Volume and Area in Math

Today we did an exploration lesson to gain experience with volume.  We had two pieces of paper (of equal size) that were folded and taped in different ways.  The class spent a lot of time thinking and making predictions about which cylinder would hold more unifix cubes; the tall, narrow cylinder or the short, wide one.  Predictions varied and students articulated their thoughts well.  They were surprised at how much more the short, wide cylinder was able to hold.  Then we spent some time tracing cards on grid paper and counting the area of the card in square inches and square centimeters.