P R O B L E M

Subject / Course: Algebra 1/2

P L A N N I N G

F O R M

Content Standards: Common Core

A-CED.3. Represent constraints by equations or inequalities, and by systems of equations and/or inequalities, and interpret solutions as viable or nonviable options in a modeling context.

F-LE.2. Construct linear and exponential functions, including arithmetic and geometric sequences, given a graph, a description of a relationship, or two input-output pairs (include reading these from a table). F-LE.3. Observe using graphs and tables that a quantity increasing exponentially eventually exceeds a quantity increasing linearly, quadratically, or (more generally) as a polynomial function.

Unit: Linear equations, Systems of Linear Equations

Key Ideas / Concepts: Students should be able to write linear equations from given information and find when they intersect.

Problem Scenario: Energy Efficiency This is a picture of an energy efficient, 20 watt light bulb. It produces the same amount of light as a 75 watt incandescent bulb. So it should save us money in the long run, right? But unfortunately, it costs a lot more. $12 compared with their incandescent cousins at about $1. The price for energy fluctuates wildly throughout the country, but it averages about 11 cents per kilowatt hour. Based on this information, how long before we start generating a net savings on our lighting costs?

Anticipated Knows / Prior Knowledge: We will have to / how to write an equation from given information Incandescent light bulbs start out cheaper, but use more energy. The box suggests a savings of $44 per year with this light bulb.

Anticipated Need-to-Knows: How do we find out when the energy efficient light bulbs become cheaper? How can we tell when two lines on a graph intersect? How many hours a day does a light bulb usually run? Does it really save $44 per year? How many hours would it have to run before it saves $44?

Potential Next Steps: (how might students begin solving the problem?) Writing an equation for each light bulb, Creating a graph, make a table and/or pattern. Investigate the units of kilowatt-hour Find the cost of each light bulb on a per-hour basis

F A C I L I T A T O R
Problem Introduction How will you introduce the problem to the students? How will help them to decode the problem? Problem-Solving Exploration What support will be needed during this phase? What guiding questions might you ask?

N O T E S

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Use the problem solving framework of students writing their knows/need-to-knows/next steps Offer pre-writing/reading comprehension scaffolding activities if needed.

How can we tell when the energy efficient lightbulbs will become cheaper? How would we represent that visually? Do you think it will be in 12 months? 24 months? Can someone tell me a wrong answer? Conduct an informal poll: when will it happen: 12 months, 18 months, 24 months? Will it be within a reasonable lifespan of the light bulb? For students/groups that are having trouble, I would ask them to find the total cost after 0, 1, 5, and 10 hours for each bulb. Lead the class on a discussion about organizing the given information. Is 11 cents per kw-hr reasonable? Whats the energy cost in your area?

Class Discussion / Plenary What strategies might you use for sharing out and discussion? What are the key concepts / skills you want to emerge? Formative Assessments / Scaffolding How will you assess individual student understanding? How will you support any gaps or new need-to-knows?

Workshop on writing equations from given information. (as needed) Workshop on graphing linear equations. (as needed) Workshop on slope (as needed). Workshop on finding the intersection of two lines.

Follow-up / Reinforcement Three extension problems What additional practice, 1) Can we analyze the claim of $44 per year savings? How? extensions, support, 2) Create an equation and graph of the cost of switching all the light bulbs in your house to energy efficient assessment will be needed ones. at this point? 3) Boys v. Girls project-turned-problem.

P O S S I B L E

M E T H O D S

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Method 1: Write two equations and graph. Cost per watt-hour = (cost-per-kw-hr)(1 kilowatt/1000 watts) = ($0.11)(1/1000)=0.0011 Energy Efficient Bulb: Total cost = initial cost + (cost-per-hour)(# of watts)(# of hours)

CEE = $12 + (0.0011)(20)(h)= $12+$0.022h Incandescent Bulb: CI=$1 + (0.0011)(75)h = $1 + $0.0825h Graph:

Method 2: Solving systems of linear equations elimination

CEE = y = $12+$0.022h CI= y = $1 + $0.0825h

Elimination: 0 = $12 - $1 +0.022h - $0.0825h H=181.818181. hours

Method 3: Solving systems of linear equations substitution