Geometry-via-Gestures: Design of a Gesture based Application to Teach 3D Geometry

Abstract

Geometry holds a special place in Mathematics. Learning of Geometry requires understanding and integrating a wide range of topics such as coordinates, shapes, theorems, proofs, properties and formulae, to name a few. In 31) geometry, students find difficult the manipulation of 3D objects and interpreting their structure and prolRrties, such as volume and surface area. Research shows that students mainly focus on the formulae and the numerical operations to calculate the volume or the surface area of a 3D object, and not on visualizing the 3D objects. Various media such as images, animation, simulations and 3D geometric software have been used to help learners visualize 3D shapes. However, the affordances provided by these media do not fully support the construction and manipulation of 3D objects. Based on an embodied interaction approach, we have designed a gesture-based application for high school students to learn the properties of 3D objects. In this paper, we describe the design of the application, "Geometry-via-Gestures" (GvG), which enables learners to construct a right circular cylinder using gestures and derive its volume. We present the results of the first prototype pilot and the proposed redesign.