Henry's Cabin

This activity, which is not interactive, should engage the students. The students are given a blueprint of a cabin and have to calculate the amount of area that will need to be painted taking into consideration the door and windows do not need to be painted.

One of the activities is to draw the cabin on graph paper using the scale factor given and then create the furniture, using the same scale factor.

Henry's Cabin can help relate the measurement of math that the students need to something real, a cabin.

The thing I do not like about the site is the background used is way too busy. This makes viewing difficult but if you copy the page you can paste it into one note and the busy background goes away.

Video of us

Question: Is requiring student's participation in social networking an invastion of privacy?

This article came from the June 2009 issue of National Education Association. In the article two professors analysis the concept of having students correspond with them through Facebook during the academic semester.
Professor John Damon, took the stand of "Yes" social networking is a private activity separate from teaching and learning.

Professor Damon uses Facebook often to communicate with and stay in touch with current and former students. He believes you should keep private activity separate from teaching and learning. He feels that requiring such use as part of course requirements is an entirely different matter. He uses many forms of technology in his classroom including: Blackboard, Powerpoint, and Web-links. He feels that delivering information using cyberspace differs fundamentally from using social networks as part of the structure of his courses. He fears the problem of invasion of privacy and the possibility of harassment claims.

Professor Partick Bishop, takes the stand of "No", the baby has arrived, social networking is here to stay.

Professor Bishop feels that as educators it is our job to lead change, not just keep pace. We must meet students where they are and connect them to real-world expectations. He feels that teaching students to navigate the world of social networks is a necessary skill in the current marketplace, particularly in fields such as marketing, advertising, and public relations. He also notes that as leaders, we need to embrace the new technologies as we continue to reinforce the core values of empowerment, excellence, and learning.

Now it is your turn to pick a side. Do you feel that social networking is private and should be separate from teaching and learning if so "Yes". Or if you think that social networking is a necessary part of education and learning and should not be separate choose "No".

Explain your answer in the comment section.

Week 2 Journal Memos

1. What new mathematical material did you learn this week?

2. What mathematical material do you still feel you need help with?

3. What new technology did you learn this week?

4. What technology are you still needing help with?

Videos to help with Unit Measurements

This site has over 40 lessons which work with unit measurements. Besides lessons the site has videos of the PBS show Cyberchase to go along with the lessons. There are worksheets and assessments to complete the lessons. The site is free, but you do have to sign up for it.

Also, I was looking at Youtube and found a couple of quick videos which go along with the NLVM site on converting measurements. Just as the game we played the first couple of days it explains how and why you do each step.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEV2ECFCdPU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nFdIrJkd5Q

Enjoy!

Vickie

Math Sites

While looking for 3D solids, I came across this site from NSDL Middle School Portal. They have links to many math sites that I think we can all use.

I have not had time to really look into the different links but I hope to view some in the near future. (They have 176 links just in measurement.)

Everything appears to be easy to find based upon what you need. You can even search within the site to narrow down the choices. The only problem I can see is when you click on a link you are taken to a new site in that window. It would be nice if the link would open in a new window.

Interactive 3-D Solids

This is the site that Cindi found with the 3-D solids. They use triangles, squares, and pentagons to make the solids.

You can also make printables for the students to cut out and make.

Interactive Math Dictionary

This website is an interactive a math dictionary. Instead of just giving the definition to many mathematical terms the site allows the user to explore the concepts. I have used this with my students when they ask for definitions.

If you click on the term Graph you will be shown several different types of graphs that all show the same information.

I really like this site because it is easy to use and engaging for the student. Try it and let me know what you think.

TEST PAGE

THIS IS A TEST PAGE FOR THE BLOG.

Unit Measurements: using word problems

Purplemath is an great site to look for lesson suggestions on many different math concepts. Under this particular search results you will find over a dozen different lessons on unit measurements including: ratios, proportions, percentages, converting, and many more ideas. This site allows you to narrow your search to refine objectives you need quickly. Many of the lessons go along with some of the measurement manipulative's from the NLVM site. Check it out and let me know what you think.

PBS Calculations from the Farm

In this activity the students will learn how long a rod is and how a rod is used to measure an acre. They will take common things such as the classroom and a football field and figure out how many acres those objects are. The students will also make measurements based upon the number of seeds that can be planted on acres.

Fun things for the desktop

Go here and download and install the experience pack for vista. This will give you some things that you can use with the tablet. Just one example is a crossword.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=4861aad3-1d67-4b02-bfd5-4add1879d3dc&DisplayLang=en


After you have finished the experience pack you will want to download and install the ink desktop. The ink desktop will allow you to doodle on the desktop. What is the point of having a tablet if you cannot doodle?

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=E1A51F4A-9E58-45F7-985B-3C37B8EEDB71&displaylang=en

I hope you enjoy this like I do. =)

Recipes

Everyone needs to post the recipes when they make something yummy for the snacks.

Virtual Manipulatives

Hey guys, this is another manipulative under the NLVM site. It is called "How High", it allows you to work with volume using rectangles, cylinders, and cones. A great way to have students estimate and have fun learning volume.

Snack List Summer 09-10

Week 1

Wednesday, June 10--Brenda Stringer and Kristen Martin
Thursday, June 11--Rachelle McClellas
Friday, June 12--Rhonda the Pop-Up Lady

Week 2

Monday, June 15--Kaye Fitzgerald
Tuesday, June 16--Brandon and Hortencia
Wednesday, June 17--Vickie Mundie
Thursday, June 18--Jill Pena and Julie West
Friday, June 19--Stacy Canady and Kristel Martin

Week 3

Monday, June 22--Leia and Brandi
Tuesday, June 23--Dr. Huse
Wednesday, June 24--Cindi, Heather, M'si
Thursday, June 25--Laci and Cheryl