Neuroscience And Fire Flies Flickering In Union.

About once a week, I check out the latest on math news just because I love seeing what is happening and I came across this article on why some fireflies flicker together in union.  I admit that wasn't a topic I ever thought about but the researchers from Pittsburg used neuroscience and math to come up with an explanation.   

When you see it happen, it looks like a swarm of lights that flicker on and off synchronized like a string of Christmas lights. If you've ever had the pleasure of watching fireflies, you'd have seen a series of quick flashes followed by a pause.before the flashing starts again.  What that actually is is male fireflies producing a glow from their abdomen indicating they are looking for a mate.  Now, the fireflies in the species Photinus Carolinas found in certain places in North America and they have managed to coordinate synchronization through the whole group so they blink at once. Only a few species of fireflies are able to do this and it only occurs when males are mating.  This has peaked the interest of mathematicians who wonder how this was accomplished.

In order to determine how the fireflies managed to synchronize, mathematicians relied on a complex mathematical model called "elliptic burster" which is the same model scientists have used to describe the behavior of brain cells.  They began with simulating the flickers of one firefly, then expanded it to two fireflies to determine how the two insects coordinated their flashes. Then they expanded to larger swarms to see how speed, distance, and number of fireflies effected the blinks.  

As scientists varied distance, they noticed the fireflies could "see" each other and were able to respond to each other.  With a few tweeks, researchers could get the fireflies to blink in spirals or ripples and their results aligned with real world observations. It was also noticed that individual fireflies flashed in a more inconsistent pattern while groups produced a more regular pattern.  In addition, when new fireflies joined the group, they were able to join perfectly in time.

The mathematicians indicated that their research will help scientists make amount of light pollution and the time of day effected the ability of fireflies to coordinate with each other since both factors could interfere with who well they "see" each other.

It was interesting to see how the individuals began acting in unison when they came together in a swarm.  It is also interesting to see how the mathematical model applied to model the behavior of brain cells can also be used to explain firefly behavior.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.  

Using Social Media In The Math Classroom.

 

Yes, one of the social media platforms was recently sold and the first thing the new owner did was lay off a bunch of people.  No one is sure how this purchase will effect Twitter but you can still use a Twitter type message in math.  Let's look at the the main social platforms and how they can be used in the math classroom.  

Let's start with Twitter.  I know you used to be able to set up a classroom account that students could use but I don't know if that has changed since it was sold.  If you do decide to go this way, you can set up the account so it is private and only students in the group can see what is shared.  Twitter is good for promoting writing in Math to practice using mathematical vocabulary, as an exit slip, assessing student understanding of the concept, and collaboration. 

Specifically, students can tweet a short summary of what they learned in class about a specific topic or concept. Since tweets are limited to 140 characters, students can't just copy everything down, they need to learn to be concise and this helps them really think about the topic.  This activity provides closure to the lesson and helps the teacher determine what needs to be retaught.  It can also be used to have students define a vocabulary word, add a photo in, show what it is and what it's not.  For this use, give each student a different word so they are not all defining the same word.  

Twitter can used for each unit so students submit the rules, the formulas, examples, etc so that students can use this material to study and review.  In regard to assessment, students can share what they understand, what they still have questions about, and share any resources they found on their own.  If you have an actual twitter account, you can share assignments, deadlines, and students can use it to work together on projects and group assignments.  

If you do not have access to Twitter or Twitter changes the rules, you can use a template for google slides or power point.  If you do, make sure you keep the group private if you can so students are not exposed to those who love to scam others.  

Another platform one can use in math class is instagram. Instagram also provides the opportunity to set up a classroom account.  The first thing is that the teacher needs to set up a private account with the name of your class. If you want to use pictures of students, get permission so they can appear on the page.  Instagram is a great place to post information on how to solve certain problems, drop hints, post vocabulary definitions, etc.  You can do much of what you do on twitter but with photos which is great because a student can post their work to the point they get stuck and ask for the next step, or the teacher can post a "what is wrong with this?" math.  If you don't want to get an actual account, check out this template using google slides. 

One platform students love using is Tik Tok.  I don't know of any student who doesn't have an account and tries to post some sort of dance.  Tik Tok is great for having students create their own raps about mathematical topics, share how they solved a problem, even turn vocabulary into a production rather than just being cut and dried.  It is possible to set up a classroom sized group in Tik Tok but you can also use this template to create a Tik Tok type entry using google slides. 

These are the three main ones to post on but this isn't the only way to use social media.  There are activities available such as this one for middle school students where they learn to calculate the percent of engagement on a social media platform.  The site provides everything needed for students to decide which of the three influencers they want to work with.  Another site which has activities to create and interpret a scatter plot for YouTube videos and a different one to calculate instagram success.  Thanks to Matt Miller for the templates for social media if you don't want to use an actual account.  He has some great freebies and lots of cool info.   Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.

Warm-up

 If 2.5 pounds of real pumpkin gives enough pumpkin for one pie, how many pies can you bake with a 17 pound pumpkin?

Warmup

 If it takes 2 3/4 hours to cook a turkey that weighs between 8 and 12 pounds without stuffing and 3 hours with stuffing, by what percent does the stuffing increase the cooking time?

Happy Black Friday

 

Happy Thanksgiving

 

Making Worksheets More Student Friendly.

 

Over the years, I've tried getting rid of worksheets but I end up using them when I have a sub, when I know the class is going to be shorter due to an assembly or because it is the only way available to find the type of problems I want to use.  Unfortunately most worksheets end up requiring the students to fill them out and turn them in but that isn't necessarily the most student friendly way of doing things. Just recently, I sat down to really think about how to make worksheets more student friendly and more interactive so they can complete them without getting frustrated.  

The other day, a few things came together in my mind and I think I figured out a way to make digital copies of worksheets that can be posted with help, hints, places for answers, or for showing how to do problems. It relies on using interactive images at genially.  I have several ways of making the worksheets more interactive and helpful.  

The first step is to create a jpeg of the worksheet.  This is easily done by finding a digital copy of the worksheet and bringing it up in a PDF reader like preview on the Mac.  Export the pdf as a jpeg so it is in image form. Once it is in this form, on your desktop, you can then import it into the interactive image frame. 

I chose to do a worksheet on domain and range with mapping so students get to decide if it is a function.  It is a nice visual worksheet so students can easily see the arrows.  Once you've uploaded the worksheet, you can put buttons in it, like the one you see in the corner.  The button is an eye and I set it up as a link to a short YouTube video on the subject and I've got it opening in another tab so the student can still see the work.

As a clue I can link the problems to a second page with a picture and a bit of text showing a function visually with a couple of notes so they can compare.  I can also add a page with text saying the same thing if I want.  I can also add a page with a link to the answers if I want or to a google form so students can post answers with descriptions of why they are a function or not a function.

Another way to make the work more student friendly is to take a screenshot of one of the problems off a worksheet and import it into the interactive image window.  One can link to a short video that shows how to solve this type of problem.  The nice thing about videos is they can rewatch it as needed.

For this worksheet, I would give the students the actual worksheet but I would have several problems posted individually online so they can use the interactivity to help learn to solve the problem. 

The button with the eye has a link to a short video showing how to solve one step equations and the other is page showing how to solve it step by step with explanation.  On another problem, later on, I would only list the first two steps and for the third, I would only do the instructions for the third step.  A couple problems, I'd only list the first step fully, and have the written instructions for the second two steps.  For the final few problems, I'd just list the starting step as a prompt.

The window or page provides support for those who need the extra bit but it is also a great way of providing guided practice at the same time.  If you prefer, you can put all the buttons on the digital copy of the whole worksheet but you also have the option to break it down.  If you desire, you can add a link to a google form with a few problems that students do on their own just to check their understanding.

It is so easy to add video, assessments, explanations, and examples so students get immediate help rather than struggling through the assignment.  You can also have them do the actual work on a physical worksheet and turn that in or have them place the work on a google form.  It is all up to you.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear. Have a great day.

Math For Thanksgiving

It's that time of year again when you only have a couple of days to teach this week because it is the week of Thanksgiving.  I love having the students do Thanksgiving themed math activities this week because they are in no mood to do regular work.  Unfortunately, most of the things labeled Thanksgiving math are the standard worksheets that substitute turkeys for chocolate or add cute Thanksgiving pictures to the worksheet.  This is where Yummy math comes to the rescue.

The link will take you to enough activities to last the whole week and give you lots of choice.  The activities span grades from upper elementary through all of middle school but some are quite easy to adjust to use in high school. There is one for planning the turkey for Thanksgiving Dinner and deciding which method - bake, fry, or smoke - is the best based on cost.  The worksheet takes students step by step through it including having them read the chart that suggests how long it takes to cook different sized turkeys. 

Another activity helps students learn to adjust the recipe for mashed potatoes for 4, 8, 10, and 12 people at first and then up to 32 servings.  It also asks students to explain how they found their answers. There is also an activity that has students calculating the amount of ingredients needed for like 23 people.  A very real life activity unless you have family members bring dishes.  Yummy math didn't forget the cranberry sauce in that they have another activity for this. 

There are three activities dealing with football since for many people, those games are extremely important. One has students reading various graphs to make predictions on the next move if it is the fourth down.  Another one has students use the pythagorean theorem to determine how far someone ran and the final has students interpreting data on an infographic in regard to NFL home advantage versus away games. 

For those not into football, there are two activities that have students analyze Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.  One activity has students analyzing the route from 5 years ago to determine if it is the best one and how long it will take folks to cover the route.  The other looks at two new balloons and looking at their dimensions in comparison to humans, bicycles, etc to give a better idea of size.  

The activities are not only focused on Thanksgiving itself but there are two dealing with Black Friday deals. One worksheet asks students things like how much do they save if they buy the item on sale, translating it into percent off, and completing a chart, similar to data charts in science. The other is the same type of activity but it uses different items including large screen tv sets and games.  The final financial activity has students interpreting data off of graphs in regard to consumer spending over a 5 year period.

There are enough activities that you can have different groups work on different activities so everyone's interest is met.  You could even cluster the turkey, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie ones as planning a meal, the football and Macy's ones as entertainment over the weekend and the financial ones for the traditional Black Friday sales.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.  On Wednesday, there is information on creating interactive worksheets that help the student.

Warm-up

 If you are planning breakfast for 892 people and you decide each person should be served half a fruit but you know only 33% will want grapefruit, how many grapefruit should you buy for the breakfast?

Warm-up

 If there one grapefruit tree produces 1400 pounds of fruit in a year, and there are two grapefruit per pound, how many grapefruit does the tree produce each year?

Making Videos Active.

 

I try not to assign videos to my students unless there is some sort of interactive element.  If students have to interact with the video, they are more likely to pay attention and really watch it rather than just being distracted and not getting anything from the material. 

One of the places I've used in the past is Edupuzzle because it allowed me to add questions to the video so it would automatically pause.  In addition, they offer a free plan with up to 20 videos in ones account.  I do not know if you can delete the ones you've already used so you can designate more to your account.  

The nice thing about Edupuzzle is that you can use premade videos or you can make one yourself.  When you look on a premade video you can check it out and it tells you where the activities are in the video and what type of activity are inserted.  In addition, they list the other videos based on the one you are looking at.  If you don't like one, you can make one of your own.  You choose the video from one of many sources from Youtube to National Geographic to TED talks and more.  Then you insert the type of activity which could be multiple choice, open ended, or a note and you can use all of the video, or only a small part of it so you have a ton of versatility.  Finally, you can use your google ID to log in and you can set up classes so you can assign the videos to each student but there are permissions involved so Edupuzzle offers letters you can send home explaining it all.

If this site is not for you, you can use google suite to create interactive videos.  This site has a lovely hour long video showing how to create interactive video lessons using G suite with a focus on distance learning but the material is still valid for creating interactive videos and you can select just a specific topic rather than planning for a full class period. I love videos because I can watch, stop it, and try each step myself.  I've found when I can see what is supposed to happen is much more helpful than just reading the steps.  The real information on the video starts around 13 minutes in since this is actually a presentation.  It takes you from start to finish and begins with google hangout which will be google chat after January 1, 2023. I mention this because the person has you begin with meeting yourself on google hangout but google chats will still allow you to have video meetings.

When you meet with yourself, you record your whole presentation just like you would do if this were a real meeting.  She talks about how one would include handwritten examples which is awesome in math. She walks you through the process step by step to make your own document camera so you can do it on a paper if you don't want to use google jam board. 

I like that the instructor takes you step by step through planning a lesson with all the things you need to think about and shows you everything in detail. I like the information and directions included so I can make the videos with examples and assessments.  She talks about including assessments by using google forms or a rubric via google classroom. If you want a set of interactive videos available to help students, check the site out and have fun.

So you have Edpuzzle which uses regular videos from other content creators with questions and notes and gsuite that will allow you to make your own lessons.   Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great weekend.

The Geometry Of Gerrymandering.

 

The midterm elections are mostly over and a couple of cases on voting seem to head to the state court systems or the Supreme Court.  Often, the cases that make it to court deal with the way the area is divided up for voting.  States often want to redraw districts to favor the party in charge but did you realize how much of a role geometry plays in this whole situation?

It turns out that geometry provides a powerful tool for establishing the best division of area into voting districts for places that have at least two parties.  According to the constitution, the candidate who gets the most electoral votes wins but the way the districts are designed can have a huge impact on how the votes are distributed.

When governments rearrange the shapes of each district, they can encourage a favored candidate to win to keep them in power and to provide representation that may not be really representative of the district.  We'll use a small example of 50 voters who live in a 5 by 10 area, one person per square.  The voter distribution is 20 are red and 30 are blue, so if you divide the area into 5 districts, you have several possible results.  If you have two rows of red and 3 rows of blue and divide it so you have two districts of red and three districts of blue, the blue will provide more votes for their candidate so if this were the house, you'd have two red and three blue but what if you want the blue to win all the seats?  You would redesign the 5 districts so all 5 districts are set up so there are four red voters to every 6 blue voters and the blue would take all the seats but what if you wanted red to win the majority of seats.  You would have to redraw the districts so three of the districts had more red than blue and the red would get three votes.  The first few scenarios can be accomplished using regular districts but the last situation requires districts to be done in irregular shapes rather than standard shapes.

These examples are not all theoretical.  Back in 2012 in New York State when 58 percent of the voters voted democratic but the democrats got 21 out of the 27 available seats. On the other side, 51 percent of the voters in Pennsylvania only won 5 of the 18 available seats in the same year.  The practice of redrawing districts to give a certain party the advantage is referred to as gerrymandering which comes from Elbridge Gerry who was governor of Massachusetts in the early 1800's.  His party was good at redoing districts into strange shapes to give his partner the advantage.  A cartoonist noted that the districting looked like a salamander so the term gerrymandering was born.

It appears local and state governments change the lines of districts about every 10 years when a new census comes out.  Over the 10 year period people move and the number of red and blue voters change so the lines have to be redrawn to help a political party stay in power. Although intentional gerrymandering is illegal, most people find it difficult to establish rules for fair districting, and this includes mathematicians.  Every state has their own rules which makes it even more difficult.

The most fair criteria for districting is that the number of red and blue voters should be about equal, each district should contain about the same number of total voters, should not discriminate against any ethnic group, not cross county lines, and follow natural boundaries but in reality, it is hard to do this.  In addition, if one wants to keep compact districts, it can't always be done and doesn't always produce fair voting results.

One study looked at the presidential election in Florida in 2000 because the number of republican voters equaled the number of democratic voters but the republicans had the edge in results.  The scientists redrew district lines to meet the definition of compact districts while meeting Florida state rules but the results showed the republicans had the advantage. The skewed results came from the fact that most of the democrats lived in urban areas while republicans lived in rural areas. This leads to the republicans winning more. Others did more research and discovered you cannot prove the districts were drawn to give one party the advantage by just looking at the lines.

One set of scientists discovered that one has to look at the efficiency gap. The efficiency gap is calculated by subtracting the "wasted" votes of the two parties from each other and then the answer is divided by the total number of votes.  A wasted vote is defined as a vote cast in the district where the other party won or is above the margin needed to win. The smaller the efficiency gap, the more impartial the results.  Sometimes the efficiency gap isn't the best choice when all the voters of a party live in the same place.  So another group wrote a computer program to determine possible ways to set the districts based on state requirements.  They applied this to the state of Maryland in 2011 and the computer came up with 250 million possibilities.  They found the results gave the democrats an advantage.  In fact, 99.79 percent of the 250 million results favored the democrats. 

Many states have moved to using independent commissions to set up the districts and these commissions use computer programs to find the fairest way to set up the voting districts so the results are more fair to all but some states are still trying to adjust districts to give them an advantage.  So this is where math comes into play.  Have a great day and let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.   

Creating Interactive Image

 

Every to often, I want to create interactive photos so that students can click on things to bring up information.  The two programs I've used in the past cost money and I don't always have the money available so I went looking for something free.  I found a program that is free and that allows the creation of interaction photos and other things.

Genially is a site that allows you to create a variety of interactive activities from presentations to gamification to so much more.  One can sign in using any google ID you already have and it allows educators to say they want to use it for class.  

After I set up an account, I then clicked on new project and discovered I could create a presentation, infographic, gamification, interactive image, video presentation, guide, etc.  You have a choice.

So I chose interactive image since that is what I wanted to focus on. As soon as I clicked on interactive image, it went to the page for creating an interactive image and there was a video right there I could play that took me step by step through the process.   That helped so much.  I would strongly recommend watching the video a couple of times to make sure you have an idea of how to do thing.  

Once I imported a photo, I had my choice of these types of interactivity to include with it.  I could do a tooltip which provides a short title or description when you run your curser over it.  A window which is a box that has text, images, video, or other content.  The ability to link a button to a page, audio, or adding a reveal.  So many possibilities.

When you actually get to the editing page, it is much like canva and other similar programs.  It gives you a ton of different buttons you can choose from and it is easy to resize the button.  It is also easy to create the interactivity to make the photo much more interesting.  When you are done, you can download the interactive photo or use it with google classroom.

 In addition, Genially also offers courses to help you learn to use the site for teaching.  At the moment, there is a course on gamification, a micro course on assessments, and a micro course on using it as an add-on for google classroom.  This site has lots of templates one can use for teaching and the site allows you to easily separate the educational templates from the rest.  The educational subtopics are educational presentations, unit plans, graphic organizers, timelines, informational organizers, flashcards, quizzes, planners, and assessments.  

I went looking for a place to create an interactive image and ended up with a place that will allow me to do so much.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.

Warm-up

 A python has a reproductive life of between 27 months and 30 years and is able to lay one clutch each year.  Each clutch has between 1 and 11 eggs.  What is the range of eggs laid from minimum to maximum for 27 months to 30 years.

Warm-up

 

If a python has a lifespan of 12 years in the wild and 28 years in captivity, what percent increase is there in the lifespan between living in the wild and in captivity?

Looking For Math Activities For Veterans Day.

 

First off, I would like to thank all the veterans who put their lives at risk to protect our country.  I thank my father who fought in two different wars so others wouldn't have to go.  He has passed but I still remember.  Now on to the topic of math activities for Veterans Day.  I found a few that were geared for older students but most of the ones I found are for lower elementary and most of those were standard worksheets with a few pics of Veterans Day thrown in.

I did find a couple of things for older students but it was only because I knew where to look.  I wanted free resources because most teachers have a limited budget.  One can always find activities that cost but sometimes it is harder if you want it for free.  

One site that had a few things was my reliable Yummy Math. They have a lovely one from 2019 which has students reading and interpreting data.  Students are asked to read two maps, one has the veteran populations by states and the other has the percentage of veterans among the adult population per state.  So it gives the number of veterans and the percentage they make of the population.  Rather than giving specific numbers, the states are color coded based on the populations and the colors are ranges.  At the end, there are three questions designed to have students read and interpret the information.  This is an area that most students do not get enough practice.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has a blog entry with 5 suggestions of activities for the classroom for Memorial Day but they can be adjusted for Veterans Day..  Although many of the activities suggested are for upper elementary, most can be adjusted slightly for middle school or high school.  All of the activities are more project based and they require students to think about things One activity has students design a parade float while determining how much they need of wood, paper, etc to create the whole float and then calculate the cost of building the float.

Another activity has students creating a museum where they have to think about the location, what they want in the museum and they even have to consider the budget the have to work with.  They then have to determine the cost of each ticket and the number of tickets needed to be sold to cover the budget.  There is also a project where students calculate everything for a cookout.  They have to decide the number of people, the number of buns, dogs, hamburgers, etc needed and the cost.  There are two more, one on fireworks and one on symbols.  Check it out and notice it won't take much to adjust it to Veterans Day.

These are the two sites I found with decent activities for middle school and high school.  Check the sites out and let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.

Online Math Games And Activities Part 4

Today is the final part of games and activities.  This is the last part of the list of possible games and activities that are digitally based and can be used in the classroom to enhance or scaffold learning.  One reason I've done such an in-depth list is that so many students play games on their digital devices and if we can provide games for the classroom, they are more likely to play and learn. 

Sumdog is a site with games for grades K to 8.  There is a free account for teachers which allows them access to 6 games they can have students use.  According to their site, the free account includes access to a diagnostic tool, has the ability to adapt to each child,   Unfortunately, the 6 games are pre chosen so teachers have no say in the game selected. The games range from ones focused for younger students to older ones.  You can set up an account, check out the free games to see if they are something you can use in your classroom. 

Now for some of the more familiar games and sites you might already know about.  If your school has a Minecraft subscription already, the site includes lesson plans the teacher can use with it. To use Minecraft in schools does require a subscription but if your school has Office 365, you may already have access to it.  The lesson plans has lessons on using arrays to multiply, introduction to the coordinate plane or area and volume.  It is possible to do either a keyword search or a general search by age and topic.  The nice thing is that it is possible to assign a unit via google classroom.  These lessons go with the Minecraft world so if you have access, check them out to see if anything can be used in your classes.

Then there is Quizlet which is a site filled with digital flash cards. They have higher levels of mathematics from Arithmetic to Stats and Calculus. In addition to being used as flash cards, they can also be studied, used as a test, or used in a matching game.  If you have a google account, you can log into this site and try it out.  Each deck has a preview function so you can tell if it covers what you want them to learn.  They also show you how to use the cards in a game called checkpoint.  Furthermore, there is lots of information on how to use the cards, get the classes set up, etc.  When you use the learn feature, you can choose quick study or memorize the material.  I went with the one for long term memory and each question was a multiple choice.  I purposely made a mistake and it identified the correct answer. 

The test set has it set up for true or false, multiple choice, fill in the blank, and matching so the questions are not all the same.  At the end, it gives feedback in that it lets you know how many questions were correct and how many incorrect and provide answers for all the questions.  I do have a bit of a quibble with a few questions such as y = ln(x) they classified as a logarithmic function and many people look at it as a natural log function and treat it a bit differently.  It also marked me off when I identified a graph as Quadratic instead of "Graph of a Quadratic".  I answered it the same way many of my students would.  As far as I can tell you can sign up for a free basic account but I'm still not sure what all it includes as the information is not easily available.  I do know that they do want teachers to upgrade to a plus account which does cost. Check it out to see if it is something you'd like to use regularly.

The last site for this time is ABCya which is grades K to 6+ and does have a free option that allows a person access to all the games on a laptop but only 6 games each week on digital devices and only allows one device for this account.  I was able to use the games without signing in so I could try a few to see if they matched the needs of my students.  There was the equivalent proportions where you type in the missing number.  The faster you type in the correct answer, the faster you go.  I had to use two different methods to find answers which made it better in my opinion. Another game, Zero Sum, has students matching positive and negative numbers to form zero but it is groups of numbers so you have to match the shapes.  In addition, as you progress, you might have to use two or three shapes to get some of the numbers down to zero.  Although this is geared for upper elementary, it would provide good practice for students who are weak in fractions, ratios, proportions, etc.

So on Friday, I am off to a new topic.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.

Math Activities And Games Part 3

Here we are on day 3 with games, activities, and other interactive things you can use in your classroom.  I do double check these to make sure they haven't been sold to someone else or all the sudden cost a ton of money because things change all the time.  Years ago, I used a website that allowed me to take the steps needed to solve an equation, mix up the steps, and have the students rearrange them into the correct order. Sort of the mathematical version of sentence strips.  

Today we are starting with the site Purpose Games. This site allows the teacher to set up groups (one class per group) and arrange tournaments (or assignments)  for students to participate in. Tournaments can be used monthly, weekly, or daily as needed. In addition, it allows for google sign-ins so if your school uses google e-mail, all your students will be able to use it. The site has some great instructions for teachers to set groups and tournaments up and use in the classroom. This site is completely free to use.

I checked out some of the games that have been created by other teachers.  When I put math in the search bar, games covering topics such as 3-D geometric shapes, basic trig identities, radians, unit circle, polar coordinates, percentages, etc came up.  I tried a more specific topic to see if that gave decent results. When I typed in coordinate plane, I ended up with multiple games popping up and one even included vocabulary. I tried the word solve and got a lovely variety of games covering solving multistep equations, solving by substitution, solving for sin(x) and cos(x)

I chose a short game on solving inequalities.  It had 5 questions and all the problems when solved were greater than.  There were no negative numbers involved but at the end, but at the end, a scoreboard arrives at the end letting the player know how well they did.  The only thing is that if a question is missed, there is no feedback to tell you which questions you missed or why. 

I took a screen shot so you can see.  It gives some cool stats and if the student didn't do well and wants to up their score, they can play it again.  Students automatically earn badges as they play games so that is cool and there is a leaderboard but I'm not sure if the leaderboard can be customized for your class. It does give your ranking overall every time you play.  I would also check out the games to make sure they aren't too long and cover the material you want.  If not, they have the ability to let you create games yourself.

Give the site a look to see if it is something you can use.  Next we have Room Recess which is actually geared for K to 6 but several games available and can be used on a computer or touchscreen.  What sets this apart from other sites is that each game comes with a video, a worksheet, the game, and a quiz.  I've included this site so if you have students who have difficulty working with fractions, or multiplying, you can assign students games from here to help them strengthen their foundation.  I know there are some middle school teachers who read this and may want to use it in their classrooms as scaffolding. One nice feature is that you can click on the grade and click on math to find the games that work for say grades 4 to 6.  

Another site with games is Shepard Software.  This site has lots of games that do not require students to sign in. Once you have the webpage up, you click on math and they list a variety of topics from early math, all the way up to Algebra.  Along the top, they also tell you they have been redoing the games so they work on digital devices.  I decided to check out Geometry and several games popped up that were geometry based. The triangles and angles one looked interesting so I clicked on it. They have 5 different levels beginning with the basic three angles themselves.  The next four levels dealt with basic triangles of right, acute, and obtuse with a variation including rotation and then the special triangles like equilateral and a variation with rotation. The games tells you how many questions and gives a choice of relaxed mode or timed so students who are slower can still play it without pressure.  The game I chose had moving triangles and I was told to find an acute, so I took the round circle, clicked on the acute angle triangle and it moved to the next type of triangle.  At the end, you got a report of hits and misses and percent overall.  It also listed the choice of redoing the game.  This is worth checking out.  It may not have a lot of games but the games I tried weren't bad and offers students some very specific topics.  Check it out.

I'll be back Wednesday with the last installment of this topic.  I hope these are helping by providing some sites you didn't know about.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.

Warmup

 If a seahorse gives birth to 4000 offspring and only 0.5 percent survive to adulthood, how many of the 4000 will survive to adulthood.

Warmup

 A giant sea dragon can grow to be 45 centimeters in length.  What is that in inches?

Math And Activities Online Part 2

 

This past Wednesday, I looked at games, activities, and other online things that could be used in the classroom but I didn't have enough space for it all, so I'm finishing up today. When I did teachers training, I had to make a thick book filled with resources I could use in the classroom from quick activities to ones I could use as the lesson.  I still have my list but it is mostly online now rather than in a folder.  I actually learned more about blogs when I went back to get my masters and I had to have a blog for the class so I started one and used it to put my links in so I could go back but since then I've discovered some sort of program like google sheets is great for organizing the info.  So as I find things, I share them with you. 

A recent entry into the quiz game arena is Gimkit.  It was developed by a high school student and is free.  You can use a gmail account to set up an account.  They have kits which are the questions that can be played as an activity in class or it can be assigned as independent work but is automatically graded. You can also set up classes so students have to use their real names rather than coming up with a alias. Like so many others, you can type in a topic such as coordinate planes and it will do a search.  What comes back is a list of possible kits with the number of questions, how long ago it was created and you can check out the questions all on one screen. 

When you select the kit you want, you have a choice of playing it live, as practice, make a copy or export it which is nice because some places in the country have limited internet.  What sets this apart from similar activities is that students earn "money" to spend in their store.  I admit, I tried it with my students but they were so used to Kahoot, they didn't want to change.  Check it out, give it a try.

To help students with vocabulary try Knoword which is a vocabulary game in which the teacher can choose to have students play it using a definition and the first letter or via multiple choice.  There is a free basic account but if the teacher wants more, they can upgrade.  The classic version has the official definition and gives the first letter so you at least know where to start.  You can work out the letters because when you are correct, the letters are black but when you make a mistake the whole word turns red.  The multiple choice version gives the definition with several words to choose from so you know its one of those.  It is a nice way to have students practice vocabulary since vocabulary is extremely important in math.  In addition, it has the possibility of getting help via hints in the classic version and at the end, it tells the student how long it took them and their score.

The basic does allow teachers to assign two or three packs to students before they have to go upgrade but it gives you a chance to try it out.  The assignments does keep track of how many students submitted their assignment, how many questions answered and how many assignments you've made.  I suspect you can assign the activity via a QR code containing the link but it will list you as the logged in person.  It is easy to set up an account which can be done via your gmail.

Then there is Legends Of Learning, a site with games for math and science grades K to 8 and many of us teach middle school or we need activities to help fill in the gaps.  It allows teachers to sign up using a gmail account. As far as I can tell it is free.  When you set up an account and log in, you get to the dashboard which allows you to make assignments, load your classroom up via google classroom, 

I chose a game from the 8th grade on exponents.  The site had me do a pretest before assigning the game.  The game went through a scenario of a space ship was damaged and reviewed or taught what exponents are, how they work etc including negative integers.  The program explained and then gives students practice.  At the end, they get another test.   I like it because as the problem is explained it is done in both written and verbal forms so students who cannot read well, still know what is going on. 

I will continue this list on Monday.  I hope this helps you.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.

Math Websites With Math Activities And Games Part 1.

 

I am always on the look for additional websites filled with games and activities because there are only so many times one can use Kahoot or Jeopardy before students get restless.  I'm going over some that I've found and you might enjoy using. I'll try to cover the pros and cons so you have a better idea of each site along with cost. 

First is the site Baamboozle which is spelled correctly.  It is filled with teacher designed quizzes which can be played by the whole class without using a bunch of digital devices.  There is a basic plan for free or you can pay for access to more types of games.    The thing I do not like is that I cannot separate games out based by grade level.  If I put math in the search, I get every math game but if I go more specific like use the word Algebra, it will only provide the games that focus on Algebra.  One good thing is that if you click on the game you want, it lists all the questions in the game and you can check the answers.  Furthermore, you have a choice of playing the game, using it as a study turn it into a slide show or share it and each game has its own game code so you can access it on several machines.  Although they are listed as games, they strike me more as quizzes like Kahoot.

Second is the site Blooket, another site with questions and answers but this one is played with the teacher giving the questions on the screen and students are on their devices.  It site with a basic free plan and you can get more for paying a bit. This game allows a person to log in using a Google ID. This is another site you have to provide more specific terms than math when using the search.  I tried coordinate plane and more than 30 games appeared.  Each game has a title, number of questions and once you click on your choice, it shows the questions and you can click on the question to see the answer just like you do in Kahoot.  Each game can be played individually or with the teacher as the host so you have a choice. 

The next site is not advertised as a game site but as a site to make interactive worksheets.  Wizer has two plans, one free and one that costs so you get more possibilities.  Although it says you can sign up via google, you still have to register for the service.  When you go in, there are a bunch of interactive worksheets that you can checkout.  It shows the worksheet when you click on it but it also tells you who has taken the worksheet and modified it.  When you copy a worksheet, you are directed to a Canvas type setup where you can edit the worksheet, add or subtract more things before saving it to your google drive.I like that I can make changes to the worksheets to personalize them a bit more. 

We are back to games with Funbrain.   Although Funbrain is a K to 8 site, it allows you to choose the grade level you want or just go to the topic such as Math Zone.  When I clicked on MathZone, all the games came up but each game listed the grade level on it.  I looked at the game "What's The Point" rated for grades 4-5.  It is designed to help students read the coordinate plane. When I clicked on it, I was given a choice of levels (easy, medium, hard) and so I went with hard.  The hard level uses a four quadrant coordinate plane.  It listed a point and the student has to click on the point and if correct it says good but if a mistake is made, the game provides immediate feedback explaining what the answer should have been and what the student did.  I popped back to the medium level where the graph shows a point and the student chooses the correct coordinate out of the list of four. The easiest level uses only the first quadrant with a point on the graph and the student chooses the correct coordinate out of a list of four.  Students have the option of going more difficult or easier throughout the game so if they find themselves struggling, they can move down or if it's too simple, they can go harder. 

On Friday, I'll review a few more sites.  I will say that although Funbrain is classified as being for younger students, it does have some games that can help students work on strengthening their foundations or it can be used for differentiation so students who need more work can do a game on this site.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.