Writing 2

To begin, I had started using Venn diagrams at a young age. The purpose of them was rather clear to me, and I actually used it as a studying technique in elementary school. However, I lost touch with them throughout high school, and this class was the first time I had used them again. As I thought I understood their purpose, I interpreted it wrong my first time making my own. I thought the middle was an in-between level between the right and left circle, when in reality, it is a section designated for something that has the traits of both the left and the right circle.

My initial intention with writing this blog was to find a lesson plan using a Venn diagram, and describe its significance. Research led me to the link at the very bottom, where it reiterated what a Venn diagram was and its purpose. However, the example it used sparked an idea: I put too much time into my attribute cards for them to just sit in my binder. I used my cards for "On-Off the Bus," but now I realized I could use them to make my own Venn diagram and understand what I did wrong the first time. I decided to make my own diagram with Apple phone cords to show what I originally did wrong, and what it is supposed to be.

The picture above will not upload clearer, but this is the incorrect example. On the left there are mammals (giraffe, gorilla, kangaroo, dolphin), the middle are birds (toucan, ostrich, flamingo, parrot) and the right are reptiles (snake, lizard, crocodile, iguana). While these are organized in the correct categories, they defeat the purpose of a Venn diagram and the middle circle does not have shared similarities.

This is organized correctly and it reinforced to me the purpose of a Venn diagram. The left has mammals (giraffe, kangaroo, gorilla), the right has aquatic animals (shark, fish, seahorse), and the middle has sea mammals (dolphin, walrus, killer whale). The middle shares a characteristic with the left, which is having lungs, and it shares a characteristic with the right, which is that they live in the water.

Math is broadly defined as a subject in which we recognize patterns and categorize things. This could serve as a great activity for elementary math. Allowing students to make their own attribute cards would let them use their creativity, while using the Venn diagram can help them study and categorize. While it was used for science in this example, math was involved because there is an even number in each circle to categorize and place the cards in the correct place. Overall, the Venn diagram is a useful tool stemming from math, that can reach into other subject areas.

https://www.brighthubeducation.com/lesson-plans-grades-3-5/43208-lesson-on-using-venn-diagrams-for-math/