowledge by completing construction activities such as Construction Arithmetic, The Infinitesimal and the Golden Ratio, Proofs of Properties, Hilbert’s Theorem, and more. Not only will this book provide students with challenging activities, it also will prepare students for success in formal, proof-oriented geometry that will present itself later in students’ mathematics education.

Compass Constructions: Activities for Using a Compass & Straightedge (Grades 5-8)

Christopher M. Freeman

Prufrock Press

Using this book, students learn to draw stars with seven, eight, or more points, and formulate conjectures about their mathematical structure. They also assemble polygons into 3-D polyhedra and develop spatial intuition.Drawing Stars: Students develop a definition of star and find a procedure for drawing stars with seven, eight, nine, or more points. They also use stars to illustrate multiplication: for example, 2 x 4 = 8 describes two overlapping squares that form an 8-pointed star. Students discern mathematical properties of stars. They distinguish continuous stars (which can be drawn without lifting pencil from paper) from stars that consist of overlapping copies of simpler stars. Students formulate a conjecture that uses the Greatest Common Factor to predict whether a particular star will be continuous or overlapping.Building Polyhedra: Students assemble equilateral triangles, squares, pentagons, hexagons, octagons, and decagons to form symmetrical 3-D solids called polyhedra. This book allows students to experiment for themselves: Some combinations don't work, but students enjoy discovering the combinations that do fit together. Students develop spatial intuition that applies to the structure of molecules, to playground climbing equipment, and to geodesic domes. The book provides reproducible handouts of polygons to photocopy onto colored paper. Students cut out the polygons, fold the flaps, and attach them with small staplers. Completed polyhedra make an attractive wall display.These activities meet four distinct NCTM standards.

Drawing Stars and Building Polyhedra

Children's Books

Activities, Crafts & Games

Dandy Lion Publications

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Books by Christopher M. Freeman

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Christopher M. Freeman. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Compass Constructions: Activities for Using a Compass & Straightedge (Grades 5-8)

Drawing Stars and Building Polyhedra