Making a Half-Acre Come to Life

Purpose:	To develop skills in measuring area, to experience practical applications of measurement, and to learn about the use of scale models.
Seasons:	All
Materials:	Clipboard Paper, Pencil Tape measure, Ruler Flugel stakes, Hammer
Description:	Teams of students are assigned the task of staking out a half-acre on the playground using various geometric shapes. In addition to the outdoor assignment, the students develop scale drawings of their half-acres. The half-acre plots staked out on the school yard provide a concrete feeling for a half-acre. The scale models project a graphic view of a half-acre's many variations in shape.
Procedure:	discuss the concept of an acre, it's size, use, variation in shape. Organize the class into small teams and have them survey and stake out a half-acre on the playground and draw up a scale model of the plot. Suggested scale: 1"=25' Work with the groups to identify guidelines for the assignment, including the shape of the plot, materials needed, correct formula, and work assignment. The following information is needed: Each team decides what geometric shape to use and the desired dimensions. For example, if the half-acre is a rectangle, the group may decide to have a width of 100 ft. The team substitutes 100 ft. for the width in the formula and determines the length as follows: 1 acre = 43560 ft.² 1/2 acre = 21780 ft.² 21780 ft.² = 100 ft. x 217.8 ft. Visit the different plots with the class and display the scale modes of these plots.
Questions:	If you wanted to put a fence around these ½ acre plots, would the fences be the same length? Explain your answer.
Extensions:	Land use management, surveying, zoning, taxation, and city planning are a few interesting spin-off issues you may want to discuss and research further with your class.