This classroom activity will show students that there is a lot we don't know about science, for example life throughout the universe. It will hopefully encourage students to question what we know and don't know, and exploration and study of the unknown.

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Suppose we take a square piece of paper and fold it in half vertically and diagonally, leaving the creases shown below: Next we make a fold that joins ...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: It is said that the average person blinks about 1000 times an hour. This is an order-of-magnitude estimate, that is, it is an estimate given as a power...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Lines $L$ and $M$ have the same slope. The equation of line $L$ is $4y=x$. Line $M$ passes through the point $(0, -5)$. What is the equation of line $M...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: For a science project, Sammy observed a chipmunk and a squirrel stashing acorns in holes. The chipmunk hid 3 acorns in each of the holes it dug. The sq...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: The slope between two points is calculated by finding the change in $y$-values and dividing by the change in $x$-values. For example, the slope between...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Anna and Jason have summer jobs stuffing envelopes for two different companies. Anna earns \$14 for every 400 envelops she finishes. Jason earns \$9 fo...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: The local swim center is making a special offer. They usually charge \$7 per day to swim at the pool. This month swimmers can pay an enrollment fee of ...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Draw the two lines that intersect only at the point $(1,4)$. One of the lines should pass through the point $(0,-1)$. Write the equation of each of the...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Joshua's mail truck travels 14 miles every day he works, and is not used at all on days he does not work. At the end of his 100th day of work the mail ...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Serena is starting a new workout routine and wants to keep track of her heart rate to make sure that she is exercising at the optimum level. First she ...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: During the 2005 Divisional Playoff game between The Denver Broncos and The New England Patriots, Bronco player Champ Bailey intercepted Tom Brady aroun...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Given that $\overleftrightarrow{DE}\parallel\overleftrightarrow{AC}$ in the diagram below, prove that $a + b + c = 180.$ Explain why this result holds ...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Quadrilateral $ABCD$ is a trapezoid, $AD = 15$, $AB = 50$, $BC = 20$, and the altitude is 12. What is the area of the trapezoid?...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Below is a quadrilateral in the coordinate plane: Use the Pythagorean theorem to find the lengths of sides $\overline{AB}$, $\overline{BC}$, $\overline...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Doug is a dog, and his friend Bert is a bird. They live in Salt Lake City, where the streets are 1/16 miles apart and arranged in a square grid. They a...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: A square is inscribed in a circle which is inscribed in a square as shown below. Note that the vertices of the inner square meet the midpoints of the o...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Below is a picture of rectangle $ABCD$ with diagonal $AC$. Draw the image of triangle $ACD$ when it is rotated $180^\circ$ about vertex $D$. Call $A'$ ...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Mrs. Lu has asked students in her class to find isosceles triangles whose vertices lie on a coordinate grid. For each student example below, explain wh...

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: This task examines the mathematics behind an origami construction of a rectangle whose sides have the ratio $(\sqrt{2}:1)$. Such a rectangle is called ...