What Would You Do With One Billion Dollars?

Today we did an introductory writing activity entitled, "What would you do with one billion dollars?"

Not only will this writing give me a sample of how you currently write, but it will also give me an idea of whether or not you have a number sense of very large numbers and your ideas of how much things cost. No one finished the activity, so we will finish it in class tomorrow. Remember, there is no homework.

A3 What Would You Do With One Billion Dollars?

What Would Batman Do?

Today, we talked about the theme of the year, which is "What Would Batman Do?"

I want students to see what it is that should motivate them throughout the year. I shared my personal story of perseverance and survival of child abuse. I hope it will inspire them to be successful in not only their classes, but also their lives.

Have a great weekend!

"Back 2 School" Night

Today, we took a second look at the handshake problem, with an eye toward the four steps of problem solving that we discussed on Tuesday. We reviewed the results in class and discussed how problems are scored using rubrics.

Tomorrow, we will be talking about this year's theme, "What Would Batman Do?"

Don't forget, tonight is Pierre Moran's "Back 2 School" Night!

A2 The Handshake Problem

New Rules

Today we went over our classroom rules and a copy was given to every student. These rules will be available tomorrow for Back-To-School Night for any parent who wants a copy.

Our first assignment was to return the rules once signed by a parent or guardian.

A1 Return signed rules

The Handshake Problem

Today, our first day together, I assessed your basic knowledge of the four-step problem solving process. We did the classic handshake problem:

"If every student shakes hands once with all other students in the class, how many handshakes will occur?"

The informal assessment revealed that most students skip right to the third step of problem solving and begin computations. We then discussed and copied the four steps of problem solving:

1) Understand the problem
2) Make a plan
3) Carry out the plan
4) Look back

Thursday, we will look at how important it is to understand the problem. We will also look at several strategies that can be used to solve this particular one.