Within the Can Do! web site there are a number of possible math lessons... from math skills for lower grade levels, such as adding... to more challenging skills, such as computing averages and percentages… depending on what learner outcome you're trying to teach at the moment.

For example, the Can Do! web site received a number of Can Do! Ability Surveys submissions each month in 1999, and 2000. The survey responses are posted on the Can Do! web site by the month they were received, and the responses include the name, ages, state and country of each person who filled out and submitted each survey.

Adding (Tabulating Data)
For a math lesson about adding, or more specifically, a math lesson about adding collected data, you could assign one month of Ability Survey responses to each student, or to pairs or small groups of students. They would then be instructed to add the number of Can Do! Ability Surveys submitted in their assigned month. The class would then compare their findings. This lesson would teach addition, as well as comparison.

Averaging
To teach a lesson about averages, you would take the "addition" lesson a step further by using the students' findings in order to find the average number of surveys received per month in 1999.

For more advanced math lessons, you could have students tally the state and countries where survey participants live in order to determine where most of the participants, so far, are located.

Comparing and Contrasting
Finally, a comparison of the actual survey responses would be an extremely worthwhile lesson for students... especially if each student in your classroom also filled-out the survey. They could then compare and contrast their responses with each other to examine the similarities and individual differences found within their own classroom. In addition, they could compare and contrast their classroom responses with the responses posted on the Can Do! web site in order to discover the similarities and individual differences between themselves and others from throughout the United States, and the world!

These thoughts and ideas are only examples to illustrate how the Can Do! web site could possibly be used to create meaningful lesson plans that would easily fit into your current math and technology curriculum. At the same time, you would be covering social studies topics, such as diversity awareness, and possibly geography. The possibilities are only limited by your own imagination!

If you do decide to use any of the Can Do! Math Lesson ideas above, or if use the Can Do! web site in any other way in your classroom - please drop me a note to let me know what you did, and how it went!