Math in Movies Activity Project Guide & Notetaker for Hidden Figures Movie
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- Get students excited about real world mathematics using compelling major motion pictures! Each student will complete a movie note-taker specific to their assigned character. Once the movie is complete, students will gather in groups of four, one representing each movie character, to reflect on the mPrice $9.00Original Price $11.00Save $2.00
Description
The purpose of this project is to get students excited about mathematics using a compelling historical event and major motion picture: Hidden Figures. Students will watch this movie from the viewpoint of one of the four main characters: Katherine Goble Johnson, Mary Jackson, Dorothy Vaughan, or Al Harrison. Each student will complete a movie note-taker specific to their assigned character. Once the movie is complete, students will gather in groups of four, one representing each movie character, to reflect on the movie and share impressions from the point of view of their character.
This lesson is suited for students in grades 7 through 12. It can also be completed independently if you have a student who is absent and has access to the movie. This lesson also makes excellent sub plans.
Students will:
1. Watch the movie: Hidden Figures.
2. Complete the movie note-taker focused on the interwoven relationships of math, problem solving, collaboration, innovation, and determination.
3. Learn about leadership, fortitude, and professional excellence amidst ignorance, segregation and sexism.
4. Gather in groups to reflect on the movie and relationships of the characters within the movie.
The movie Hidden Figures takes place amidst the space race and civil rights movement. Katherine Goble, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson are mathematicians employed by NASA as “computers.” Katherine is a mathematical genius who struggles to be taken seriously in the all-male, all-white team tasked with getting the first American into space. Dorothy Vaughan is the leader of the “colored computers” who become the first computer programmers at NASA. Mary Jackson petitions the courts to allow her to attend night classes at the all-white high school so that she can apply to be a rocket engineer at NASA.
Through the movie these women navigate racism, sexism, and ego to achieve greatness is their respective fields. Dorothy trains first herself and then all her colleagues to program computing machines. Mary becomes the first female, African American engineer at NASA. Katherine calculates launch and landing trajectories for Project Mercury spaceflights, then later worked on several of the Apollo missions. Katherine’s reputation for accuracy gives astronauts the confidence to leave Earth’s gravity.
The following downloads are included with this project: Teacher Instructions, Movie Note-taker (4 editions), Movie Reflection Handout, six Extension Ideas, five DOK 3/4 questions, and five Answer Keys.
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For more Project Based Learning with Mathematics available at my store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Absolute-Value. This project was created and provided by Absolute Value.