Skip to content Skip to navigation
Summary: ExploreLearning's Math Gizmos are a great interactive tool for math teachers to use in their classrooms. They allow students to use their own creativity to explore math concepts in more depth than the regular classroom may allow.
By: Katie Rudolph
http://help.explorelearning.com/2005/10/teaching_with_g.html
ExploreLearning’s Math Gizmos are interactive simulations of different math concepts. They are fun and easy to use, so students will enjoy exploring and playing with the different features of the gizmos. Gizmos are used by teachers in all 50 states for a variety of different topics. There are over 450 Gizmos for students in grades 3-12. The Gizmos are organized into topics: number and operations, algebra, geometry, measurement, and data analysis and probability. When searching for Gizmos, each of these topics are broken down even further to target a specific lesson/concept. Gizmos provide users with clear graphical representations of concepts and are a good alternate form of technology to make the classroom more interesting for students. Because Gizmos are open-ended activities, they allow students to answer “what if…?” questions about different scenarios that could occur in a problem. They can visualize how inputting different numbers would change the answer to a problem. Teachers can use these in the classroom as a way to demonstrate concepts in class and re-emphasize points they have already made in class. They can display the Gizmos on the board for the whole class to view. Teachers can also introduce Gizmos to students to use as a study aid or as part of a homework assignment. If there are computers available in the classroom, teachers can have students work on the Gizmos as part of the lesson.
The ExploreLearning website has compiled a list of sources that contain supportive research of their Gizmo’s success in classrooms. I have summarized a few of the resources below.
The Maine Impact Study for Technology in Mathematics (MISTM) (2008) found evidence that virtual manipulatives online were extremely beneficial to teachers and students. The test scores of students were significantly better than those of a control group.
http://www.explorelearning.com/index.cfm?method=cResearch.dspMISTM
Simulations allow students to “manipulate variables and quickly see results.” They encourage students to be active learners and explore the gizmo to solidify concepts.
http://www.explorelearning.com/index.cfm?method=cResearch.dspEffectiveK12
Gizmos are effective by “representing new knowledge in graphic/nonlinguistic formats, using manipulatives to explore new knowledge and practice applying it, generating and testing hypotheses about new knowledge, and direct presentation of new knowledge, following by application.” http://cs.explorelearning.com/docs/Why_Gizmos_Work_Summary.pdf
http://help.explorelearning.com/2005/10/teaching_with_g_1.html
When teachers are first using ExploreLearning.com, they should watch the introduction video to familiarize themselves with the content and capabilities of the website.
http://www.explorelearning.com/index.cfm?method=cVideos.dspVideo&id=2
ExploreLearning.com outlines how to browse for Gizmos in the catalog and gives you tips on the best way to search for Gizmos. It explains the best way to choose search terms, unimportance of capitalization, and how to specifiy an exact phrase.
http://www.explorelearning.com/index.cfm?method=cHelp.page&pageID=18
http://www.explorelearning.com/index.cfm?method=cHelp.page&pageID=25
A Student Exploration Guide is provided for every Gizmo on the website. It appears as a separate window when you click on the link. The purpose of the Exploration Guide is to direct the teacher and students through the gizmo and emphasize key points and connections that students should be making. They usually contain open-ended questions, so there is not always one right answer for many of the questions. Teachers can customize the Exploration Guides to fit the lessons they are teaching in their classrooms, so that it can specifically relate to material that students will already be experiencing. For example, a teacher could add an optional extension activity. This activity would not need to be completed for all students, but could be a good modification to add if there were gifted students in the class. As explained on ExploreLearning.com, “through a careful sequence of experiments and questions, they aim to help students uncover key concepts through inquiry, using the Gizmo.”
A detailed description of the Exploration Guide is outlined here: http://www.explorelearning.com/index.cfm?method=cHelp.page&pageID=31
Every Gizmo also has assessment questions associated with it that test the knowledge that should have been learned through the Gizmo. As a teacher, you can be sure the students absorbed the information presented in the Gizmo. You will know what concepts you need to be revisited. Teachers don’t have to use the Student Exploration Guides or the assessment questions if you don’t want to. They are just suggested outlines for the students to follow along with as they use the Gizmo.
The screen-capture feature is a useful tool for teachers and students who want to display parts of the Gizmo on a piece of paper. They can present the screens that they want to examine on a worksheet, quiz, test, or homework assignment, without needing a computer. The details of how to use this feature are outlined at the following address:
http://blog.explorelearning.com/2004/08/using_thebuilti.html
This is a good example of how the screen-capture feature is utilized on a quiz that a teacher gave on Slope-Intercept Form.
http://blog.explorelearning.com/downloads/qz_slope-int.pdf
* Some screenshots might be helpful here to illustrate what a teacher would see when logging in to the site.
http://help.explorelearning.com/2005/10/teaching_with_g_2.html
There are many ways that Gizmos can be incorporated into the classroom. Depending on what resources are available in the classroom/school, Gizmos can be utilized in different ways.
Individual Work- If all students can have their own computer, allow them to work on a specific gizmo and answer the questions on the SEG as they go. They also should complete the Assessment questions at the end.
One Computer (Teacher-led)- Utilize a projector if it is available to initially show your class the features of the gizmo that you want them to pay attention to. Also, give them a demonstration of how to use the gizmo. You can have students answer questions on the SEG to keep them engaged while you are teaching.
Students can work on gizmos in groups of 2-3 as well if there are not enough computers. Students can work together to answer the SEG questions. They can help each other and bounce ideas off each other.
At home use- homework assignments, review for tests or quizzes
Stations- have the students work on the gizmos as a station that they rotate into, they could be broken into 3-4 small groups and one station could be the gizmos, while other stations should be non-computer activities
Teachers across the country have used ExploreLearning’s Math Gizmos and have had great success. There is link on the ExploreLearning website with testimonials of different teachers who have used Gizmos and there experience with them.
http://blog.explorelearning.com/testimonials/
I have outlined some of the most interesting testimonials below.
http://blog.explorelearning.com/2004/12/student_teacher.html
She integrated the Quadratic functions and inequalities Gizmos into stations for her students to rotate around the classroom. She had used the graphing calculator as the predominant form of technology in her classroom in the past, but she is glad that she found the Gizmos on ExploreLearning.com because they “allowed students to discover mathematical relationship and develop their own understanding. Since it was interactive, it truly held their attention.”
What I found interesting: I like how Diana used the Gizmos in stations in her classroom because she did not have the resources for all students to have their own computers. This way they could rotate around the room to different activities that all explored quadratic functions and inequalities and utilize the Gizmos.
http://blog.explorelearning.com/2005/04/testimonial_fre.html
She has had the most success with the Algebra Tiles Gizmo. “[ExploreLearning] continues to be one of the best "interactive products" available. I use it with my LCD projector as a demo in my algebra I class — students love the algebra tiles and really identify with the visual image. Since I have a SmartBoard, manipulating the algebra tiles to factor trinomials is a "can I be next" experience. Isn't that funny: freshmen begging to factor?”
What I found interesting: I like how Valerie used the Gizmos that allow her to manipulate algebra tiles. This way she can demonstrate examples using algebra tiles, but not have to spend the time getting out sets of algebra tiles and cleaning them up. I think that it is much more time efficient to use the Gizmo.
http://blog.explorelearning.com/2004/09/case_study_gizm.html
She used the Modeling Linear Systems- Activity A Gizmo in her high school geometry class. Here she describes her experience with the Gizmo.
“ I find it very important to be able to relate slope and y-intercept to real life concepts rather than just the mechanics of writing and graphing equations. [The students] also needed to ‘see’ what I had been talking about when I taught the solution of systems of equations, rather than just hearing the mantra ‘the solution of a system of equations represents the point where the two lines intersect. ”
She first introduced this concept to the students on a projector and manipulated the Gizmo herself. Then she allowed the students to each work on their own computer to explore the concepts on the Gizmo individually. She utilized the Student Exploration Guide and the Assessment Questions by assigning them for homework. She has had good experiences using Gizmos with her different classes, ranging from pre-algebra to upper level pre-calculus students. Some students who did not seem to understand the material when it was presented in class did really well with the Gizmos. “The interactive approach of the gizmos really helped the students grasp the concepts. ”
What I found interesting: I like how she demonstrates the Gizmo to the class first, then allows them to explore the Gizmos on their own.
http://blog.explorelearning.com/2004/12/case_study_anne.html
She used the Linear Programming- Activity A Gizmo with the most success in her classroom. She incorporated it into her lesson by first doing a linear programming problem on the board with the students and then continued by finding the minumum and maximum of the problem using the Gizmo. Then she showed the features of the Gizmo on the projector to her class before letting them all solve problems on their own computers. She gave them her own modified version of the Exploration Guide for homework.
“I have taught Linear Programming without the Gizmo, and I have found that students can repeat the process to solve a problem — But [without the Gizmo] they do not understand why it works.”
What I found interesting: I like how Anne used the Gizmo as an extension of a problem that she was already doing in class. This makes it easier for students to connect the content of her lecture to the Gizmo activity.
There are many advantages to using Gizmos in the classroom. There are Gizmos on a variety of different topics that are easy to integrate into your curriculum because they are based off of state curriculum standards and many textbooks that are used nationwide. They are easy to use and easy to access because you can login from any location with a username and password. The teacher can make an online classroom that features specific gizmos that they want students to use. Gizmos are not only useful, but they are also engaging and fun to use as well. They are interactive, so they make students want to learn. They are also flexible and can fit into a variety of different classroom settings, including lectures, group work, or individual work. Research has proven that Gizmos are effective learning tools that help students learn and grow.
The ExploreLearning Gizmos do have some weaknesses. Access to computers is necessary in order to access the Gizmos, which might not always be available. Some of the Gizmos are rather confusing to navigate and fully understand. In addition, some Gimos are too basic and don’t thoroughly explain the concept, while others are written in a language too complex for young students. It can also be easy to lose focus on the concept while working with a Gizmo. Students may just start pushing buttons and clicking on random objects, instead of really trying to understand the activity. Diana Chau states that “it presents a number of problems, including its reliability for working and students ability to understand how to use the technology.” Although there are some potential obstacles when using Gizmos, I think the benefits far outweigh any problems that may occur.
More about this module: Metadata | Downloads | Version History
This work is licensed by Katie Rudolph under a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY 3.0), and is an Open Educational Resource.
Last edited by Katie Rudolph on Oct 15, 2009 4:06 pm GMT-5.
