Friday, March 23, 2012

3/23/12

This morning I have posted grades for the new nine weeks.  I have some kids that have not turned in their DBQ journals.  This was a test grade for them.  If I don't have them by the Monday we return from Spring Break, they will be required to write the essay at the end of the DBQ in order to receive credit.  This was  a very easy assignment and they had over a week to complete it.  It already is over a week late now.

Yesterday in math we worked on calculating the volume of a cylinder.  Because the homework was time consuming, I gave them most of the class period to get a head start on it.  When calculating the volume of a cylinder, you find the area of the circular base by multiplying the radius squared times pi.  Then you multiply that answer times the height of the cylinder.  If it gives you a diameter, don't forget the divide the diameter by two to find the radius before you get started.

Today in math we are going to be finding the volume of cones.  You would do that the same way as a cylinder, but divide by three at the end.  This is going to be an in class assignment.  I think they will all do fine as long as they check their work.

In social studies we are forming groups for our ancient civilization projects.  The kids in Mr. Cohen's class have already picked their group and culture to work on.  The other two classes will be doing that today.  I will be posting a rubric that the kids have helped create for what is expected in the project.  The kids can work on this for a while in class.  They will not be presenting their projects until after FCAT which will be in the beginning of May, so they have plenty of time to work on them.  There will be more information to come.

Have a wonderful Spring Break.  Rest up and be ready for more FCAT review when we return.  Please have your children work on FCAT FOCUS to get prepared for FCAT.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

3/22/12

It's Thursday!  2 more days until Spring Break.

Today we are going to continue working with volume.  We also are going to be making our groups for the social studies projects.  That's all for today.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

3/21/12

Today is a review day.  We will be reviewing how to calculate the volume of a triangular prism and any type of pyramid.
Yesterday, we didn't get a chance to work on creating the rubric for the social studies project, so we are definitely going to be working on that today.

No homework!  Happy Wednesday!

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

3/20/12

4 more days until Spring Break!!!  I am sure that everyone is very excited.

This week in math, we are working with volume and surface area.  These are standards that most likely will not be seen on FCAT, but are things we need to go over before seventh grade.  Yesterday, the kids learned how to calculate the volume of triangular prisms.  The lesson went well and everyone seemed to catch on quickly.  In order to calculate the volume of a prism, you find the area of the base, not matter what shape it is.  In this case, they were triangles, so you would do the base times the height, times 1/2 or divided by two.  Then you multiply that area times the distance between the two bases, or the height of the prism.  We did a few examples in class, and then they had about 10 minutes to work on their homework.

Today in math, we are going to be talking about how to find the volume of a pyramid.  It is very similar to that of a prism, but after you multiply the area of the base with the height of the pyramid, you must divide your answer by 3.

In social studies, I introduced a little bit about a project we are going to be working on in social studies.  This project will not be due until after FCAT and should mostly be done in class.  Students will be picking groups no bigger than 4 people.  They will be choosing an ancient culture that they want to know more about.  They are going to teach the class about their ancient culture.  The only requirement that I have is that they make some sort of assessment to assess whether or not the kids learned anything from their presentation.  We are going to be making a rubric together as a class on the expectations of this project.  There will be more information to come.

Friday, March 16, 2012

3/16/12

Today is Friday..Yay!!!

Today we are taking our District Assessment in math.  I have given the kids 24 problems in class to help them review for this test.  I think they are all well prepared.

I am currently heading up the St. Jude's math-a-thon fundraiser for the school.  I am offering extra credit for any kids that participate in this fundraiser.  It is a great way for them to practice their math skills before FCAT.  The extra credit is based on their participation on the math portion, not the money portion although, I do encourage everyone to donate to a great cause as well.

In social studies, the journal covers are due on Monday.  The kids have known about this all week and need to get it done on time.  It is a test grade in social studies and is replacing the end of the DBQ essay.   I think they have done a great job so far and look forward to seeing their finished products.

Have a great weekend!!!

Thursday, March 15, 2012

3/15/12

Yesterday we continued our review for the March Diagnostic on Friday.  We did 8 more review questions.   The students are supposed to be writing these questions down as their study guide for the test.  I have given them a total of 16 questions, and will give them 8 more today.  This is the final part of the study guide.

On Monday, their journal covers are due to me for their final test grade on this DBQ.  I hope everyone does a good job.

Have a fantastic Thursday!  I hope everyone can make it to Spring into the Arts tonight!

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

3/14/12

Yesterday we began reviewing for the District Assessment coming up.  Today we will be doing the same again.  The kids should be writing down the questions in their journals to use as a study guide for the district test.

In social studies, we are finished with our last DBQ.  The final project is for them to make a cover for their journals and put them together.   This will count as their final test score in social studies on DBQs.  After that, we have a few more standards to meet and then I am going to let the kids decide on something they would like to discuss or know more about from Ancient civilizations and we will be doing projects with their interests.  It should be a lot of fun!

Have a great Wednesday!

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

3/13/12

Good morning!

Yesterday, everything went very well with the chapter 3 test.  Everyone got either an A or a B on the test.  I was impressed!!!

Today we are going to be reviewing for the March Diagnostic test that we will be taking on Friday.  This is not a test that the kids will have a study guide for.  They should be working through some of the review sections of the book to help remind them of the types of problems they might see.

In social studies, we will be working on finishing up our journals as our final test grade in social studies for this DBQ.  So far, the journal entries have been excellent.

Have a great Tuesday!

Monday, March 12, 2012

3/12/12

Welcome back to another Monday!!!

Today we will be taking the chapter 3 math test.  I think the kids are going to do great on it.  We will then begin reviewing for FCAT.

If we have time, we will also be doing the last document in our DBQ and finishing up our journals.  I am looking forward to seeing a finished product from all of the kids.  So far, they have done a great job.

This week, the kids will be getting trained on how to do the reading FCAT on the computer.  It should be interesting.

Have a great week!

Friday, March 9, 2012

3/9/12

Sorry I was a slacker yesterday and didn't post anything.

We worked on choosing the correct type of graph to display given data yesterday.  This is a little fuzzy for the kids, but here is what we came up with.

Line graph - something that is changing over a period of time
bar graph - when the categories are not numbers and you want to compare data
line plot - when you have a small set of numbers and you want to compare data (easiest graph to see the range and median without calculations)
frequency chart - when you have a larger amount of numbers and you want to be able to put them in intervals instead of single numbers
pictograph - when you have a large amount of data for a few categories ( you can choose a picture and a value for the picture)

We did the homework together so that we could discuss the answers as  we went.

This was the last topic in chapter 3.  We will be having a test on chapter 3 on Monday.  Today in class we will be doing a review sheet and the kids will have it to take home to help them study for the test.
 
We will not have time to do social studies today, but yesterday we arrived in the city of Marakanda.  It is a bustling city that is very prosperous and has a lot to offer to our travelers.  We will be leaving there on Tuesday and traveling to our last stop, which is Antioch.  So far, the kids are doing a great job with their journals.  I can't wait to see the finished products.

Next week will be a very busy week.  Monday, we are taking the chapter 3 test, Tuesday is a normal day, Wednesday, we will be training with the kids on the FCAT online reading test, Thursday we will have shortened periods due to the kids practicing for their "Spring into the Arts" performance, and Friday we will be taking our district March math test.  It will not count for this nine weeks as this nine weeks is over before Friday.

Have a great weekend and see you all on Monday!

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

2/7/12

Today we are going to be looking at the different types of graphs and which ones represent data the best. This will be an introduction to the topic.  I am going to break the class up into groups.  Each group is going to be assigned a type of graph.  They are going to make a poster to help us know when their graph is best used through and illustration with some words.  I hope this will help them remember in the long run.

In social studies we are going to be watching a video on an Ancient society.  It will tie in with our studies on all of the ancient cultures we have been studying.

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

2/6/12

Yesterday went fairly well.  We were able  to do a fun activity to review how to make a frequency table and how to find the relative frequency of  a  specific line of data.  The kids are finding this chapter very easy, which is good after the last few chapter that were not so easy at all.  Today we are going to be discussing line plots.  This is where you draw a line that looks like a number line and put an X above thing as you count them.  It is very similar to a tally chart, but it is easier to use when comparing.

In social studies we worked through document B.  The kids had to write their second journal entries last night.  They did a great job on the first ones, and I am looking forward to reading the second ones as well.

Another great day lies ahead!

Monday, March 5, 2012

3/5/12

Another week and ready to get started.  This week in social studies, we are going to continue our journey down the silk roads.  We will be making 3 more stops this week on the silk roads and be writing in our journals to tell what we see.  The journal entries will be due the next day.  The kids will receive individual grades on each journal entry as they are due and then one big test grade at the end when it is put together.  Please make sure they don't throw them away after they are graded.

In math, we are going to be finishing up Chapter 3 this week.  We will be doing a review test on Friday that they can use as a study guide for their regular test on Monday.  The rest of this week is based on graphing and choosing an appropriate graph for a set of data.  We will be using FCAT 2.0 review questions as our 4 squares for the next few weeks, and this hopefully will give me a better idea of what areas they need to work on.  Next week will be a review week before we take the March diagnostic, which is their math diagnostic test.  It will be inclusive of everything they have learned so far this year.  I am excited to see the progress that they have been making.

That's all for today!  Talk to you all tomorrow AM!

Friday, March 2, 2012

3/2/12

Yesterday in math, we worked on finding which measure of central tendency would best describe a set of data.   Today we are going to be working on our problem solving strategies.
Also, yesterday, we read and answered the questions to the background essay in our DBQ.  It gave us a better idea of what we will be doing with this DBQ.

Today, we are going to be beginning our journey down the silk road and will be writing our first journal entry.  They will have time in class to begin their journal, and will have to have the entry finished by Monday so that they don't fall behind.

Have a great weekend!

Thursday, March 1, 2012

3/1/12

It is the first day of March...Yeah!!!

Today in math we are going to be reviewing the measures of central tendency (mean, median, mode, and range).  We are going to be deciding which one is the best to compare data.  This choice will depend on if there are any outliers, how far apart the numbers are, and if there are any numbers that repeat consistently.

Since we didn't get a chance on Tuesday to do the background essay and questions on our DBQ, we are going to be doing that as well.   I look forward to another great day!