Florida B.E.S.T. MA.6.GR.1.2

Math6th GradeApply previous understanding of the coordinate plane to solve problems.

The Standard

Find distances between ordered pairs, limited to the same x-coordinate or the same y-coordinate, represented on the coordinate plane.

Florida B.E.S.T. Standards for Mathematics

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students find the distance between two points that lie on the same horizontal or vertical line. They subtract the coordinates that change and give a positive distance.
What Mastery Looks Like: Students quickly identify whether the segment is horizontal or vertical. They subtract the changing coordinates, use the absolute value, and label the distance in units.
Common Misconceptions: Students may subtract the wrong coordinates or count grid points instead of unit intervals. They may report a negative answer rather than distance, or use both coordinates when only one changes.
How to Assess It: Give the points (−4, 3) and (5, 3). Ask students to find the distance and write one sentence explaining which coordinates they used.

Lesson moves

Make a floor coordinate grid with masking tape; students stand at two plotted points and count unit intervals between them.
Ask, “Why does the unchanged coordinate not affect the distance?” Students answer using two sample points and a labeled sketch.
Play Coordinate Distance Match using cards with point pairs, graph images, and distances; students race to form correct sets.
Give students a city map grid and ask them to calculate straight east-west or north-south distances between three locations.

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