Biking for Good: Math Lesson
Lesson Plan
1 hour 55 minutesGrades3, 4, 5Mathematics
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Written by Joan Newkirk
About this lesson
Students consider the impacts of biking on their community and how to encourage people to bike more through a school survey.
Inquire: Students view a short video of students biking to school and discuss their experiences with biking.
Investigate: Students create and analyze graphs and survey results about biking.
Inspire: Based on their findings, students generate suggestions to encourage biking in their school community.
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Everything you need to teach it
How to edit these materials (video)Teaching tips
Suggestions
- The Investigate section can be completed in two sessions to allow more time for students to complete the survey and collect the results.
- An important consideration for this lesson is that some students may not have experience biking. This may be because a bicycle or a helmet are not affordable, they have no place to store a bike, their neighborhood is unsafe, or they are not physically able to bike. Discuss these barriers in addition to other reasons for not biking. Encourage students to think of other ways to help the environment through transportation, if biking is not an option.
- Some communities have bike organizations that provide bikes and helmets, like The Portland Gear Hub.
- This lesson may be implemented during a math unit on graphing.
Prerequisites
- Students would benefit from having some background knowledge about graphs.
- Ask other classes in your school to take your class’s survey before the lesson.
Differentiation
- Sentence frames for discussion questions are included in the Teacher Slideshow.
- Students can design their own surveys instead of using the pre-written survey.
- The class can develop a plan in the Inspire section together, instead of in pairs.
- The lesson could serve as a catalyst for organized group rides to school. Here is the website for school biking programs in Maine: Walking School Buses & Bike Trains | Bicycle Coalition of Maine.
From the scientist review
This lesson allows students to compute the carbon footprint from biking at different travel distances. It also highlights the importance of biking on the environment and how green transportation is imperative in mitigating climate change. All the resources in the lesson were reviewed and well cited. Hence, this lesson has passed our science credibility process.
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About the teacher writer
Joan Newkirk
Joan Newkirk (she/her) is a retired elementary educator with 32 years of teaching experience. She holds a Master of Literacy from the University of Southern Maine and spent her career inspiring young learners through engaging, hands-on instruction across all elementary subjects.
