Academics' Choice Award™ Winner
CanFigureIt® Geometry
Ages: 12 - 18Price: FREE
Type: Website, Software
By CanFigureIt LLC
Description
Solving proofs is often a point of stress for both teachers and students, but it doesn't have to be. CanFigureIt® Geometry is a highly interactive digital tool designed to empower students and support teachers through the process of learning proofs. It supports students where they are in the proof, providing just in time guidance to keep them moving forward. Each student is free to pursue his or her own path and learns there are multiple ways to reach each solution.
STUDENT EMPOWERMENT
In order to build a robust and relevant resource tool, we have spent many hours in classrooms learning from teachers and students. Geometry instructors have told us that they appreciate the student-centered and exploratory nature of the tool, as well as the structure and highly visual environment it offers their students. As one teacher explained, "CanFigureIt treats proofs like explorations rather than tasks. [It] helps train students to be strategic in constructing arguments and justifying reasoning without forcing them down one specific path. It has allowed proofs to become a much more rigorous and independent part of my classes. Students are demonstrating deep levels of analysis and justification. I really like that students aren't 'right' or 'wrong.' They are told 'not yet.'"
TEACHER SUPPORT
CanFigureIt Geometry centers around an interactive canvas with an embedded glossary and help features that frees teachers from their whiteboards by empowering students to explore on their own. Another teacher explains, "[CanFigureIt Geometry] has allowed me to step away from the front of the room and get involved with my students one-on-one. By working with students individually, it allows us to have conversations about the material that may never have been had in a whole-group setting."
VIDEO TUTORIAL: https://youtu.be/feaqw4os_MQ
OUR APPROACH:
CanFigureIt Geometry was designed to nurture students' deductive reasoning skills through independent exploration of geometry proofs. To support this goal, the product features:
- A sequence of activities that has been carefully scaffolded to build content knowledge and reinforce prior learning and support state and common core standards
- An interactive canvas that allows students to create and justify claims
- A continuously updated diagram indicating where students are in the proof
- A rich embedded glossary and continuous feedback on errors to reinforce the structure of theorems
- A teacher dashboard that provides performance reports at the student and classroom level (currently available to pilot teachers)
LEARNING BENEFITS:
Teaches Problem Solving
Breaks down proofs into manageable chunks and fosters forward and backward reasoning.
Reinforces Logical Thinking Skills
Promotes an understanding of the logical "if-then" relationship of theorems.
Provides Immediate Support
Gives continuous feedback and guidance as students progress toward a goal in a safe space where making mistakes is part of the learning process.
Builds Mathematical Vocabulary
Immerses students in the language of proofs with textual and visual resources to aid recognition.
Sparks Classroom Discussion
Provides a springboard to foster student engagement and a culture of questioning.
Empowers Teachers
A robust learning environment facilitates rigorous instruction of proofs while allowing for flexible implementation.
Enables Data-driven Decisions
A teacher dashboard provides insightful performance reports at the student and classroom level.
Review Highlights:
CanFigureIt Geometry is a very useful tool in its singular approach focused on building skills related to understanding geometric proofs. It covers geometric proofs related to lines, angles, triangles, quadrilaterals, and circles.
As a parent and homeschooling mom to a visual learner, I loved how CanFigureIt Geometry set up its approach with the use of icons to represent concepts. My daughter, age 14, has a hard time comprehending the complex language of Geometry in written form. However, with CanFigureIt Geometry, she was able to focus on developing an understanding of the principles behind the theorems using the icons as a visual tool. Scrolling over the icons explained the concept represented so that she was able to have the written explanation in small amounts that did overwhelm her. The website is very neatly laid out with no extraneous distractions. Everything on the page serves an important function. Furthermore, CanFigureIt has a sorting feature which allows me, as my daughter's teacher, to designate what I would like for her to focus on. The topic choices can be narrowed by type of geometric shape (e.g. line, circle, quadrilateral) and/or status (not started, in progress, complete). Colored indicators at the bottom of each task also indicate the difficulty level. Another feature that we enjoyed was the ability to click on the figures within each task to indicate a certain segment or angle.
The number one thing that I loved about CanFigureIt Geometry was the overall look and feel of the product. Geometry can be very intimidating, but the layout and the presentation of CanFigureIt was inviting and encouraging. There are no red marks, sad faces, or large "X"s when a student makes a mistake; students are simply shown where there is an area of concern (indicated by an explanation mark) and given suggestions on to how to work around this concern. This communicates to the student that mistakes are not mistakes, but simply opportunities for learning.
I love this product for the simple fact that it is very focused in what it is trying to teach, yet at the same time covers a lot of information in a very organized format. I would like to thank the developers of this tool. There does not seem to be a lot of tools online that focus on this topic. I think you have identified a gap, and have developed a great product to address it.
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