MTH1W Unit 2: Powers and Proportions

How do powers describe very large and very small things, and how do ratios, rates and percentages help us decide? Students find the patterns behind powers, zero and negative exponents, write numbers from DNA to the distance to the Sun in scientific notation, and use the exponent laws, with Python loops to explore growth. The second half turns to proportional reasoning: unit rates and best buys, discounts, Ontario's 13% HST, percent change, scale drawings, maps, recipes and similar triangles. Students finish by posing their own problems.

Assessment of learning: Scale It, a bedroom makeover on a $500 budget using a scale plan, unit rates, discounts and tax, with a rubric. A unit test with full solutions is also included.

Lessons

1. Patterns in Powers
2. Zero and Negative Exponents
3. Scientific Notation
4. Exponent Laws: Multiply and Divide
5. Simplifying with Powers
6. Coding with Powers
7. Ratios and Rates
8. Percentages in Real Life
9. Proportional Reasoning
10. Pose Your Own Problem

Plus a unit test class.

What you get

• A teacher lesson plan for every lesson: curriculum expectations, learning goals and success criteria, a timed sequence, differentiation, look-fors and worked answer keys
• Detailed slideshows (15 to 18 slides per lesson) with speaker notes on every slide: what to say, what to ask, what to look for and how long to spend, plus warm-ups, worked examples, guided practice, quick checks and answer-key slides
• Student handouts (usually two pages) and exit tickets, with every problem worked out in the answer key
• Editable Word and PowerPoint files, plus PDFs
• A unit overview, the summative task with a four-level Growing Success rubric, a unit test, and teacher solutions for both

Built for the 2021 Ontario Grade 9 Mathematics curriculum (MTH1W, de-streamed), and easy to adapt for any Grade 9 math class.