Concerning the Lesson Plan for Week 1 of 10th Grade Geometry (Unidad 1: Fundamentos de Geometría) in Puerto Rico
This 10th Grade Geometry Lesson Plan Is a Masterclass in Educational Malpractice
This weekly lesson plan for a 10th-grade Geometry class in Puerto Rico is a glorious monument to educational malpractice. It takes a subject that should build logical reasoning and proof skills and turns it into a week-long exercise in low-level busywork, heavily padded with forced social themes.
Does It Align with the Geometry Content Standards?
Technically, yes — in the most pathetic, checkbox-ticking way possible.
According to the 2022 Puerto Rico Mathematics Standards, there is an expectation coded ES.G.36 called “Conceptos básicos de geometría”:
- ES.G.36.1: Reconoce el concepto geometría.
- ES.G.36.2: Nombra e identifica los conceptos básicos en figuras geométricas y de la vida diaria como: punto, recta, plano, segmento, rayo.
The plan hits these specific expectations. Monday is basically “What even is geometry, guys?” and the rest of the week focuses on naming basic elements and graphing on the Cartesian plane.
However, this is Décimo grado (10th grade). Spending an entire week on material that belongs in middle school (or earlier) is not alignment — it’s a symptom of how far the standards and their implementation have been watered down.
Everything That’s Wrong With This Plan
Here’s a breakdown of the major problems:
- The content level is embarrassingly low for 10th grade
Students are defining what geometry is and identifying basic shapes like triangles and cubes. By 10th grade, they should already be doing proofs, congruence criteria, similarity, and applying coordinate geometry at a much higher level. This plan feels like it was written for 6th or 7th graders. - The math is constantly interrupted by social justice cosplay
Almost every day includes forced transversal themes, especially the repeated emphasis on “equidad y respeto entre todos los seres humanos.” Tuesday is largely devoted to a PowerPoint discussion on social themes rather than geometry. The actual mathematics feels like an afterthought. - Objectives are pathetically low-level
Every objective sits at the “remember” or “understand” level: define, name, identify, discuss, graph. There is almost no analysis, justification, or higher-order thinking expected from 10th graders. - Activities are mostly time-wasting fluff
- Visiting the school patio to observe and draw geometric figures (in 10th grade).
- Team research and oral presentations on René Descartes.
- Vague “practice the elements under study.”
These are not rigorous Geometry activities. - The plan is poorly written and incomplete
Friday’s objectives are cut off mid-sentence. Many instructions are vague. The document is bloated with repeated footnotes about transversal themes. - Heavy reliance on discussion instead of mathematical practice
There is far too much “discuta,” “dialogue,” and “reflexión,” and far too little actual doing of geometry (constructions, proofs, problem-solving). - The bureaucratic template is broken
The plan is overloaded with checkboxes, repeated equity notes on every page, and excessive focus on “temas generadores.” It feels like the form was prioritized over actual teaching and learning.
Bottom Line
This lesson plan doesn’t just fail to challenge 10th-grade students — it actively insults their intelligence. It technically checks the box for the low-level expectation ES.G.36, but it completely fails to deliver a meaningful Geometry education.
If this is what “Fundamentos de Geometría” looks like in 10th grade, then the entire high school Geometry sequence is in serious trouble. Students deserve better than a week of naming points and discussing equity while occasionally glancing at shapes.
This plan is not teaching Geometry.
It’s teaching compliance with a poorly designed template.