Student Instructions
Read and follow the instructions on each page. Use the to record your data as you go. Use the boxes to type your thoughts and observations. Keep your string laid out in an orderly way so that you can see what you have done. On the last page, use the to add a picture of what your string looks like at the end of the activity. Use the tool to label the parts of the equation in relation to your picture. Use the to explain your thinking.
Be sure that as students cut their string, they are cutting across both sides of the string. The first cut should give them three pieces - the loop and then two tails. The loop is the constant. The number of cuts becomes the variable. Because each cut creates two new pieces, the coefficient is two. The equation that represents the pattern is 2x + 1 = y