The Last Post

Good bye Polar Bear Pride. I will miss your nice pretty layout!

Lyndsey won the Problem of the Week, don't forget to collect your $50 tomorrow!

Future posts will now be here: http://www.hasd.org/faculty/jensmith/classinfo.cfm

Be sure to put it in your favorites! The next Problem of the Week is already posted.

Problem of the Week-$$$

Michael, you are the winner of our last problem of the week. Instead of candy for a prize, you will be paid $50 in Planet Smith Bucks! Congratulations!

Here is the new problem (perhaps this incentive will get more people answering it):

Frog Fun:

Little green frogs can catch 3 flies in one hour and Big Bull frogs can grab 8 flies each hour. In an average day, Big Bull frogs sleep 18 hours per day and little green frogs only need to sleep 7 hours per day. Based on this information, answer the following two questions:

1. After 3 full days, who can catch more flies, the Big Bull Frog or the little green frog?

2. How many more flies did that frog catch after 3 days?

Problem of the Week #8

Congratulations to Erin, who won the problem of the week last week! She submitted her answer on paper to me at school. Great job Erin!

Soon, our blog will be moved to my personal website at school. All of the games and awesome resources on this site will be in one location, in a way that is easier to use and find. I can't wait to share it with you soon! Stay tuned!

Your new problem:

Scientists see a sun spot appear on the sun. As the sun spins on it's axis, it takes 7 days for the sun spot to move 90 degrees. How many days does it take for that sun spot to move 360 degrees?

Good luck!

Problem of the Week #7

My sincere apologies for being so late to update this! I have been swamped this week getting materials for our grant and trying out to build our classroom website. I am back in the game!

Our winners for last week are Connor AND Michael who were the only two to answer the problem. Congratulations.

Here is your new problem. (Warning: It has many steps.)

I have a basket of fruit that contains only bananas, apples and oranges. The basket contains 2 bananas, 6 red apples and 8 green apples. If the total number of pieces of fruit is three times the number of apples in the basket, how many oranges are in the basket?

More Multiplication and Division Practice

Try to build algorithms with these two games:

Multiplication

Division

Also, we tried www.ABCya.com today in the computer lab. There are many resources on this site for you to try, including language arts activities!

Problem of the Week #6

The winner from last week was Connor! GREAT explanation, please look below that last post to see all the people who answered.

Here is your new problem:

If the sum of two positive whole numbers is 64, what is the greatest possible product?

(Hint: A product is the answer in a multiplication problem.)

Multiplication Practice

We are in the swing of learning multiplication and division. We are learning them together since they are so closely related. This site is AWESOME for helping drill multiplication facts. Start with 2's and 5's and then practice 3's and 4's.

http://www.multiplication.com/interactive_games.htm

Problem of the Week #5

Our winner for last week was Michael! Congratulations!

Here is the next Problem of the Week:

Find the Pattern

Determine the next three numbers in the following pattern. Explain the pattern with words.

3, 7, 10, 17, 27, 44, 71, _____, _____, _____

Problem of the Week #4

Congratulations to Alli, our new problem of the week winner from last week! The correct answer was 112, 114, 116, 118, 120=580.

Here is your new problem:

The Pack is Back!

The Green Bay Packers scored 14 points in a football game. They only scored touchdowns (including the extra point), field goals and safeties. Hint: A touchdown is worth 7 points. A field goal is 3 points. A safety is worth 2 points.

Write ALL the possible combinations to get 14 points all together. Write the algorithm along with the word answer. Here is the first one to get you started:

7+7=14 (2 touchdowns)

Good luck!

Coordinate Graphing

Many of us struggled a bit with coordinate graphing in class today. Consider trying these two games to help you practice. Once you master the first one, you should attempt the second one for a good challenge.

Billy Bug

Billy Bug 2

Enjoy playing with the coordinates and feeding the bug!

Winner and New Problem!

The correct answer to our Problem of the Week was 5 hours and 27 minutes. Congratulations to David, you are the winner for this week!

Here is your new problem:

Five Numbers:

Five consecutive, even numbers sum to 580. Write the 5 numbers in this set of consecutive, even numbers.

(Hint: consecutive means "in a row")

We are studying landforms in class right now during science. Many students have been fascinated by this topic. I promised to put some information on the blog with some great photographs.

National Geographic's Surface of the Earth

We Could be Meteorologists

I think charts, data and graphs are WAY more meaningful when they are relevant. Rumors flew through the hallways today about a possible snow day. So we checked things out for ourselves. We studied line plots and bar graphs today on the National Weather Service website.

Check it out for yourself! Click on the link below, type your zip code in. Once the page loads for Greenville, WI scroll down to the hourly weather graph on the right hand side of the page near the bottom. (It is also fun on the home page to look at all the different warnings!)

http://www.nws.noaa.gov/

Problem of the Week #2

Here is your new problem of the week! You have one week from today to respond. Remember, you will not see your responses until the time is up (to avoid seeing other people's answers).

Good luck!

How Much Time?

School begins in your classroom at 7:55 am each day. On Monday, you leave your classroom for gym at 10:45 and return at 11:13, leave for lunch at 11:27 and return at 11:54, leave for recess at 12:31 and return at 12:56, and leave for music at 2:05 and return at 2:28. If school ends at 3:05, how much time (in hours and minutes – such as 4 hours 25 minutes) do you spend in your classroom on Monday?

We Have a Winner!

Our first problem solving contest was a success! We had 10 total responses, 6 on the blog itself and 4 were turned in at school. I put all the names in a hat, and the winner for this week is....drum roll please...Dylan!

Dylan, the day after you read this, come in to school to pick your prize!

If you would like to see your comment and other's comments, click where it says 7 comments on the post.

Problem of the Week Contest

Here it is! Our first Problem of the Week Contest.

First, I will post a problem. You will have one week from the day I post it to try to get the correct answer. If you get the correct answer, I will put your name in a hat. On the last day I will pick a name out of the hat. That person will get to pick a prize at school.

When you want to answer the question, comment on the post and be sure to sign your name. I won't reveal any answers until the week is over, so do not be surprised if you don't see your post right away. I will approve it after I have gotten all of the answers.

Good luck!

Our first problem:

Cassidy has twelve American coins in her pocket. If she has exactly sixty-three cents in dimes, nickels, and pennies, how many dimes does Cassidy have in her pocket?

It is Time to Tell Time!

Here are some tools to get your brain thinking about telling time!

Bang on Time

Tell time to the half hour...

Tell time to 15 minute intervals...

Tell time to five minute intervals...

Tell time to the minute...

Military Time!

Enjoy practicing concepts related to time!

Subtraction Practice

Here are some sites to help you practice subtraction concepts:

Sum Sense (Subtraction): Build number sentences that are true

Try this awesome game to help you think about what numbers make the difference. If speed is not your friend, try ignoring the clock to simply get some practice:

Speed Grid (Level 1)

Speed Grid (Level 2)

Enjoy practicing subtraction! If you get a chance let me know if you got to play Speed Grid.

Train Your Brain

Try this game to help you learn to focus when your mind begins to wander. Focus on the center bird!

Lost in Migration

Critical Thinking Skills

Video games tend to be hated by many adults. I am with these adults when they are violent or not meaningful. However, I love games that require critical thinking and problem solving. Try this game and you'll be hooked.

Meeblings

And if you go through all 50 levels, try (if you can get through the advertisement first):

Meeblings 2

The higher the level, the more challenging the puzzle.

Spatial Reasoning Games

One of the strands in math is Geometry, which includes spatial reasoning and relationships. These two games (which are addicting and fun) will help develop spatial reasoning for people at any age.

Bloxorz

Gravity Grid

Enjoy!

Nouns vs. Verbs

What is the difference between a noun and a verb? Can you identify them in this game? As you do this, the parts of speech get more difficult.

Panda Mayhem

Place Value Tutorial

Again I cannot stress the understanding of place value enough. This tutorial is great to go through for ANY student, strong with the concept or not. Please consider having your child try this. The second half of the tutorial is for students who understand place value with whole numbers and would like to dabble in decimals! We will not work with decimals in class until the end of the year.

Place Value with Whole Numbers and Decimals

Learn the Facts Before you Practice Them

If students do not know the correct answer to a math fact, drill games are useless. It is important to learn the CORRECT answer to a math fact first before trying a drill game.

These games can help when stuck in a particular set of addition facts. You choose the fact (perhaps +3 or +6) to practice, one at a time. There is more than one answer to choose from in the problem given, so that you can see if you get the correct answer.

Math Fact Bubble Blast

Fun for the Brain (Addition Page)

Perhaps you have mastered addition and would like to try subtraction:

Fun for the Brain (Subtraction Page)

If you are REALLY looking for a good challenge, you can try multiplication games as well:

Fun for the Brain (Multiplication Page)

Good luck!

The Equal Sign

Students in American schools often have trouble understanding the equal sign as well as Algebraic Relationships. This website is great to help students "build" a number sentence.

Try it out and let me know what you think!

Sum Sense