by leabartch
Math Math Tasks
by leabartch
What boy wouldn’t like doing math if you used LEGOS? Look what I stumbled upon today. I love to find those ideas that 1) create instant engagement and 2) make our jobs easier!
Are we afraid kids might accidentally have fun? Wouldn’t that be a crime. When did learning become a “school” thing instead of a “life” thing? Step out of the box. The world is depending on you.
LEGOs Build Math Concepts
More ideas with LEGOs.
Quest
(This could become an activity to use for curriculum compacting.)
Common Core Critical & Creative Thinking Curriculum Compacting Gifted Math Math Tasks Resources and Websites RTI Math STEAM/STEM
by leabartch
Learning or thinking?
While doing some prep work for tomorrow’s appointments, I began searching good ole Google. (How did I survive all those years? I LOVE having answers at my fingertips.) I had questions and wanted to see what the world had to answer them.
Then, I found her (actually she is using HIS work). An article that defines “reflection.” It’s long. It’s scholarly. So I’ll differentiate. I’ll pull out some phrases that are AWESOME, and I’ll provide the link. You can choose your route. (Isn’t choice nice? How often do you give your students a choice?) Hopefully these pieces will spark your interest enough to dig into the article called, “Defining Reflection: Another Look at John Dewey and Reflective Thinking” by Carol Rodgers. Here are some highlights:
- My purpose is, quite simply, to provide a clear picture of Dewey’s original ideas so that they might serve as we improvise, revise, and create new ways of deriving meaning from experiences-thinking to learn.
- “What (an individual) has learned in the way of knowledge and skill in one situation becomes an instrument of understanding and dealing effectively with the situations which follow. The process goes on as long as life and learning continue.”
- …other kinds of thinking is stream of consciousness. It is the thinking all of us are involuntarily awash in all the time….This is often the only kind of thinking teachers have time for.
- …moves the learner from a disturbing state of perplexity…to a harmonious state of settledness. Perplexity is created when an individual encounters a situation whose “full character is not yet determined.” That is, the meaning of the experience has not yet been fully established.
- An additional source of motivation is curiosity, without which there is little energy for the hard work of reflection.
- The store of one’s wisdom is the result of the extent of one’s reflection.
- Formulating the problem or question itself is half the work. As Dewey says, “A question well put is half answered.”
- Reflection must include action.
- Dewey knew that merely to think without ever having to express what one thought is an incomplete act….The experience has to be formulated in order to be communicated.
- Curiosity about and enthusiasm for that subject matter is essential to good teaching. Without them a teacher has no energy, no fuel, to carry out reflective inquiry-much less teaching itself.
There is great information in this article. It helps to define true reflection, its purpose, and the importance of disciplined reflection. Eye opening. I hope you’ll take the time to read the article for yourself.
Rodgers, C. (2002). Defining Reflection Another Look at John Dewey and Reflective Thinking. Teachers College Record, 104(4), 842-866.
Common Core Complex Text Critical & Creative Thinking Formative Assessments Gifted Inspiration and Motivation Math Math Tasks Metacognition PARCC Professional Development Reading Resources and Websites Science Social Studies Writing
by leabartch
EVEN THOUGH no one is responding…in hopes there is a reader out there…here’s a fantastic critical thinking task. A little math and a little common sense. Check it out.
The Smith Family Vacation
The Smith family is going on vacation in their family car. They are traveling from Murfreesboro all the way to Orlando, Florida, home of Disney World for a whole week. But, they run into some trouble on their way….. they get a flat tire. Can you please help them find the answers of what to do so that they can have a successful vacation.
These are some basic facts about the trip and their situation.
- The trip is about 800 miles one way.
- They get the flat tire right at the Georgia and Florida boarders on their way down to Disney World about 10 miles from the nearest exit and gas station.
- They pull off the road and fortunately they have a spare tire a jack and lug nut wrench to gain access to removing the tire.
- They remove the lug nuts from the tire that is flat and place the lug nuts in the hub cap on the ground.
- As they pull the flat tire off the car they accidently hit the hub cap with the flat tire and all the lug nuts fall down into the sewer and wash away.
QUESTIONS:
- What are you going to do to save your vacation plans?
- If you can walk 3 miles per hour how long would it take you to get to the gas station for help?
- Based on all the facts listed above, what is your best course of action?
Find the answers to the questions. Please use an equation and model to explain your findings and proof for your answer.
Critical & Creative Thinking Gifted Math Math Tasks
by leabartch
If you haven’t been here, go now. YIKES! Good stuff.
Also, many 5th grade classes are starting fractions or have started. I found this read to be very interesting.
Teaching About Fractions: What, When, and How
Common Core Critical & Creative Thinking Gifted Math Math Tasks PARCC Resources and Websites RTI Math
by leabartch
Crazy, how?
#1) The ideas coming my way from teachers at MCS are coming so fast, I can hardly keep up with posting them here.
#2) There’s a whole lot of resources out there!!
If you haven’t checked out the math arcs Karen Hawkins sent out a few weeks ago (the ones the state is releasing), you need to put that on your to do list!! GREAT tool to help with CRA.
ALSO, Ms. Dickerson, at Scales, sent these resources to me following the math training at Scales for tier 2. I am just now getting them out to you. These are worth your time!!
Weekly Problems
Essential Questions for Math
Resource for Math Lessons-Illuminations Website
Thank you Ms. Dickerson!
Common Core Critical & Creative Thinking Math Math Tasks PARCC Resources and Websites RTI Math
by leabartch
Latoya and Reggie are thinking about going into the milk bottling business together. They came up with some questions that they need to be able to answer to see if this is a good idea. Can you please help them find the answers to the various questions listed below?
BASIC INFORMATION:
These are some basic facts about the dairy business.
- Milk is sold in units of 100 pounds.
- One Hundred pounds of milk is sold to the Milk bottling companies for $11.00.
- A gallon of milk weighs 8.3 pounds.
- A good cow can produce 12,000 gallons of milk per year.
QUESTIONS:
- How many gallons of milk will a good cow produce per month?
- How many gallons of milk will a good cow produce per day?
- How many gallons of milk can they get out of every 100 pound unit?
- How many 100 pound units can a good cow produce every month?
- How many ½ pint cartons can a good cow produce every month?
- How much money can a good cow produce for the farmer every year?
Find the answers to the questions. Please use an equation and model to explain your findings and proof for your answer.
Common Core Math Math Tasks
by leabartch
Here’s the most current math task from Gary the Finance Guy!
Joey and Anne want to be Landscape Architects. To be able to do the job they need to be able to figure out how plants grow and calculate distances. So here is the problem they need to figure out to be able to start their careers in Landscape Architecture.
Their aunt wants them to plant some trees that will eventually block the view from the road to her house. But she doesn’t want the trees to totally block the view of the house until three years from today. She has decided that she wants to use Leland Cyprus trees and needs Joey’s and Anne’s help to determine how many trees she needs to span the 100 feet in front of her house that she wants blocked in three years. Can you please help them decide how many trees their aunt needs to purchase and how far apart they need to plant the trees to achieve her goal.
BASIC INFORMATION:
- The Leland Cyprus trees are all currently two feet in diameter and five feet tall when planted.
- Leland Cyprus trees grow at a rate of two additional feet in diameter and one additional foot in height each year.
- The area they need to span is 100 feet.
- The tree branches need to be touching the tree next to it by the end of the third year.
QUESTIONS:
- What is the minimum number of trees that they need to purchase?
- How wide in diameter will each tree be at the end of the third year?
- How tall will each tree be at the end of the third year?
- How far apart from the center of each trunk do the trees need to be planted so that they have adequate room to grow and touch at the end of the third year?
Find the answers to the questions. Please use an equation and model to explain your findings and proof for your answer.
PS. I know the answer…I have the sweat and scribble on two pages to prove it! Math is so fun!!
Math Math Tasks
by leabartch
A Revised…New and Improved…Math Task:
Johnny and Samantha are planning to purchase Pizza for the class pizza party. They want to find out which size pizza is the best value for the limited funds they have been given to purchase the pizza. They can’t decide what would be the best way to determine what the greatest value for their money should be since the class is counting on them to get the most for the money. Can you please help them make the best decision on how to spend their money.
BASIC INFORMATION:
They can purchase three different shapes and sizes of pizza. Fortunately, everyone agreed that they like pepperoni and traditional crust pizza. The distance from the outside edge of the pizza to the sauce/cheese/pepperoni ingredients (crust) is 1 inch.
- A 12 inch round pizza costs $8.00.
- A 16 inch round pizza costs $12.00
- A 12 inch square pizza costs $8.00
- A 16 inch by 14 inch rectangular pizza costs $14.00.
QUESTIONS:
- Which pizza is the best value for the money?
- How much are they paying for the part of the pizza that is just crust without sauce/cheese/pepperoni?
Find the answers to the questions. Please use an equation and model to explain your findings and proof for your answer.
THANKS GARY THE FINANCE MAN!!
Math Tasks
Teach to Educate 