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Scale Drawings

Meaghan Mihalic

A couple of years ago, I started doing a Scale Menu choice board as a way to introduce and teach scale, but with an element of choice. Many teachers on here inspired the ideas, and one in particular that has become a popular choice is a scale drawing. This was  idea. I wanted to share some of the results from this year. Interestingly, there were a lot of candy drawings. Unsurprisingly, there were Taylor Swift bracelets and a Stanley Cup. Laughing

The directions are "Pick an object. Draw the object from 3 different scale levels. (See examples below.) Write a 2-3 sentence caption next to each level of zoom, explaining why it is important to examine that image at that level of zoom." I also tell them they must draw by hand.

While I think some of the descriptions could be a bit more detailed, what I did observe is that this activity really got students to think about part-to-whole relationships and to consider what makes up an object. Bonus - they also have a lot of fun seeing what other classmates choose to draw. Enjoy checking them out, and I'm curious to hear what others think. Does this seem like something you could use in your classroom?

  • These are awesome,  ! This year, I didn't do the choice menu and had the students calculate the Big History thresholds on a continental road trip (because I like to complicate things for myself and do things differently every year). That was a really painful process and I missed my choice board from last year, specifically these scale drawings. I'm going back to this next year!

  • in reply to Hajra Saeed

    I think that this also sets them up well for the LBH project because without realizing it, they are thinking of the composition of things, like chemical elements, that led to the complexity of the topic they choose.

  • Hazzah! This is rad   ! I'd love to see more about how you rolled this out/instructions for students? 

    I can totally see us doing this as a project in both semester and year long BHP  !

  • in reply to Adam Esrig

    Thanks for looping me into this post  . What a great project and way to make scale so much more comprehensive. Not to mention, applicable to real life!  

  • I'm bookmarking this for next year.  This is an excellent way for students to grasp the idea of scale.  You even have me wondering if I can add an extra layer of human history.  Totally reminds me of the Zoom book.  

  • in reply to Todd Nussen

    The Zoom book is THE best!

  •  , these are great! Thanks for showing the work! I like that you had students draw instead of just finding images. I think there is something more intimate in the concept when students take the time to create their own visuals.

    Was this a one-class period activity, or part of something larger?

  • in reply to Donnetta Elsasser

    Agreed.  For some reason I've been using it everywhere (all my classes, professional development, now with my own children).  Just such a cool concept illustrated so well. 

  • Wow! Just wow! Your students' work is amazing,  . Am I the only one who thought ice hockey when the Stanley cup was mentioned? 

    I love the infusion of science into the work that your students are producing -- it helps show how interconnected the social studies are to each discipline. Smiley

  • in reply to Todd Nussen

    You are so right. It is so applicable in so many situations.

    And as an aside: Except for the lack of sleep, I bet you are having a blast being a dad! So happy for you.