The First Semester is History!

Students did very well with their initial attempts to create box and whisker plots. After cleaning out our notebooks, students were given about 30 minutes to start on tonight's homework, which will apply both stem & leaf and box & whisker plots to real-life situations.

Tonight's Homework: Lesson 6.7 ( 20 - 34, even ) and create box and whisker plots for the M & M data we collected earlier this week.

Box and Whisker Plots

Although the name is rather strange, box and whisker plots are a novel way to display data. As long as you can determine the median of a set of data, making box and whisker plots are kind of fun to construct. Be sure to read Lesson 6.7 to catch the main ideas before starting tonight's homework.

Tonight's Homework: Lesson 6.7 ( 10 - 18 all)

Stem and Leaf Plot Review

We will take a quiz over the main points in chapter 5 on Wednesday. Students learned how to make stem and leaf plots, and then used these plots to determine the range, mean, median and mode of the set of data.

Tonight's Homework: Lesson 6.6 ( 11 - 21, odd, and then your choice of the 4 baseball questions or the 1 birthday problem). In addition, please complete all of the M and M data work (statistics on the data table, and the class data circle and bar graphs) for tomorrow.

P.S. If you are planning to retake the chapter 4 test, please make arrangements to do so by noon on Friday.

Snow Cancels School!

Snow and inclement weather has canceled school for the day. The chapter 5 quiz, originally scheduled for Tuesday, will now be given on Wednesday, January 30th. Enjoy the extra day off!

Collecting Edible Data

Students reviewed the important points of last night's homework with me today, and then were reminded of the Chapter 5 quiz they'll be taking on Tuesday. Tonight's homework assignment will help students review for the quiz.

The remainder of the period was devoted to collecting data that will be used next week to create a variety of displays, including circle graphs, bar graphs and box and whisker plots.

Tonight's Homework: Chapter 5 review (all problems except the ones in section 5.6)

Kelsi--don't worry about the data collecting, as I have it for you when you return on Monday.

Using Linear Models to Interpolate and Extrapolate

We discussed what the graphs of linear functions look like, and then gave real life examples of things that follow linear models (the price of gas over time, the earning potential compared to one's education, a person's grade compared to the amount of homework completed, etc.) We compared these to graphs that do not show a linear pattern. Next, we talked about the definitions of interpolation and extrapolation, and related these terms to the Barbie activity.

Tonight's Homework: Lesson 5.7 (11 - 27, all)

Barbies Make Their Farewell Jumps

We finally completed the Barbie bungee jumping activity today, with most groups experiencing better results this time around.

Tonight's Homework: None! Remember, if you need to retake the chapter 4 test, you must do so by next Wednesday, January 30th.

Barbie Bungee Jumping, Revisited

Now that students have experienced the entire activity and have had time to reflect on the errors that might have caused their Barbie to not perform to expectations, we spent time in class reconstructing the experiment to eliminate as many human errors as possible. Students worked in groups to collect data, which will be used in tonight's homework.

Tonight's Homework: Create a well-labeled data table. Graph your data and draw the line of best fit. Determine the equation of this line. Write a procedure that identifies how your group conducted and error-less experiment. Then determine the number of rubber bands required to drop the Barbie 300, 400, and 500 cm. Be sure to show your work.

Yes, Another Problem to Solve!

Well, the good news is you won't have homework over the long weekend, folks. I guess having a sick teacher does have its advantages :p

Students solved a problem related to a school election in class today.

Tonight's Homework: None, unless you count getting the flyer signed and returned on Tuesday for extra credit homework. Enjoy the long weekend, and please return my health. I miss it (and you guys, too)!

Barbies Bungee Jumped Today!

After correcting last night's homework, we took a little trip to the courtyard, and watched our Barbies jump from the top of the courtyard. Some Barbies took boring jumps, while others crashed into the concrete.

Tonight's Homework: Analyze the jump your Barbie made, identify sources of error, and suggest a new number of rubber bands that might improve your Barbie's thrill level when jumping from 400 cm.

Have a great weekend, and I hope to be back with all of my voice on Tuesday!

What's a Function?

We reviewed the definition of a function and looked at how functions can be written. We are most familiar with equation notation, but we can also use function notation, which uses f(x) rather than y.

Students who scored less than 70% on their chapter 4 tests are required to take the test over again before January 27th. Students should plan to review their tests with me before taking the retest.

Tonight's Homework: Lesson 4.8 ( 11 - 19, all and 21 - 49, odd ).

Hi, Maddy! You certainly have been working hard on your algebra. I couldn't believe the amount of work I received earlier in the week. Good for you! I am hoping you are understanding the work. Let me know if you are struggling with any of the concepts. We are going to move through chapter 5 very quickly, as it covers a lot of stuff related to what I taught with the palms in chapter 4. Hope you are doing well. Keep working hard to take care of YOU. I do miss you, and am looking forward to seeing you back in class some day.

Chapter 4 Test Day

Students took the test over chapter 4 today.

Tonight's Homework: Page 278 ( 41 - 57, all )

Presenting Information Visually from the Handheld Computer

Students used the handheld computers to present an answer from the Zap It worksheets. Every student took a turn learning how to use the iDisplay program. All did an extremely good job.

Tonight's Homework: Nothing has been assigned to turn in, although we will be taking the chapter 4 test in class on Tuesday. It would be wise for you to study for the test, and look over recent quizes.

Zap It Again!

Today we spent more time reviewing how to graph inequalities. Students received the second of the Zap It worksheets, and it will be due on Monday.

Tonight's Homework: Page 800 ( 23 - 29 and 41 - 47 odds ) and page 802 ( 27 - 34 ).

Welcome Back, Natalie!!

Graphing Inequalities Day Two

Today we talked a little more about inequalities and why you must switch the inequality sign when you multiply or divide by a negative number. Students then worked on Zap It 1 worksheets, which will be due on Monday.

Tonight's Homework: Page 364 ( 49 - 58 )

Welcome Back!

I hope everyone has had an enjoyable holiday break, and is ready to gear back up for the last 17 days of school before the end of the first semester. After taking care of a little business, we used the handheld computers to graph 6 linear equations. Once that was done, students changed the equations into inequalities, and boy, were the graphs different! We learned that inequalities have many more points that will satisfy the statement than equalities do. Inequalities involving < or > are represented by dashed lines, while inequalities involving ≤ or ≥ are represented by solid lines. Using the coordinates of the origin (0, 0) can be an efficient way to check for which side of the line needs to be shaded.


Tonight's Homework: Page 363 (23 - 41, odd). Don't forget that the extra credit report on a woman scientist, mathematician or engineer is due by Thursday, January 10th.

P.S. Hi, Natalie! Hope all is well in Hawaii! You might benefit from reading pages 360 - 362 prior to doing the graphing work.