The year is going by so fast!
We just finished a project called A Tale of 3 Cities where students planned a road trip to 3 cities that made a right triangle on a map. They used the Pythagorean Theorem to calculate distance as if flying directly to the locations. I think the kids enjoyed planning a vacation!
We also just finished round 1 of STAAR testing. I know this time of year is easy to lose drive and momentum but the teachers here are doing all we can to keep them engaged in learning.
We just launched a project about expanding a refinery. Students will calculate volume and surface area of tanks before and after the expansion and decide where to place the tanks on the land. It will be a project that students will present to their peers. I can't wait!
Thursday, April 3, 2014
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Cell Phones and Math???
Howdy!
This month our 7th & 8th grade math and algebra students have been working hard learning how to apply math to their every day lives. The algebra students were charged with the task of discovering what cell phone companies had the best plans for their group's needs. This knowledge can benefit them and their families as they grow older and try to determine what cell phone company they should choose based on usage and on price. They had a great time learning how to apply their new found skills to something they enjoy using-- cell phones!
As the algebra project on cell phones comes to an end, we are preparing to launch an Pre-AP 7th grade and 8th grade project that is also related to cell phones. They are going to learn about how their own cell phones store photos and videos, and use equations to determine how many of each they can store before their phones run out of memory.
This spring is already well underway and the students are adjusting nicely to the new Engage! Learning Model. It has been an learning process for the teachers and the students alike, but we are sure the students are benefitting greatly from this new style of learning. We cannot wait to see what else is in store through the rest of this school year!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Gesch & Ms. Smith
This month our 7th & 8th grade math and algebra students have been working hard learning how to apply math to their every day lives. The algebra students were charged with the task of discovering what cell phone companies had the best plans for their group's needs. This knowledge can benefit them and their families as they grow older and try to determine what cell phone company they should choose based on usage and on price. They had a great time learning how to apply their new found skills to something they enjoy using-- cell phones!
As the algebra project on cell phones comes to an end, we are preparing to launch an Pre-AP 7th grade and 8th grade project that is also related to cell phones. They are going to learn about how their own cell phones store photos and videos, and use equations to determine how many of each they can store before their phones run out of memory.
This spring is already well underway and the students are adjusting nicely to the new Engage! Learning Model. It has been an learning process for the teachers and the students alike, but we are sure the students are benefitting greatly from this new style of learning. We cannot wait to see what else is in store through the rest of this school year!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Gesch & Ms. Smith
Friday, December 13, 2013
Making a difference with Math!
Blog post from Mrs. Jobb:
For our latest round of projects at Navasota Junior High, all of our math students from 6th grade through Algebra have been working on projects focused on feeding the needy in our area around the holidays. The projects encouraged our students bring canned good and non-perishable food items.
The Algebra 1 students did fantastic jobs creating public service announcements involving their data collection and graphs. The 8th grade project had students making calculations so that the local food bank could better provide to meet the needs of different size families. The 7th graders worked to analyze the different food items that were collected and created graphs to analyze that data. The 6th graders worked on calculating how much food would be needed to cook for a specific number of people at the Twin City Mission during the holiday season.
At the completion of the projects, a few of our 8th grade students took the food that was collected at school and donated it at the annual KBTX Food for Families Food Drive and spent some time work to help sort and box collected items. We hope that these projects have provided our students with a real life experience that helped make a difference for those who are less fortunate.
For our latest round of projects at Navasota Junior High, all of our math students from 6th grade through Algebra have been working on projects focused on feeding the needy in our area around the holidays. The projects encouraged our students bring canned good and non-perishable food items.
The Algebra 1 students did fantastic jobs creating public service announcements involving their data collection and graphs. The 8th grade project had students making calculations so that the local food bank could better provide to meet the needs of different size families. The 7th graders worked to analyze the different food items that were collected and created graphs to analyze that data. The 6th graders worked on calculating how much food would be needed to cook for a specific number of people at the Twin City Mission during the holiday season.
At the completion of the projects, a few of our 8th grade students took the food that was collected at school and donated it at the annual KBTX Food for Families Food Drive and spent some time work to help sort and box collected items. We hope that these projects have provided our students with a real life experience that helped make a difference for those who are less fortunate.
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
The Holidays are Near!
Howdy
The 6th grade students just launched a new project for their Project Based Learning model titled Feeding the Needy. Since the holidays are just around the corner (time is just flying by!), we decided to incorporate the spirit of the holidays into this project. We have teamed up with Twin City Missions in College Station, Texas to help them give a special treat to those in need during the holiday season.
The original focus of Twin City Mission was to meet the needs of homeless individuals and families. Through that service, which began in 1963, other areas of need were recognized and new programs were developed to help meet those needs. After almost 50 years of providing a home for the homeless, being a friend to the friendless and giving hope to the hopeless, Twin City Mission remains the foundation of support for those in need. Whether it is shelter, meals, clothing, household items or whatever, Twin City Mission operates on the premise of not seeing through each other, but rather, seeing each other through.
The students seemed very thrilled to help others in their time of need. This week we will be in the Research/Work phase of the Engage! Learning model where students will work on the skills necessary to master this project. We are focusing on adding and subtracting fractions and decimals and how to incorporate these skills in the real world. We are thrilled to see how excited this project has made our student and are looking forward to seeing their final product.
Important upcoming dates:
All: Progress Reports - Tuesday, November 19th
6th Grade: Progress Check - Tuesday, November 19th
Final Product Due Date - Friday, November 22nd
7th Grade: Final Product Due Date - Thursday, November 14th
Post-Assessment - Friday, November 15th
8th Grade: Bring Cans!
Presentations - Thursday and Friday, November 21-22nd
Have a great week!
The 6th grade students just launched a new project for their Project Based Learning model titled Feeding the Needy. Since the holidays are just around the corner (time is just flying by!), we decided to incorporate the spirit of the holidays into this project. We have teamed up with Twin City Missions in College Station, Texas to help them give a special treat to those in need during the holiday season.
The original focus of Twin City Mission was to meet the needs of homeless individuals and families. Through that service, which began in 1963, other areas of need were recognized and new programs were developed to help meet those needs. After almost 50 years of providing a home for the homeless, being a friend to the friendless and giving hope to the hopeless, Twin City Mission remains the foundation of support for those in need. Whether it is shelter, meals, clothing, household items or whatever, Twin City Mission operates on the premise of not seeing through each other, but rather, seeing each other through.
The students seemed very thrilled to help others in their time of need. This week we will be in the Research/Work phase of the Engage! Learning model where students will work on the skills necessary to master this project. We are focusing on adding and subtracting fractions and decimals and how to incorporate these skills in the real world. We are thrilled to see how excited this project has made our student and are looking forward to seeing their final product.
Important upcoming dates:
All: Progress Reports - Tuesday, November 19th
6th Grade: Progress Check - Tuesday, November 19th
Final Product Due Date - Friday, November 22nd
7th Grade: Final Product Due Date - Thursday, November 14th
Post-Assessment - Friday, November 15th
8th Grade: Bring Cans!
Presentations - Thursday and Friday, November 21-22nd
Have a great week!
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
What's up?? A note from Mrs. Charles
The 7th grade Pre-Ap students are in the Research/Work phase of our new Project Based Learning model. In the spirit of the Holidays, we are joining forces with the NJH Food Drive for the Brazos County Food Bank. We are creating proportional relationships based off of the most common family sizes to the amount of servings needed daily for either fruits, vegetables or meats. We are also investigating non-proportional relationships in this project along with many other math concepts.
Research/Work is the most important phase of the learning model. Students have the opportunity to learn in a variety of ways that suits their needs. As a teacher, I am seeing a deep understanding of proportionality and how to apply it. Students are also learning what a non-proportional relationship is. This concept ties into understanding slope in Algebra and rate of change, along with others. We are building a foundation for future success!
It is satisfying to see light bulbs go off and students understanding what a constant of proportionality is. It's even more exciting to see an equation generated and we can find any value given that same situation.
WE are doing that. OUR students are meeting goals set for them and goals they set for themselves. It is through this intimate learning model that I can see who is fully understanding and who needs extra help. When a student can turnaround and teach another student what they know is nothing more than amazing. If you can teach it, you know it, right? I sure hope so. :)
I look forward to my students applying their research about proportions to our real-life project of creating proportional relationships of the amount of food each recipient should receive. This project has more math concepts tied into it and we will be working on it until Thanksgiving Break.
If you have any questions about the project or would be interested in donating canned goods, please email me at charless@navasotaisd.org. Our project is based around our collections, so the more the merrier!!!
Mrs. Charles
Research/Work is the most important phase of the learning model. Students have the opportunity to learn in a variety of ways that suits their needs. As a teacher, I am seeing a deep understanding of proportionality and how to apply it. Students are also learning what a non-proportional relationship is. This concept ties into understanding slope in Algebra and rate of change, along with others. We are building a foundation for future success!
It is satisfying to see light bulbs go off and students understanding what a constant of proportionality is. It's even more exciting to see an equation generated and we can find any value given that same situation.
WE are doing that. OUR students are meeting goals set for them and goals they set for themselves. It is through this intimate learning model that I can see who is fully understanding and who needs extra help. When a student can turnaround and teach another student what they know is nothing more than amazing. If you can teach it, you know it, right? I sure hope so. :)
I look forward to my students applying their research about proportions to our real-life project of creating proportional relationships of the amount of food each recipient should receive. This project has more math concepts tied into it and we will be working on it until Thanksgiving Break.
If you have any questions about the project or would be interested in donating canned goods, please email me at charless@navasotaisd.org. Our project is based around our collections, so the more the merrier!!!
Mrs. Charles
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Wow, time flies!
Here we are at the end of the 1st nine weeks and things are happening quickly!
As we wrap up our 3rd project in 8th grade, I decided to reflect on how things have been going so far.
I feel like we are getting the hang of the Engage! Learning Model routine. My students are aware of what protocol we are working in when asked by Mr. Lester. They know that they need to have journals passed out and will always have something to do when the bell rings. We still need to work on the efficiency of the research/work time so that the last few days of creating doesn't CREATE a sense of stress due to procrastination. That's something students and teachers alike can work on I think!
I am looking forward to Mr. Mendez viewing our great displays that will be done this week. I hope he can see that the students worked hard on calculating profit from concession sales. I love this project was real-life that benefits our school. This really inspired our next project that will start next week.
Important dates :
Post test for 8th grade Math: Thursday 10/24
End of 9 weeks: Friday 10/25
October 28 - teacher in-service
As we wrap up our 3rd project in 8th grade, I decided to reflect on how things have been going so far.
I feel like we are getting the hang of the Engage! Learning Model routine. My students are aware of what protocol we are working in when asked by Mr. Lester. They know that they need to have journals passed out and will always have something to do when the bell rings. We still need to work on the efficiency of the research/work time so that the last few days of creating doesn't CREATE a sense of stress due to procrastination. That's something students and teachers alike can work on I think!
I am looking forward to Mr. Mendez viewing our great displays that will be done this week. I hope he can see that the students worked hard on calculating profit from concession sales. I love this project was real-life that benefits our school. This really inspired our next project that will start next week.
Important dates :
Post test for 8th grade Math: Thursday 10/24
End of 9 weeks: Friday 10/25
October 28 - teacher in-service
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