Designing a new swimming pool

The rich task - key tricky word - compound shape!

Today, we did self assessment of where we thought we were on our rich task progression. It was a tough rich task and us teachers had many debates on ways to work it out.

Room 6 assessed what we could do well and what our next steps in learning are. Click on the cluttered notes on our Padlet and you can scroll through which each student wrote.

Created with Padlet

Sharing Money

Our maths topic is all about money. We will be using money as a context to learn how to use lots of different number strategies and build our number knowledge. It will be lots of fun!

We have started off with some sharing problems. It is has been great to see the students work out how to share the dollars and then break it down into sharing cents when it is needed to make the equal shares.

Kyra shows how to solve problem one!

Problem two

Zach has problem two sorted with the money equipment

Number Power Lines

For a starter in maths today, we tried playing Number Power Lines. It is a fun game and Room 16 enjoyed competing against each other. The idea is to make each power line match a given total using all the numbers that you are given. Our main strategy was guess and check. However the best learning was to come later...

Look I am on Level 8, Mum!

Play Time

Crighton certainly got ahead of me when we were playing the online game, as he raced through the levels. Then Henry worked out how to get on to Phase 2, using the password that you earn in Phase 1.

Creating

Following the game, the students had a go at designing their own algebra power line. For the first challenge, the students had to have three connected power lines that added to 16. You were not allowed to use a number more than once. Here is a collaborative Google drawing of some successful creations.

Look how different each pattern is to each other. Do all the lines add to 16?

The next challenge was to create four connected power lines that all add to 24. Again, not using any number more than once. Do the lines below all add to 24?

One of these patterns is not quite like the others.

What phase or level can you get up to in Algebra Power Line? Can you create your own Algebra Power Line pattern for others to work out?

Explaining Subtraction Strategies

Subtraction Strategies from Kieren Moriarty on Vimeo.

Yesterday in Maths, I used the iPad app Explain Everything as we were going through some subtraction strategies. It is a great app and this was my first go - I can see immediately it could be used in much more wonderful ways than I have here. In our class, we can also use AirPlay and put what is happening on the iPad onto our class widescreen. It's great how you can pause and play back learning and this app suits it very much.

Anyway, hopefully there is something in the captured video that you can play back to help you understand and use subtraction strategies. Thank you to Inderpreet and Tyrone for their contributions on the last slide!

Maths Investigation

How would you solve this problem? What would you do first?

Update: This was a bit tough so I had a go at creating a ShowMe. It's not the best but we don't learn if we don't try!

Multiplication Strategies

Using Two Strategies

Today in Maths we tried to use two strategies for each problem we solved. We then put a STAR to choose which strategy worked best for these numbers. Many of us learnt to use Rounding and Compensating as a strategy. Here is some of our work from the interactive whiteboard.

Subtraction Strategies

Which strategy works best for you?

Reversing Subtraction (So You Can Add)

Fantastic independent work by Casey and Katherine! They used Google drawing to show their subtraction strategy on a number line.
67 - __ = 34 becomes
34 + __ = 67 (reversing)
34 + 30 = 64 , 64 + 3 = 67

34 + 33 = 67 or 67 - 33 = 34