The focal point for our week was certainly our 1492 problem. This served as the capstone for our exploration of expressions and the order of operations. The class attempted to find a way to create the numbers from 1-100 with only the digits 1, 4, 9, and 2. They could use any operation (addition, subtraction, square roots, exponents, multiplication, division, and factorials), any or all of the digits in any order, but they couldn’t just place them next to each other (1 and 4 doesn’t make 14). As of this writing, we have a most wanted list with 88, 89, 91, 92, and 93, but we’ve found everything else. It was great to see the class sitting and staring at the list, recognizing patterns and techniques to help them out. We got so into it we we’re almost late to dismissal one day! I am incredibly proud of their persistence and creativity in tackling this problem.
Our other highlight was watching each other’s history flipgrids. The class divided the groups living in America in 1491 between themselves, researched them, and then created informational flipgrids about those groups. I admit some of the class felt a bit embarrassed, but it was cool seeing them building their knowledge together and learning more about the history of our country. Next week we cross the pond and discuss the forces that led to European exploration of the Americas, so that should be exciting as well.
We continued reading The Misfits, charted the planets in a scale model of the solar system that went the length of the school, and even learned a little Latin (in our logic exploration). Next week we start debate prep, expand our history focus, and start the transition to our next math topic. As a note, our use of technology is going to start ramping up as well, so if your child has a computer or tablet they can use for schoolwork, please make sure they are bringing it to school. If they do not, please let me know and we will see if we can work something out. Have a great weekend everyone!
