This weekend I picked up a few things from the teacher store in preparation of the 1st day of school. I passed by and ended up picking up this cool Unifix Sudoku game. As you can see, when I got home, I ended up placing the blocks in ROY G. BIV order and numbered the tops to match.
I also created a Smart Notebook file to go with this activity when modelling the activity with my students. This is a great hands-on activity for students of any age that has never played Sudoku. The purpose for placing the numbers on the cubes is for you to create your own puzzles with the help of online resources such as ultra-magnificent logic puzzle site of Vegard Hanssen. I will post later reflecting what the students thought about this game.
If you get the opportunity, check out the latest issue of the above ESPN Magazine (Jun 09). It has a great article that has the jersey numbers of great athletes of all sports in numerical order from 00 to 99. Great opportunity for math in action, and test some sports knowledge. I have contemplated in blowing up these two pages and add it to my classroom collage by using rastorbator!
This week I started teaching summer school. One of the few imperative items I go over is basic math terminology. When I discuss the terms of arithmetic problems, I always share this video by 3Xdope with my students to remember the true meaning of dividends in real life and how the video relates to math. Enjoy!
I ran into this puzzle at the last NCTM conference in DC. The company called YMIR Inc. allowed teachers to attempt to solve this puzzle within five minutes. If you were able to solve it, you were able to take it home from free. Great hook, eh? Well, I didn’t solve it there, however I was able to purchase two puzzles for my students to figure out.
Another teacher and myself (as displayed in the picture) was able to solve the puzzle within 10-15 minutes. The goal of the puzzle is to assemble a 16-piece square with all smooth or rough edges.
I was told that there were at least 200 solutions to this puzzle, so what makes it so difficult to solve? There are no pictures on the faces, and the pieces must interlock with no gaps. Great challenge for those students with good perception.
I was also told that this puzzle was created by an Estonian and was brought here to keep us entertained. Good job, homie! Will have to work on lowering my rate of completion. I heard that some people has solved it within five minutes or less. Those folks must really must be mensa certified. Anyway, if you are looking for a challenge, let the ultimate puzzle your next victim.
If you have a green thumb, you should know the difference between shamrocks and clovers. The picture to the right would be an example of clovers. Actually, many people discourage their growth, due to their classification as weeds. Many people do not care as long as their lawn is green! However, let me get to the point.
This picture is a great example to strike a conversation with students when introducing the topic of probability (not only in March!!!). Asking students questions as, have you ever found a 4-leaf clover? How long did it take you to find one? It would be really cool to have students to go outside and find at least one in a set duration of time and the person that finds it has no homework for the week! Now that would really be lucky!
Also, besides probabilty in nature, students can research to read more about clovers and shamrocks and possibly write what they learned about them and possibly link some math to the topic. Believe it or not, there is a Four-Leaf Clover Finders guide (PDF) that reports that there is 1 four-leaf clover in 10,000 clovers. You may want to wait to share or let the students discover that fact. Happy hunting!
Well… not quite yet officially from Texas Instruments.
However, through modification, you can refurbish your $89 paperweight (BROKEN TI-83/84). This hack can be done by following the instructions on Mark Bowers’ blog. I may try it out if I can pick up a GameBoy Color unit at the local Good Will at a decent price.
Nowadays, it is recommended for math teachers to integrate reading into their discipline. Believe it or not, literacy skills are very important for student success involving word problems. So I’ve decided to spotlight some great math related books on my blog from time to time.
I wish to start off with sharing the first book of the of Sir Cumference series. The book Sir Cumference and the First Round Table by Cindy Neushwander is a great tale of how a medival dude solves a problem with King Arthur’s meeting table.
I’ve found this book great to introduce or have the discussions about the area of rectangles, the properties of circles, and some neat constructions. If you own an document camera, it would be a great idea to use it to blow up the awesome illustrations by Wayne Geehan. The book is a great read and I will share the others in the series later!
The above image is great for having students make conjectures or to produce a quick write. I linked the above items to their calorie counts - another way to integrate some math.
As I always say… To activate students HOTS, have them (NOT YOU!) create problems/questions such as…
1. Which box of ice cream sandwiches is the better buy? Why?
2. When would the box of 6 that cost 2 for $4.00 be the better buy? Give some scenarios.
3. Why is the box of mini ice cream so expensive?
We can go on and on, however if you have some additional question to share, please comment!
The above 75 year old math educator (yes, still in the classroom!!!) has truly inspired me. I stumbled upon an article in my NCAE newsletter that spotlighted her accolades and perseverance in the classroom as a fellow front-line veteran soldier for over 50 years!
From the reading, I took note of the following….
She informally assess her students by their actions by watching their pencils, papers, and expressions. Also, she knows her limits.
When she deals with troublesome students, she calls on a higher authority… no not the principal or superintendant, or even Obama. Dorothy calls their name before the Lord and ask Him to help her – and you know that God delivers! This is what I need to do… she seeks divine intervention with the students End-of-Grade tests. She starts asking at the beginning of the school year!
Dorothy believes keeps it old school. No electronics, that includes the overhead or even computers. The chalkboard is king – Away with dry erase markers & boards, new text books, and calculators. Straight OG, son!
Ms. Calloway…. thank you for your many years of dedication to the craft and may the Lord continue to give you
strength to mold minds and futures.
I ran into a student that I used to teach that is currently a senior in high school. She said that she is taking honors pre-cal and not doing well at all. She actually stated that this was the worst teacher that she ever had! I tried to tell her to don’t give up and referred her to Mathway.com.
Mathway is a site that actually allows the user to enter problems and solves them! It also breaks down problems and explains how the answer is derived as a tutor would do for a fee I believe. Check it out. I highly recommend this site especially if students struggle and use it properly to check their answers, rather than to just get an answer w/o work! Teachers may use it as a resource too when they get a little deep in the water as well or have no textbook key!
This weekend I picked up a few things from the teacher store in preparation of the 1st day of school. I passed by and ended up picking up this cool Unifix Sudoku game. As you can see, when I got home, I ended up placing the blocks in ROY G. BIV order and numbered the tops to match.
-PIRING thinkers!
If you have a green thumb, you should know the difference between shamrocks and clovers. The picture to the right would be an example of clovers. Actually, many people discourage their growth, due to their classification as weeds. Many people do not care as long as their lawn is green! However, let me get to the point.
I wish to start off with sharing the first book of the of Sir Cumference series. The book Sir Cumference and the First Round Table by Cindy Neushwander is a great tale of how a medival dude solves a problem with King Arthur’s meeting table.
Mathway is a site that actually allows the user to enter problems and solves them! It also breaks down problems and explains how the answer is derived as a tutor would do for a fee I believe. Check it out. I highly recommend this site especially if students struggle and use it properly to check their answers, rather than to just get an answer w/o work! Teachers may use it as a resource too when they get a little deep in the water as well or have no textbook key!