I'm going to show you what parallel looks like. My hands are parallel to each other, they are not crossing. If I turn them and have one on top of the other with my palms still facing each other, they are still parallel. I can also make my arrows parallel, with one on top of the other or side by side.
Now let's talk about perpendicular. Perpendicular means two lines that cross each other. For example, when my hands cross each other or when I cross my arms in front of my body. I can also make my arrows perpendicular by standing one straight up and turning one to the side.
On your planet or in your house, you can be perpendicular to things like the floor, a computer screen, a bookshelf, or even a dog.
Let's practice using our objects. Can you point to your right? Now can you point up? Great job! Now let's all point to our left. Good job!
Can everybody show me how you can make your two objects parallel to each other? Great job! Now can you make your objects perpendicular to each other? Awesome!
Now let me share a super silly story with you. Alan the alien is coming to visit. First, he gets in his spaceship. Then he sits down in the captain's seat. He screams because he realizes his cat is under the spaceship. As he is flying through space, he finds another friend, Sally, who is flying parallel to him. Sally parks her spaceship and joins Alan. Sally comes through the spaceship door and turns to the left. She laughs and tells Alan that his spaceship is super stinky. She sits in the seat to the right of Alan and puts her seat belt across her body. They are flying all around in space looking for planet rainbow sprinkle stars, turning the spaceship left and right, and going over and under meteors. They can't find planet rainbow sprinkle stars, but suddenly they stop because the moon is right in front of them. They look up and find that planet rainbow sprinkle stars is above them. Alan slams on the brakes and takes a deep breath. They get out of their spaceship and start exploring planet rainbow sprinkle stars. They find lots of new types of flowers hiding under their spaceship. They also meet a new friend named Glob Bob, who walks parallel to them. Glob Bob points out that there is a river perpendicular to them.
Everyone, in that sentence, the word "perpendicular" means that two things cross each other. For example, I can have one hand pointing up and another hand on top of it, and my hands would be perpendicular to each other. He warns them not to fall into the river, as there are giant birds that live there. Clara, Monica, Sally, and Alan discuss whether there were any spatial or mobility words in that sentence. Clara says she heard the words "up" and "under." Sally and Alan explain that birds don't live underwater but in the sky. On Planet Rainbow Sprinkle Stars, however, birds live underwater and fish live in the sky. Donnie, Clara, and Monica say they heard the words "in," "under," and "above." Alan and Sally thank Glob Bob for showing them around and can't wait to tell their friends about the birds that live underwater and the fish that live in the sky.
For the extension activity this week, they will be creating a tactile map of their new house on the new planet. Donnie asks what a tactile map is, and Clara explains that it is a map that you can feel. Monica adds that it helps you learn what's in a room and you can touch it. Cecilia explains that tactile maps are important for students who are blind or visually impaired as it allows them to learn the layout and contents of a room. Donnie, Monica, and Clara share their experiences with tactile maps, and Cecilia shows them an example she made. The map has parallel yellow lines, perpendicular yellow lines, rough black and white squares, arrows, gray squares representing a sidewalk, and triangles representing trees. Cecilia encourages them to make their own tactile maps using any materials they have available.
Thank you, Cecilia, for the lesson. They had fun learning spatial terms like parallel, perpendicular, over, and under. They look forward to using these terms throughout the day. Thank you to everyone for joining the virtual Excel Academy session. They have more exciting sessions coming up, including one about what to wear in different seasons and a three-part series on skills they can use.
