Homework: Nov. 30

For the week of November 30, 2009

Mon. 11/30
All Blocks: 5-2 Study Guide, all

Tues. 12/1
All Blocks: 5-3 Study Guide, all

Wed. 12/2
All Blocks: 5-7 Study Guide, all

Thurs. 12/3
All Blocks: 5-8 Practice, even/odd; study for Number Theory Quiz

Fri. 12/4
All Blocks: STUDY!!!

Weekly Class Summary: Nov. 23-27

SOLs Covered: SOL 6.3 (MSMI.3) Number Theory
New Math Dictionary Sections: (11) Number Theory
Upcoming Assessments: Number Theory Fri. 12/4/09

Quizzes from last week were passed back on Monday so that students could correct them and earn back some credit. Students are highly encouraged to always go over old work, in all subjects, in order to learn from their mistakes to prevent them from happening on subsequent assessments. We began our unit on Number Theory, which entails divisibility, prime and composite numbers, Greatest Common Factor (GCF), and Least Common Multiple (LCM). With our new math dictionary section, students included a Sieve of Eratosthenes, which they used to "find" all of the prime numbers less than 100. The unit will be continued after the fall break.

Sieve of Eratosthenes by MurderousMaths

Homework: Nov. 23

For the week of November 23, 2009

Mon. 11/23
All Blocks: Correct quizzes (Circles & WWU4) and Circles worksheet

Tues. 11/24
All Blocks: 5-1 Study Guide, all

Wed. 11/25
All Blocks: STUDY!!! Try to catch up on missing work and maybe get ahead over the fall break.

Thurs. 11/26
School Closed
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Fri. 11/27
School Closed

Weekly Class Summary: Nov. 16-20

SOLs Covered: SOL 6.12 (MSMI.15) Circles

New Math Dictionary Sections: None

Upcoming Assessments: Number Theory (after Thanksgiving break)

We wrapped up our unit on Circles this week and took the quiz on Thursday. The unit and quiz covered vocabulary (radius, diameter, circumference, area, and Pi π) along with finding the circumference and area of circles when given the radius or diameter. Some students are still struggling with using formulas and where to "plug in" each number, so analogies were given to help understand why any number cannot just be substituted for any given variable in a formula (i.e. the diameter can not be used when the formula has radius). For instance, you would not substitute a quarterback for a linebacker and you would not substitute mascara for lipstick. Friday, students took the fourth Weekly Warm Up Quiz.

"Easy as pi" by Daniel Bates

Homework: Nov. 16

For the week of November 16, 2009

Mon. 11/16
All Blocks: 10-3 Study Guide, all

Tues. 11/17
All Blocks: 10-3 Practice, even/odd

Wed. 11/18
All Blocks: "C is for Circumference" worksheet (front only); study for Circles Quiz

Thurs. 11/19
All Blocks: "What's Inside?" worksheet (back only); study for 4th WWU Quiz

Fri. 11/20
All Blocks: STUDY!!!

Weekly Class Summary: Nov. 9-13

SOLs Covered: SOL 6.11 & 7.7 (MSMI.14) Coordinate Geometry; SOL 6.12 (MSMI.15) Circles
New Math Dictionary Sections: (10) Circles
Upcoming Assessments: Circles Quiz (TBA); 4th WWU Quiz Fri. 11/20/09

We wrapped up our coordinate geometry section on the area/perimeter of squares, rectangles, and triangles on Monday, finishing the quiz, which also included the coordinate plane, that was started on Friday of last week. Tuesday was spent taking the benchmark test in the computer lab (FYI all benchmarks and SOLs are done on the computer in MS & HS). On Wednesday, we began our unit on Circles which included a Smarties® activity that allowed us to see the relationship between the radius, diameter, and circumference of a circle along with the reltionship between the circumference and the diameter (Pi π). We will continue working with circles next week, incorporating area questions and word problems into the mix.

Pi on Wikipedia

Homework: Nov. 9

For the week of November 9, 2009

Mon. 11/9
All Blocks: Study for Benchmark Test

Tues. 11/10
All Blocks: Bring in one circular object (not spherical, i.e. not a ball)

Wed. 11/11
All Blocks: 7-4 Study Guide, all

Thurs. 11/12
All Blocks: 7-4 Practice, even/odd

Fri. 11/13
All Blocks: STUDY!!!

Weekly Class Summary: Nov. 2-6

SOLs Covered: SOL 6.11 & 7.7 (MSMI.14) Coordinate Geometry
New Math Dictionary Sections: None
Upcoming Assessments: 1st Benchmark Test on Tues. 11/10/09

Both Monday and Tuesday were student holidays, Monday being a teacher workday and Tuesday being Parent/Teacher Conference Day. When students returned on Wednesday we had our field trip to the Landmark Theater to see the math play "Eureka!" presented by the Chamber Theatre. On Thursday we continued our work on coordinate geometry, which covered perimeter and area of squares, rectangles, and triangles. We also had an opportunity to visit the Choice Bus and view the documentry InsideOut by the Mattie C. Stewart Foundation. While we took a quiz covering both the coordinate plane and coordinate geometry on Friday, we will continue working on coordinate geometry word problems next week.

"Eureka!" by Shaun Wainwright-Branigan
Performed by the Chamber Theatre

Christmas Mother Food Drive

We are again conducting our annual Christmas Mother food drive. The school has participated for several years and it has always been a successful way to give something back to our community. This drive will provide food and supplies for families who otherwise might not have a very cheerful holiday.

Each first block class is asked to collect non-perishable food items and other basic supplies (such as paper products, toothpaste, etc). Collection will countinue through Tuesday, November 24th. Thank you to everyone that is able to contribute.

The Choice Bus

Here are a few pictures of the Choice Bus that students were able to get on today at school. See the previous entry for further details on the program and the Mattie C. Stewart Foundation.

InsideOut and Choice Bus

Tomorrow FCMS 6th graders will have the opportunity to view the InsideOut documentary created by the Mattie C. Stewart Foundation and to check out the Choice Bus, "a tool created by [the foundation] for the purpose of extending the learning experience of the InsideOut documentary outside the classroom and keeping students on the road to a good education." Both have had a powerful impact on students from across the country, lending to a better understanding of the importance of education. They will hopefully reinforce our students' desire to succeed in school and at everything else they set out to accomplish. Below you will find two clips from the foundation about the experience.

InsideOut from The Mattie C. Stewart Foundation on Vimeo.

The Choice Bus from The Mattie C. Stewart Foundation on Vimeo.

Homework: Nov. 3

For the week of November 3, 2009

Mon. 11/2
Student Holiday & Teacher Workday

Tues. 11/3
Student Holiday & Parent/Teacher Conference Day

Wed. 11/4
All Blocks: Study!!! There is no written homework due to the field trip.

Thurs. 11/5
All Blocks: 10-2 Practice, even/odd

Fri. 11/6
All Blocks: STUDY!!!